Beethovens Piano Concerto and Symphony No. 8

Performers: Francesco Piemontesi (piano), Orchestra della Svizzera italiana, conductor Markus Poschner

Programme:

Part I

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Piano Concerto No. 3
I. Allegro con brio
II. Largo
III. Rondo. Allegro

Part II

Ludwig van BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)
Symphony No. 8
I. Allegro vivace e con brio
II. Allegretto scherzando
III. Tempo di menuetto
IV. Allegro vivace

ABOUT THE PERFORMERS:

FRANCESCO PIEMONTESI, pianist

Pianist Francesco Piemontesi is a world-renowned interpreter of classicism and early romanticism, particularly praised for performances of music by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. He closely collaborates with the conductors Sir Roger Norrington, David Afkham and Andrew Manze. The pianist has performed with orchestras such as Cleveland Symphony Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra and others. Francesco Piemontesi is also an enthusiastic chamber musician, sharing the stage with great artists, such as - Emerson String Quartet, clarinettist Jörg Widmann, cellists Gautier Capuçon and Clemens Hagen, as well as the singer Angelika Kirchschlager and others. This season he is performing the concert cycle of Schubert's music in the famous Wigmore Hall in London.

“Orchestra della Svizzera italiana” is one of the 13 professional orchestras in Switzerland. The orchestra was founded in 1935 in Lugano, and it plays a significant role in developing musical culture in the district. The orchestra has been conducted by great personalities such as Igor Stravinsky, Leopold Stokowski, Sergiu Celibidache and Lorin Maazel, while amongst the main conductors were Mikhail Pletnev and Vladimir Ashkenazy. Since 2015, the orchestra is led by Markus Poschner. The orchestra has collaborated with composers such as Pietro Mascagni, Richard Strauss, Arthur Honegger, Paul Hindemith, Luciano Berio and Krzysztof Penderecki. Every year it participates in the Lugano Festival and festival of Martha Argerich - the piano legend. Their songs have been released by prestigious record companies, such as “Chandos”, “Hyperion”, “EMI”, “Deutsche Gramophone”.

MARKUS POSCHNER, conductor

Markus Poschner was born in Munich, as well as studied and began his conducting career there. He was an assistant to Sir Roger Norrington and Colin Davis. Since 2007, Poschner is the Honorary Professor of Musicology at the University of Bremen. He has conducted many of the world's leading orchestras - Dresden State Chapel, Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra in Tokyo and others. As a head conductor he has performed at the Belin State Opera, Zurich Opera, Frankfurt Opera and Hamburg State Opera houses. Since 2017, he is the head conductor at the Anton Bruckner Orchestra in Linz.

Partners Helsinn and Werner H. Spross-Stiftung