The Russian pianist Arcadi Volodos rose to fame with his hyper-virtuosic transcriptions of major orchestral works. But his solo recital in the Elbphilharmonie Grand Hall now reveals another side – one of deep emotion and Romantic introspection.
At the heart of the programme is Frédéric Chopin, who transformed the rustic Polish mazurka into elegant piano miniatures. Chopin also made a lasting mark with darker works – most famously the Funeral March from his Sonata in B minor, long associated with state funerals and cinema.
After the interval, Volodos turns to Franz Schubert’s final piano sonata – expansive, inward-looking and one of the great summits of Romantic piano music. Schubert’s gravestone reads: »Here lies a rich treasure of music, but even fairer hopes.« This sonata shows just how much promise lay in a composer who wrote masterpiece after masterpiece before his untimely death.
PERFORMERS
Arcadi Volodos piano
PROGRAM
Frédéric Chopin
Mazurka in B minor, Op. 33/4
Frédéric Chopin
Mazurka in E minor, Op. 41/2
Frédéric Chopin
Mazurka in F minor, Op. 63/2
Frédéric Chopin
Prélude in C-sharp minor, Op. 45
Frédéric Chopin
Sonata in B-flat minor, Op. 35
- Interval -
Franz Schubert
Sonata in B-flat major, D 960
