Beethoven and Mendelssohn at St John's Smith Square, London on Friday 3rd November 2023

Please note: This concert is in the past and has already taken place.

Beethoven and Mendelssohn

Add to my Calendar 03-11-2023 19:30 03-11-2023 21:30 36 Beethoven and Mendelssohn If you’re the superstitious type, you might feel some ghosts, spirits and mysterious forces moving around in this concert… Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No.1 was performed so often on the same instrument that the keys started to move by themselves, as if played by a dedicated, though invisible, pianist. Holy water wasn’t enough to deter the ghostly musician, so the instrument was packed up and sent to the landfill (ghost included). Isata Kanneh-Mason performs this concerto with LMP, but reduces the chances of witchcraft by playing on a modern piano. Anna Clyne’s Stride is haunted by a more obvious predecessor, Beethoven’s Sonata Pathétique. Listen out for the echoes of influence, reworked into a striking piece with Psycho-esque strings that warn of danger. And it’s an old cliché, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the opening notes of Beethoven’s Symphony No.5. The composer supposedly said they represent the ghostly hand of fate knocking at the door.   We’ll leave it to you to hear the pieces and decide whether these are just ghost stories, or if there’s something more than meets the eye… St John's Smith Square, London DD/MM/YYYY

Details

St John's Smith Square
Smith Square
City of Westminster
London
SW1P 3HA
England

Friday 3rd November 2023
7:30 PM

Programme

Felix Mendelssohn – Piano Concerto no.1 in G minor, Op.25
Anna Clyne – Stride
Arvo Pärt – Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten
Ludwig van Beethoven – Symphony no.5 in C minor, Op.67

Performers

Isata Kanneh-Mason – Piano
Jonathan Bloxham – Conductor
Ruth Rogers – Leader

London Mozart Players

Programme Note

If you’re the superstitious type, you might feel some ghosts, spirits and mysterious forces moving around in this concert…

Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No.1 was performed so often on the same instrument that the keys started to move by themselves, as if played by a dedicated, though invisible, pianist. Holy water wasn’t enough to deter the ghostly musician, so the instrument was packed up and sent to the landfill (ghost included). Isata Kanneh-Mason performs this concerto with LMP, but reduces the chances of witchcraft by playing on a modern piano.

Anna Clyne’s Stride is haunted by a more obvious predecessor, Beethoven’s Sonata Pathétique. Listen out for the echoes of influence, reworked into a striking piece with Psycho-esque strings that warn of danger. And it’s an old cliché, but we’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the opening notes of Beethoven’s Symphony No.5. The composer supposedly said they represent the ghostly hand of fate knocking at the door.

We’ll leave it to you to hear the pieces and decide whether these are just ghost stories, or if there’s something more than meets the eye…

Your events at Classical Events