Event is Live
Carnegie Hall Presents

Denis Matsuev, Piano

Wednesday, February 9, 2022 8 PM Stern Auditorium / Perelman Stage
Denis Matsuev by Eugene Evtukhov
Experience the artistry of Denis Matsuev, a musician the Los Angeles Times called a “virtuoso in the tradition of Gilels, Richter, or Horowitz.” That’s high praise for any pianist, but Matsuev lives up to the accolades with performances that blend poetry and passion. He is a dazzling performer, whether he’s exploring the complexities of Beethoven’s late works or the grandeur of a Rachmaninoff sonata. 

Performers

Denis Matsuev, Piano

Program

BEETHOVEN Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat Major, Op. 110

BEETHOVEN Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, Op. 111

R. SCHUMANN Kinderszenen

RACHMANINOFF Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat Minor, Op. 36


Encores:

RACHMANINOFF Vocalise

CHOPIN Waltz in C-sharp Minor, Op. 64, No. 2

GRIEG "Solveig's Song" (arr. Matsuev) and "In the Hall of the Mountain King" (arr. Ginzburg) from Peer Gynt, Op. 23

Event Duration

The printed program will last approximately two hours, including one 20-minute intermission.

Listen to Selected Works

At a Glance

BEETHOVEN  Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat Major, Op. 110

One of Beethoven’s last three piano sonatas, the A-flat–Major Sonata is full of strong and unpredictable contrasts. Throughout the work, one often has the sense that the composer is feeling his way from one idea to the next, the notes forming themselves soundlessly under his fingers, detached from their auditory moorings. 

 

BEETHOVEN  Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, Op. 111

In the radiant ending to his final piano sonata, Beethoven gives free rein to his poetic imagination. The music teacher in Thomas Mann’s novel Doctor Faustus describes the closing passage as “the most moving, consolatory, pathetically reconciling thing in the world. It is like having one’s hair or cheek stroked, lovingly, understandingly, like a deep and silent farewell look.” 

 

R. SCHUMANN  Kinderszenen (Scenes from Childhood), Op. 15

Schumann composed the deceptively uncomplicated miniatures that make up Kinderszenen in part as a love letter to his future wife, Clara Wieck. Although he called them “light as a bubble,” Wieck saw clearly that he had invested these “scenes of touching simplicity” with the emotional turmoil of his inner life. 

 

RACHMANINOFF  Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat Minor, Op. 36

Compared to Rachmaninoff’s sprawling First Piano Sonata of 1907–1908, the Second Sonata is a model of concision. The dense, roiling textures and fast-changing harmonies contrast with crystalline bell-like effects reminiscent of Rachmaninoff’s “choral symphony” The Bells, on which he was working simultaneously with the sonata in 1913.

Bios

Denis Matsuev

Denis Matsuev has quickly established himself as one of the most prominent pianists of his generation since his triumphant victory in the 11th International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. He is a laureate of the Shostakovich Prize, as well as the State Prize of the Russian Federation in ...

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