György Cziffra Memorial Concert

Program leírás

Performers: József Lendvay and Elemér Balázs Jr.

Admission to the concert is free of charge but bound to preliminary registration at the email address uki-s@uki-s.de .
(Joint concert of the György Cziffra Memorial Year and the Liszt Institute of the Hungarian Cultural Centre, Stuttgart)

Live music history, or in other words: how do a contemporary, a long-dead master, or a genre inspire a composer? Two artists will answer these questions, who, as children of musical families, form part of the great machinery. Ferenc Liszt had been an active pianist for over ten years when in 1932, he first heard Niccolò Paganini play in Paris. This experience completely transformed his attitude towards music. The first two pieces on the programme commemorate this encounter. Apart from two compositions in his youth, César Franck never again wrote for this instrumental setup, the violin and the piano, let alone the genre of the chamber sonata. With his Sonata in A major completed in 1886, he created a masterpiece; however, at a single stroke and with a doubtle twist: “This is not a sonata, but is damned beautiful anyhow!” were the word that Ernest Reyer, the work’s first critique. And indeed, Franck’s unique solutions in the form are quite different from those of usual sonatas. As the conclusion of the concert, the audience can enjoy Rachmaninov’s homage to Bach, which can also be interpreted as a style practice. Yet, it reflects profound insight and interest.