Beethoven’s music has accompanied pianist Jan Bartoš throughout his life, and each return to it raises new questions and reveals previously unseen connections. At Smetana’s Litomyšl, he will perform all thirty-two of the composer’s piano sonatas over four days – ten hours of music in total. Each sonata has a character of its own, but Jan Bartoš also wants to show what unites them: a journey through Beethoven’s world from youthful daring through dramatic struggles to wisdom, compassion and reconciliation. In his view, even after two centuries this music has lost none of its radicalism or its power to speak about the essence of human existence. In 2027, the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s death, we will set out on this journey with him.
A deliberately shorter and more concentrated chapter: the intimate Op. 78, the spontaneous humour of Op. 79, the programmatic arc of parting and return in Les Adieux, and finally Op. 90, whose two-movement form and lyrical second movement already open the door to the late style.
programme
Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Sonata No. 24 in F-sharp major, Op. 78
Piano Sonata No. 25 in G major, Op. 79
Piano Sonata No. 26 in E-flat major, Op. 81a “Les Adieux”
Piano Sonata No. 27 in E minor, Op. 90
Performers
Jan Bartoš – piano
photogallery
