The Music Information Centre Lithuania has published a new sheet music book for violin and piano called Lovely Evening, adding to a series of educational publications for children. The author is Veslav Sobieski, a composer and educator who currently works at the art schools of Vievis and Elektrėnai in Lithuania. Although he composes music for various instruments and choirs, a large part of his work consists of pedagogical pieces for violin and piano.

In 2022, Sobieski submitted a proposal to a Music Information Centre Lithuania competition for publishing ideas to release a collection of pieces that had been long in the making and had already been tested in pedagogical practice. As the composer said, they were born out of an immediate need for new such materials for violin. A survey of Lithuanian music teachers that same year also revealed this problem - a lack of new, relevant and attractive works for pupils - so Sobieski's idea was quickly selected for implementation.

The publication, titled Lovely Evening after one of the pieces in the collection, consists of works for violin and piano that are stylistically appealing to children, with elements of jazz and contemporary music. They are based on the basic principles of violin technique, with a gradual incrementation of technical tasks, and so they are suitable both for beginners and for advanced violin students. The collection consists of 20 pieces, namely 15 pieces for violin and piano and five for violin ensemble (two or three voices) with piano accompaniment.

Several pieces from this collection were already included in the 2016 Music Information Centre Lithuania violin primer The Little Bridge, which was well appreciated by fellow teachers and frequently performed throughout Lithuania. The performers themselves have also adapted these pieces for other instruments. The Little Bridge was such a success that it sold out very quickly. Due to the constant demand for violin repertoire, the publication has been reprinted and is once again available to everyone in paper and digital formats.

“It's easy to compose for children - they are sincere, so it's just a matter of authentically, easily conveying my good emotions to them in the form of musical sounds. I try to combine both of these aspects - both are important and I seem to be succeeding. Both the child's desires and abilities and the artistic aspect of the work are important,” says Sobieski.

Lovely Evening is available on musiclithuania.com in PDF format. The publication has been funded by the Lithuanian Council for Culture and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Lithuania.