On November 11, 1991, the new sonata received its world premiere in San Francisco at the Veterans' War Memorial. The San Francisco Chronicle's Joshua Kosman wrote, "...the Sonata #3 for Violin and Piano by Benjamin Lees was given a forthright performance by Daniel and Machiko Kobialka, for whom it was composed. This turned out to be a well-crafted, often lovely 18-minute score in one fairly sectional movement. The musical ideas are distinctively profiled, each developed with transparent clarity. There is grace in the writing and an appealing lack of fuss in the piece's overall formal workings."