Joshua Bell is trying something new this year.
Bell will perform Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg's Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Piano in G major, Op. 13, for a string of U.S. shows that will take him through Centennial Hall Saturday in his first Tucson solo recital.
The concert violinist learned the work last fall and is presenting it for the first time to audiences this year.
"It's been something that I've wanted to do for ages," Bell said in a January teleconference interview from New York City.
Bell remembers first hearing the sonata as a child, in a recording by violin virtuoso Jascha Heifetz.
"Grieg spins such incredible melodies. I'm a sucker for great melodies."
Learning new works is commonplace for Bell, who tries to add one piece a year to his already vast repertoire, despite having more than 120 concerts scheduled annually.
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It's the kind of dedication and work ethic that places Bell, 43, at the top of the classical-music food chain, making him a hot commodity, with performances scheduled in Dublin, Turkey, Prague and Moscow before the end of the year.
British pianist Sam Haywood will join Bell on his U.S. recital tour, including his performance in Tucson.
Bell is known for his collaborations with pianist Jeremy Denk, but Denk has "really taken off with his solo career," Bell said. "It is becoming more and more difficult to steal him away for large chunks of time."
Haywood, a student of Austrian pianist Paul Badura-Skoda, was recommended to Bell by another one of Bell's longtime collaborators, cellist Steven Isserlis. Isserlis had toured with Haywood and vouched for his skills and professionalism, so Bell took Haywood on the road last summer to see if they meshed.
"We got along well," Bell said. "He is a thoughtful pianist and honest musician. Also, just a good guy.
"(In) music making, unlike marriage, you don't have to be exclusive. I learn a lot from playing with lots of people."
In addition to the Grieg piece, Bell and Haywood will perform Franz Schubert's Fantasy in C major, Op. 159 and open the concert with Johannes Brahms' Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Piano in A major, Op. 100.
Bell is intimately familiar with both works and felt the two composers had a lot in common, both being from the German-Austrian tradition.
Brahms' sonata is "benevolent" and "lush," Bell said. "(It's) one of the most beautiful and integrating pieces of music."
And Schubert is "the greatest melodist that ever lived," as far as Bell's concerned.
Bell felt that having Brahms, Schubert and then Grieg, despite their contrasting sounds, made for a compelling program.
"It is like making a five-course meal," Bell said. "A lot of it is instinctual for me, what I think will work well together, from one course to the next."
IF YOU GO
Joshua Bell in concert
• When: 8 p.m. Saturday.
• Where: Centennial Hall, 1020 E. University Blvd.
• Tickets: $44-$74 through the UApresents box office, uapresents.org or 621-3341.
• Program Brahms' Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Piano in A major, Op. 100. Schubert's Fantasy in C major, Op. 159, D. 934. Grieg's Sonata No. 2 for Violin and Piano in G major, Op. 13.
Gerald M. Gay, a former Star reporter, is a Tucson-based freelance journalist.
