Nikolai Lugansky piano
Nikolai Lugansky takes on the challenge of Beethoven.
Dates
Beethoven Sonata No. 16 op. 31 No. 1 Sonata No. 30 Op. 109
Schumann 3 Fantasiestücke Op. 111, Fantaisie Op. 17
About
What is the connection between Schumann’s Fantaisie and Beethoven? The Fantaisie, in which you may discern an echo of An die ferne Geliebte, was composed to raise funds for the memorial to Beethoven initiated by Liszt, to whom the work is dedicated and who made up the outstanding sum from his own pocket. Before tackling this piece, Nikolaï Lugansky plays two sonatas by Beethoven back to back, which are rarely performed – the Sixteenth, which is full of humour, even though it is contemporaneous with the Heiligenstadt Testament, and the Thirtieth, whose finale, on which everything hangs, is a sort of sarabande to be played “with one’s deepest inner feelings”. The Russian pianist, who is currently recording the complete works on the Harmonia Mundi label, will plumb its full depths.
Production Jeanine Roze Production
