His greatest moment – Montagnana viola – Flos campi – teaching – Griller Quartet

Lionel and ada Tertis returned to England on 16 February 1924 on the Cunard liner RMS Berengaria. No sooner were they back in circulation than the pianist Katherine Goodson invited them to a party in honour of Ernő Dohnanyi. The Hungarian composer, then forty-six, was at the height of his fame, and his country's foremost musical ambassador as creator and performer; Bartok and Kodaly – both much better appreciated today – were hardly known to the wider world. In conversation that evening Tertis mentioned that he played Dohnanyi's C sharp minor Violin Sonata exactly as written for the violin. The Hungarian was amazed that he could get up so high; the music was produced, a viola borrowed from their host, and they proceeded to play the sonata. Tertis remembered: ‘It was a most exciting performance for me, as Dohnanyi, besides being a world-famous composer, was a magnificent pianist.’

Tertis's first recital on his return to England was at the Wigmore Hall on 4 March, when he played the Bax Sonata with the composer at the piano, a sonata by Martini, and his transcription of the Bach Chaconne. The following review from The Times was one of many:

Tertis's solo career continued unabated, and included a concert in Cardiff on 1 May.