Raff’s piano compositions earned him considerable acclaim in his lifetime. The four volumes of Blätter und Blüten (Leaves and Blossoms) consist of twelve deliciously melodic and colourful depictions of the then popular vogue for ‘The Language of Flowers’. By contrast, the Grande Sonate is a late work conceived on a quasi-symphonic scale. One of Raff’s major statements, it encompasses a bleak nobility that represents the culmination of his writing for the piano.