Elisabeth Leonskaja
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Grand Auditorium Calouste Gulbenkian FoundationPricing
50% – Under 30 years old
15% – Over 65 years old
- Piano
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Elisabeth Leonskaja
Piano
For decades now, Elisabeth Leonskaja has been among the most celebrated pianists of our time. Elisabeth Leonskaja’s musical development was shaped or influenced to a decisive degree by her collaboration with Svjatoslav Richter. The master recognized her exceptional talent and fostered her development not only through teaching and giving her advice, but also by inviting her to play numerous duets with him. The musical partnership and personal friendship between Svjatoslav Richter and Elisabeth Leonskaja endured until Richter’s death.
Elisabeth Leonskaja has appeared as a soloist with virtually all the leading orchestras in the world, and is a frequent and welcomed guest at prestigious summer music festivals, and she also gives recitals in the Piano Series in the world's major musical centers.
Leonskaja’s most recent CD recording appeared on eaSonus (www.easonus.com). “Paris”, with works by Ravel, Enescu and Debussy, was named the Solo Recording of the Year 2014 by the ICMA Jury. “Saudade”, an homage to Russian culture with works by Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich and Rachmaninoff, was released in November 2017. A complete recording of Franz Schubert’s piano sonatas in two volumes of four CDs each has been available since April 2016 and May 2019 respectively. A double-CD with variations and sonatas by Robert Schumann followed in January 2020.
In her second homeland, Austria, she is an honorary member of the Vienna Konzerthaus. In 2006 she was awarded the Austrian Cross of Honor for Science and Art, First Class, for her outstanding service to the culture of the country. It is the highest award in Austria. In Georgia, she was named Priestess of Art in 2016, this country’s highest artistic honor. In 2020 she received the International Classical Music (ICMA) Lifetime Achievement Award.
Johannes Brahms
Piano Sonata No. 1, in C major, op. 1
Piano Sonata No. 2, in F-sharp minor, op. 2
— Intermission of 20 min —
Johannes Brahms
Piano Sonata No. 3, in F minor, op. 5
One of today’s most remarkable pianists, Elisabeth Leonskaja settled in Vienna in 1978. This is one of the reasons she indicates for her frequent recurrence to Brahms’ pianistic repertoire: “when you live in Vienna, you know the air that Brahms breathed,” she said in an interview. Her superb interpretation of Brahms’ piano sonatas was recognised with the Caecilia Prize in 1992. She says she is captivated by the many facets that the composer explores in his piano pieces and, with each return to his work, she renews her conviction that: “people absolutely need the music of Brahms”.
Sponsor Gulbenkian Music
Sponsor Piano Series
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