A new festival from september 28 to october 23, 2013

On the occasion of the bicentenary of the birth of the pianist-composer Charles-Valentin Alkan, the Palazzetto Bru Zane is presenting a festival of eight concerts. The concerts will feature his music for pedal piano, the cycle of 48 Esquisses, the Grande Sonate “Les Quatre Ages” and pieces for different chamber music formations.

Alkan’s production, written mainly for the keyboard, shows extraordinary virtuosity and covers many genres: studies, preludes, impromptus, sonatas, prayers, and so on.

Alkan was a child prodigy: by the age of twelve he was seeing his work in print: by fifteen was teaching music theory at the Paris Conservatoire.

In the years 1830-1840 he produced about thirty piano and chamber works, crowned by masterly Grande Sonate “Les Quatre Ages”. His concert appearences were rare, and some periods in his retiring existence are quite poorly documented. He experimented a great deal in his works and sought out unusual sonorities: some of his contemporaries referred to him as the Berlioz of the piano.

The festival will starts on saturday 28, September with Giovanni Bellucci al Palazzetto Bru Zane and it continues on sunday 29, 2013 at San Giovanni Evangelista with Emanuelle Bertrand and Pascal Amoyel. The last appointment wil be on october 23 at Palazzetto Bru Zane with Trio Arcadis.

For information and reservation ask@in-venice.com