Pianist Rasa Vitkauskaitė and violinist Ilya Kaler began recording all of Beethoven‘s violin sonatas to mark the 200th anniversary of his death in 2027. They wanted to create a standout recording of this important chamber music cycle, but one sonata soon meant much more to them.
Beethoven’s Violin Sonata No. 9, better known as the Kreutzer Sonata, inspired the Bridgetower Project. This ambitious artistic collaboration combines music, poetry, historical research, and a newly commissioned work to restore recognition to the sonata’s original dedicatee, the Afro-European violinist George Bridgetower.
Bridgetower Project Artists
“It all started about ten years ago,” Vitkauskaitė says. She and Kaler first played together in 2016, performing chamber music before recording several albums, including Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto, Double Concerto, Capriccio Brillant and Contrasts. As they discussed future projects, they realised that Beethoven’s violin sonatas were among the few major works still missing from Kaler’s distinguished discography.
“I said, ‘Ilya, you haven’t recorded the Beethoven sonatas. We should do something about it.'”
Over the following year, the two musicians recorded the complete cycle in three intensive sessions. But when they reached Sonata No. 9, Vitkauskaitė found herself increasingly captivated by the remarkable story behind the music.
“When we reached Sonata No. 9,” she says, “I realised this piece deserved its own release. The story behind it is too powerful.”
As Vitkauskaitė learned more about the sonata’s history, the recording project grew into something bigger. Bridgetower, born in 1778 to an African father and Polish mother, was already a famous violinist when he came to Vienna in 1803. Beethoven admired him so much that he paused other work to write a new sonata just for him. They performed the piece together, and reports from the time say Beethoven hugged Bridgetower on stage after one of his impressive improvisations.
Their friendship did not last. After a personal disagreement, Beethoven withdrew the dedication and gave it to the French violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer, who never played the piece and is said to have called it unplayable. Still, the sonata has carried Kreutzer’s name for over two hundred years.
Discovering Bridgetower’s story also changed the way Vitkauskaitė understood Beethoven’s music.
“When you’ve recorded all ten sonatas, you really feel that this one was written for somebody very special,” she says. “It’s so expansive and technically demanding that you immediately sense Beethoven had a particular musician in mind.”
As her research deepened, the Bridgetower Project began attracting collaborators from beyond the classical music world. One of its most significant additions was Sonata Mulattica, the book-length poetic retelling of Bridgetower’s life by former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove. Inspired by the collection, Vitkauskaitė reached out to Dove, never expecting a reply.
“I honestly didn’t expect she would even respond,” she admits. “She’s such a significant literary figure.”
To her delight, Dove enthusiastically agreed to participate. A Pulitzer Prize-winning poet and classically trained cellist, she recorded four selections from Sonata Mulattica, bringing an entirely new artistic dimension to the album.
Florence Price‘s Adoration also found a natural place on the program.
“It’s such a beautiful, intimate work,” Vitkauskaitė says. “It also fits the project’s broader mission of highlighting voices that were overlooked for so long.”
Like Bridgetower, Price’s music has experienced a long-overdue rediscovery, making it a fitting companion to Beethoven’s sonata.
Another unexpected addition grew out of one of Bridgetower’s own surviving compositions. Although most of his music has been lost, a short vocal work titled Henry remains. Rather than recording it in its original form, Vitkauskaitė envisioned a new composition inspired by it.
She immediately thought of Cuban clarinettist, saxophonist, and composer Paquito D’Rivera.
“I wrote to him and explained the idea,” she recalls. “He became excited immediately and started working right away.”
The result was Bridgetower Reimagined: Contradanza Mulattica, a new chamber work for violin, piano, two clarinets, cello, and double bass. D’Rivera joins the recording alongside Jonathan Cohler, who also serves as the project’s producer; Grammy-nominated cellist Dave Eggar and bassist Gregg August; Vitkauskaitė; and Kaler. Rather than reconstructing Bridgetower’s music, the work celebrates his legacy through D’Rivera’s vibrant blend of classical, Afro-Caribbean, Latin, and jazz traditions.
As new collaborators and fresh ideas continued to emerge, the Bridgetower Project grew far beyond what Vitkauskaitė had originally imagined.
Bridgetower Project Cover square with border
Throughout the project, she valued working with Kaler, whose decades of experience challenged and inspired her. “It’s an incredible learning opportunity,” she says. “When you play with someone with that experience, you must come prepared. You learn a lot just by listening.” Years of performing together have strengthened their musical bond. “The more you play together, the better you understand each other’s musical language. Sometimes a small breath or gesture is enough to anticipate what’s next.” That spirit of collaboration guides the Bridgetower Project as it prepares for performances at Carnegie Hall and beyond, with concerts through Beethoven’s bicentenary in 2027 and Bridgetower’s 250th in 2028.
It quickly became clear that the Bridgetower Project is about far more than correcting a historical footnote. Every collaboration, from Rita Dove’s poetry to Paquito D’Rivera’s new commission, reflects a shared commitment to bringing Bridgetower’s story to life through multiple artistic perspectives. The result is a project that not only celebrates one of Beethoven’s greatest masterpieces but also restores a remarkable musician to the place he has long deserved in the history of that masterpiece.
To learn more about the Bridgetower Project, visit www.bridgetowerproject.com.
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