I.    Allegro non troppo II.   Allegretto quasi Menuetto & Trio III.  Allegro It's hard to imagine a lovelier beginning to a concert than Sonata in E Minor for Cello & Piano by Johannes Brahms. No opening chords, no announcement .. just the meliflous and reassuring voice of the cello supported ever so discreetly by piano. In classical music, a “sonata” can be for either one instrument alone or, as in this case, a duet. The E Minor Sonata is among only a handful that truly capture the presence and majesty of its two magnificent instruments. Written in 1865, it explores the sonorous, lower register of the cello while keeping the piano an equal but not overwhelming partner. The leisurely first movement is followed by an impish Menuet and Trio, and Finale is in heroic fugal style.