Johann Sebastian Bach Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue in D Minor BWV 903
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Sonata in D major KV 311
Claude Debussy Estampes L. 100
Sergei Rachmaninov Romance op. 21/5, Prélude in A minor op. 32/8, Prélude in G major op. 23/10, 8 Études-tableaux op. 33
Before the concert: Clara Schumann Foyer (Level 2) ▪ 18.00 - 19.00 Uhr
ALTE OPER CAMPUS - KIRSCHNEREITS KLAVIERKOSMOS
From harpsichord to Steinway
Explore and listen with MATTHIAS KIRSCHNEREIT
After the concert: Clara Schumann Foyer (Level 2) ▪ approx. 22.00 Uhr
MATTHIAS KIRSCHNEREIT in conversation with Evgeny Kissin
Independent Spirit: Evgeny Kissin is one of the great artists of our time, nevertheless the pianist doses his appearances on the important international concert podiums sparingly. Kissin's tour calendar for 2023 currently lists just two dates in Germany - one of which will take the pianist to the Alte Oper Frankfurt on Monday, February 27, 2023, at 8 p.m., where he last appeared as a soloist nine years ago. For his recital in the Great Hall, Kissin has put together a program that traverses epochs and countries. Johann Sebastian Bach's expressive Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue in D minor, not for nothing taken up by the virtuoso composers and pianists of the 19th century, stands at the beginning of the solo evening. Kissin juxtaposes it with the Mozart Piano Sonata in D major, K. 311, which is on the whole rather seldom heard in the concert hall and features not only playful outer movements but also an expressive Andante con espressione.
After Claude Debussy's pictorial "Estampes" Kissin directs the focus in the second concert section on the work of Sergei Rachmaninov and interprets, in addition to the Romance op. 21/5 and two Préludes, his eight Études-tableaux op. 33, impressive examples of the fusion of "practice pieces" with the highest technical demands and effective character pieces for the concert hall.
Born in Moscow, living in Prague for several years, holder of a Russian, a British and an Israeli passport: not only in his concert programs, but also in his private life Evgeny Kissin shows himself to be a true citizen of the world. The former child prodigy (music studies at the age of six, first concert at seven, international breakthrough at 17 as soloist in the New Year's Eve concert of the Berlin Philharmonic) is still considered one of the most important interpreters of our time. Among the numerous honors the pianist has received in his long career is a recently awarded honorary doctorate from the Franz Liszt Academy of Music in Weimar. Kissin was thus honored not only for his musical merits, but also for his literary activities in the Yiddish language and for his basic humanistic attitude. The extent to which the pianist is also concerned with current political events is evident, among other things, in his clear stance against Putin's war in Ukraine.
From the harpsichord to the Steinway: based on the cornerstones of the piano evening's program - Bach's Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue composed for the harpsichord on the one hand, and Sergei Rachmaninoff's spacious piano art on the other - pianist Matthias Kirschnereit explores the tonal possibilities of the various keyboard instruments. Before the concert with Evgeny Kissin, from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., Kirschnereit will welcome all those interested to the "Kirschnereit's Piano Cosmos" format in the Clara Schumann Foyer as part of the "Alte Oper Campus" music education program. In explanations, which he illustrates on the piano, and in excerpts of works he goes on the track of the works of the evening.
After the concert, around 10 pm, the audience is cordially invited to the Clara Schumann Foyer, where Matthias Kirschnereit and Evgeny Kissin in the artist talk review the evening. Admission is free to all who present a ticket for the evening concert.
