Igor Levit – piano recital - NOSPR

In the spring of 2027, the musical world will mark the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death. At NOSPR, one of the central events in this celebration of the composer’s legacy will be Igor Levit’s piano recital. The German pianist of Russian origin first attracted widespread attention with his much-discussed recording of Beethoven’s complete 32 piano sonatas, a project that occupied him for more than fifteen years. During his visit to Katowice, he will perform four of them.

The first half of the recital will feature two sonatas in C minor: the early sonata, Op. 10 No. 1, and the slightly more mature Op. 13, traditionally known as the ‘Pathétique’.

The second half of the recital will feature two sonatas from Beethoven’s mature period, both centred on the key of F: F major and F minor. Sonata No. 22 in F major, Op. 54, is among the composer's lesser-known works, yet its unusual two-movement structure offers a fascinating insight into Beethoven’s handling of musical form. As for the Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57, Beethoven is said to have replied, when asked how it should be interpreted: “Just read Shakespeare’s The Tempest”. Indeed, in the ‘Appassionata’, he conjures a profoundly Shakespearean vision of immense, almost supernatural forces amid which people struggle to find meaning in their existence.

Szymon Maliszewski

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