Alexander Melnikow © Julien Mignot
Klavierabend Alexander Melnikov
Schostakowitsch: Präludien und Fugen
Thursday
19
December
2024
19:00
Mozart-Saal
Performers
Alexander Melnikov, Klavier
Programme
Dmitri Schostakowitsch
24 Präludien und Fugen op. 87 (1950–1951)
Subscription series
Klavier im Mozart-Saal
Presented by
Wiener Konzerthausgesellschaft
Pianistic ascent to the summit
Dmitri Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues op. 87 rise like a mountain range in 20th century piano music, inspired by Bach and his »Well-Tempered Clavier«. Bach created a timeless model with his preludes and fugues, which Shostakovich and Hindemith drew on in the 20th century with his »Ludus tonalis«. Portrait artist Alexander Melnikov devotes himself to Shostakovich's work in a special way: Instead of the traditional division into two parts, he plays the preludes and fugues in three parts and emphasises the central group of Nos. 13 to 16 with rests, with the D flat major fugue No. 15 as the dizzying climax. BBC Music Magazine ranked his recording of the opus among the fifty most important recordings of all time!