Bologna Festival: Sophia Liu plays Chopin

About the Event

For pianists such as the Canadian Sophia Liu (b. 2008), age is merely a number—one that does little to explain the mystery of a talent already capable of harnessing lyrical intimacy and transcendental virtuosity. Chopin opens her journey with the inward song of the Nocturne Op. 9 No. 3, moves through the folk roots of the Mazurkas, and culminates in the narrative drama of the First Ballade and the radiant brilliance of the Scherzo Op. 54. With Tchaikovsky, the melancholic Dumka and the poetic miniatures of The Seasons broaden the expressive horizon. Balakirev closes with Islamey, a vertiginous synthesis of “Oriental” colour and technical peril that has earned, in pianistic circles, the reputation of an impossible challenge. Not for everyone—though not for her, either.

PROGRAMME
Fryderyk Chopin: Nocturne in B major, Op. 9 No. 3
Fryderyk Chopin: Four Mazurkas, Op. 33
Fryderyk Chopin: Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23
Fryderyk Chopin: Scherzo No. 4 in E major, Op. 54
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Dumka in C minor, Op. 59
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: The Seasons, Op. 37a (selection)
III. March: Song of the Lark / VI. June: Barcarolle
VII. July: Song of the Reaper / VIII. August: The Harvest
IX. September: The Hunt / XI. November: Troika
XII. December: Christmas
Mily Balakirev: Islamey: Oriental Fantasy, Op. 18