ROBERT SCHUMANN
Zwickau, Germany 1810 - Endenich, Germany 1856
Adagio and Allegro in A-flat major, op. 70
(1849)
GUILLEM PALOMAR
Lichtjagd for horn and piano
(2021) - National premiere
MARK SIMPSON
Liverpool 1988
Nachtstück for horn and piano
(2021) - National premiere - Commissioned by Barbican Center and ECHO
JANE VIGNERY
Ghent, Belgium 1913 - 1974
Sonata for horn and piano, op. 7
(1948)
Allegro
Lento ma non tanto
Allegro ben moderato
The approximate duration of the concert will be 45 minutes
BEN GOLDSCHEIDER, French horn
ECHO Rising Star, nominated by Barbican Centre London
GIUSEPPE GUARRERA, piano
NOTES
by Alba Nogueras
They say that Clara Schumann described op. 70 by her husband, the Adagio and Allegro in A flat major, originally titled Romanze and Allegro, as brilliant, fresh and passionate. This work takes advantage of the limits of the registers in the first part and plays with the agility of the horn in the second. It is a colourful work that demands enormous interpretative flexibility to understand and embrace the different moods, which are often contrasting and constantly changing: at some points it is bright and cheerful, while at others it is dark and deep.
In the second part of the concert, the audience will be treated to two national premieres: Lichtjagd ( 2021) by Guillem Palomar and Nachtstück (2021) by Mark Simpson. Finally, the recital will close with what is surely the best known work of the Belgian composer Jane Vignery: Sonata for Horn and Piano, Op. 7 (1948). Boasting enormous beauty and optimism, and divided into three movements—allegro, lento ma non troppo and allegro ben moderato—this piece forges a dialogue between the two instruments and places them on par with each other: the piano does not just accompany the horn but also leads the piece in an almost theatrical way, giving the horn the chance to respond with all the emotion the performer can muster. On the other hand, this work also demands enormous technical mastery from the soloist.
In addition to having received several awards this season, Ben Goldscheider, on horn, has been nominated for the ECHO Rising Stars and has made his debut with the BBC Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sakari Oramo at the Barbican. He is accompanied on piano by Giuseppe Guarrera, a member of the Barenboim-Said Akademie in Berlin and a winner of the Klavierfestival Ruhr prize for young emerging artists, among other accolades.
