{TABLE} Sonata in D. Op. 12 No. 1................ Beethoven Sonata. Op. 11 ...........................Von Einem Sonata in E flat. Op. 18..................Strauss {/TABLE} THE abundant opulence of Strauss's Sonata for Violin and Piano, Op. 18, was an appropriate conclusion to the pre-Christmas concert in the Lane Gallery, the last of the Sunday at Noon series for this year. Oozing with sweetness at every pore and sounding like Rachmaninov and Mahler rolled together, it demands, and got, playing that is not only accomplished but fully committed. Somewhat against my will, I was completely won over by the stylish playing of Maighread McCrann (violin) and Jimmy Vaughan (piano).

Nevertheless I preferred the cooler and more laconic Sonata of Gottfried von Einem, who died earlier this year. He steered a careful course between modernism and classicism, dallying with some possibly jazz-inspired syncopation on its way. It was the easiest work for a late 20th century ear to relate to

Beethoven's Sonata Op. 12 No. 1, was played in an extrovert fashion; despite some tender moments in the slow movement the general effect was of somewhat grandiose oratory. It is perhaps a legitimate reading, but a little more elegance and delicacy would not have been amiss.

Vivaldi's Gloria included some neat orchestral playing and a few serious slips of ensemble. The tone and blend of the soloists - Ailish Tynan and Maria O'Connell (sopranos) and Paula Murrihy (alto) were rewarding.

So was the singing in a choral-competition-style version of The Holly and the Ivy, which the DITCS presented as an encore, and in which they sang with more definition and confidence than in the main part of the programme.