Koroliov/Keller

31/10/2015 and 01/11/2015 19:30 pm

Bach: Piano Concerto in g-minor, BWV 1058
Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor  Op. 37
Arvo Pärt: Missa brevis
Beethoven:  Symphony No 5 in C minor, Op 67

Featuring: Evgeni Koroliov

Conductor: András Keller

One of today’s most significant Bach performers, Russian-born Evgeni Koroliov, who lives and teaches in Hamburg, is a regular guest of the Liszt Academy and performs (not for the first time) with Concerto Budapest led by András Keller. This time he features in two piano concertos, the Bach G minor work originally for violin, and one of the most dramatic compositions by the young Beethoven, the Piano Concerto in C minor that echoes in many respects the Mozart work in the same key. Those, who are familiar with the Art of Arvo Pärt (1935) know, how important role liturgical music genres play in his ouvre, and that the sacred music of the Estonian composer keeps - in most cases - even the “function” of liturgical genres. Missa Brevis composed between 2009-2010, and dedicated to 12 cellists of  Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra refers to three parts of a worship (Kyrie , Sanctus and Agnus Dei), but the lyrics are not uttered in it, so this short, nine-minute composition only indirectly can fulfill the liturgic function. Instrumentation (the work was written for 12 and later rewritten for 8 cellos) ensures the homogeneity of sounding. This instrumental "short mess" is related to the Author's previous works such as Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten (1977) or Silouans's Song (1991). The concert winds up with one of the emblematic works of European cultural history, the evergreen Symphony No. 5 by Beethoven, which despite being ‘overplayed’ still has the power to stir up powerful emotions.