Tuesday 24 November 2009 at 7.30pm
Wigmore Hall
36 Wigmore Street, London W1U 2BP
Alexander Karpeyev (piano)
Schubert: Wanderer Fantasy in C Op.15
Brahms: Six Pieces Op.118
Schumann: Toccata Op.7
Prokofiev: Visions Fugitives
Liszt: Spanish Rhapsody
"I have chosen to dedicate the first half of my programme to works by Schubert, Brahms and Schumann because of my love and respect for German music.
Schubert's C major Fantasy has always held a fascination for me, and its many musical demands provide the performer with perpetual challenges. I have always felt a particularly close rapport for the music of Brahms, and I consider his Op.118 to be one of his most profound works for piano. The Schumann Toccata, a concert piece, which has been popular with audiences since the nineteenth century for its dazzling display of brilliant passage writing, is always a pleasure to perform.
As Prokofiev is not always recognised for his lyrical qualities, it gives me particular pleasure to bring this Op.22 to the audience's attention. Its compelling lyricism makes itself immediately evident. As an uplifting and entertaining conclusion to the programme, Liszt's Rhapsody Espagnole fits the bill with its inherent drama and engaging Spanish melodies."
Alexander Karpeyev
Schubert's "Wanderer" Fantasy, named after the song of his own which provided its germinal theme, differs from most of his piano music in having been written for a virtuoso performer: it's said that when he tried to play it himself, he gave up, exclaiming "Let the devil himself play it!" There's devilish virtuosity, too, in Schumann's Toccata, a non-stop essay in high-powered pianism, and even more in Liszt's Spanish Rhapsody, a dazzling souvenir of a tour of Spain based on two traditional dance tunes. In complete contrast are the works by two more composer-pianists: Brahms's group of Six Pieces Op.118, the poetic distillation of a lifetime's experience; and Prokofiev's "Visions Fugitives", twenty astonishingly varied miniatures inspired by a poet's description of "fleeting visions" of "worlds at play, filled with shifting iridescence".
Tickets: £8 - £13
Box office tel: 020 7935 2141
or visit www.wigmore-hall.org.uk
“Karpeyev's artistic maturity was palpable, and it shone through every bar of his closing item - a commanding performance of Liszt's B minor Sonata.” The Birmingham Post