Beethoven Sonata No. 13 in E flat major, Op. 27 No. 1, ‘Quasi una fantasia’
Beethoven Sonata No. 12 in F minor, Op. 26, ‘Funeral March’
Beethoven Sonata No. 19 in G minor, Op. 49 No. 1, ‘Leichte Sonata’
Beethoven Sonata No. 20 in G major, Op. 49 No. 2, ‘Leichte Sonata’
Beethoven Eroica Variations, Op. 35

Alim Beisembayev piano

Alim Beisembayev’s recital explores Beethoven’s piano compositions at the turn of the century. Sonata No. 13, ‘Quasi una fantasia’, and Sonata No. 12, ‘Funeral March’, show the composer’s willingness to be unconventional in two distinct ways. The ‘Leichte’ Sonatas, composed earlier than their opus number would suggest, are thought to have been written for friends and students, both offering a truncated, two-movement structure rather than the usual three or four. Finally, the Eroica Variations, a turning point in Beethoven’s career, he described to his publisher as ‘arranged in a truly quite new fashion’. All this from a pianist who prompted The Telegraph’s critic to write recently that ‘there is no pianist under 30 in the world I would rather hear.’

Tickets: £32
(Students £5)
Duration: 120 min
Venue: Holywell Music Room, Holywell Street

£5 – £32