Violinist Sarah Westwick and pianist Stephen Smith present a thoughtfully programme that brings together a rarely heard work and a familiar Romantic cornerstone. Central to the recital is a sonata by Dora Pejačević, the nineteenth-century Croatian composer, pianist, and violinist whose music is still seldom encountered in concert halls. Richly crafted and emotionally direct, the sonata reveals a distinctive voice from the late Romantic era and offers listeners a chance to encounter a composer beyond the standard repertoire.
The programme also includes Johannes Brahms’s Violin Sonata No 1 in G major, commonly known as the “Rain Sonata.” Drawing on themes from Brahms’s song Regenlied, the work is known for its lyricism, warmth, and inward character. Sarah and Stephen approach the sonata with clarity and balance, allowing its long melodic lines and subtle interplay between violin and piano to speak naturally.
Together, these works create a recital that invites close listening and reflection. By placing Pejačević alongside Brahms, the programme offers both familiarity and discovery, presented through the collaborative musicianship of two performers deeply engaged with the repertoire.
Sarah Westwick studied violin at the Vancouver Academy of Music where she was the recipient of the Tiampo memorial scholarship. She went on to earn a Bachelor of Music in violin performance from UBC, and was concertmaster of the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra.
She has also studied music in London England, at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing and at the Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in Prague. She is a member of the Vancouver Opera Orchestra, is a freelance violinist and enjoys playing chamber music. As a freelance player she has been part of the band for many visiting artists, including Andrea Bocelli, Kenny G, Barbara Streisand, Googoosh, and Alireza Ghorbani.
Sarah has teacher training qualifications and experience in both the Suzuki violin and viola methods, and often adjudicates festivals and competitions around the province. She is on faculty at the East Vancouver Community Music School, where she organizes the annual Equal Measure festival, which highlights music by composers from historically excluded groups for both students and professional musicians. She also enjoys singing in the choir at Christ Church Cathedral.
Stephen Smith grew up in rural Nova Scotia, Canada, where he sang and played the piano from an early age. After initial studies in his home province in both piano and organ, he attended the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, England, receiving the college's professional performer's diploma and the degree of Mus.M. in piano performance, winning numerous awards and distinctions in national and international competitions, and concertizing throughout England.
Since 1990, Stephen has lived in Vancouver, obtaining his doctoral degree in piano performance from the University of British Columbia, and contributing to the musical life of the city as a performer, teacher, adjudicator, lecturer and writer on music, composer, arranger, and conductor. Central to his career are his long-standing relationships with some of Vancouver’s finest choral groups, including the Vancouver Men’s Chorus, Elektra Women's Choir, the Vancouver Bach Choir, and the Vancouver Chamber Choir.