HÀ NỘI — A concert featuring works of one of the most important composers and pianists of the 19th century Charles Valentin Alkan will be held in Hà Nội on Saturday.
Alkan (1813-1888) has been ranked as a pianist on the level of Chopin and Liszt. The concert will feature his Twelve Études which will be performed by pianists Alessandro Marino and Nguyễn Đức Anh.
Pianist Alessandro Marino.
This work is more than two hours in length and is demanding of a performer. It is very rare for the whole work to be performed in concert, says a press release from French Culture Centre which hosts the event.
Pianist Raymond Lewenthal has called the work "a ride in Hell". The first movement of the concerto alone contains 1,343 measures, more than the entirety of Beethoven's Hammerklavier Sonata, and lasts half an hour.
The two talented pianists are working together on the project to perform and popularise the most beautiful and difficult works of Alkan's.
Marino has won international prizes including the Ibla Grand Prize Competition through which he made a US tour and debuted at Carnegie Hall in 2015.
He was also co-winner of the International Alkan-Zimmerman Piano Competition in Athens. He is currently teaching at Istituto Superiore di Studi Musicali in Reggio Emilia and Scuola di Musica L'Ottava Nota in Milan.
During the concert, Marino will play Symphony for Solo Piano and an overture.
Anh has received a Master of Performing Arts from the Freiburg Conservatory of Music. He became the soloist for the Việt Nam Symphony Orchestra in 2019.
Pianist Nguyễn Đức Anh. Photos courtesy of L'espace
He will be performing Concerto for Piano at the concert.
The concert will begin at 8pm, French Culture Centre, 24 Tràng Tiền Street. VNS
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