Piano sonatas are pre-eminent in Bomtempo’s oeuvre. They show a diverse range of influences from Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven but contain many original features, not least incendiary scalar passages and dramatic hand crossings. Full of lyricism, counterpoint and often exceptional virtuosity, these features reach a peak in the monumental Piano Sonata, op.20, one of his most demanding piano compositions.

Luísa Tender studied piano with Anne Mennet, Helena Costa and Pedro Burmester at the Conservatório de Música and Escola Superior de Música e Artes do Espetáculo (ESMAE). She then continued her studies with Vitalij Margulis, Irina Zaritskaya and Marian Rybicki. Tender regularly performs as a soloist and chamber musician, and her repertoire ranges from the Baroque to the contemporary. Luísa Tender is currently a researcher at the Centro de Estudos de Sociologia e Estética Musical (CESEM) within the Faculdade de Ciências Sociais e Humanas at the Universidade NOVA de Lisboa.