Mikhail Pletnev, Pianist and Conductor
Evening Music | May 6, 2010
Mikhail Pletnev is a formidable musician; not only is he one of the world’s foremost pianists, but he is also a much-in-demand conductor who has led most of the great orchestras.
The Russian National Orchestra was formed by Pletnev in 1990 and—under his leadership as its Music Director and Principal Conductor—has achieved acclamation as one of the best performing groups around. We hear Pletnev lead his band this evening in works by fellow Russians Tchaikovsky, Liadov, and Tcherepnin. We’ll sample his keyboard artistry as well, as we listen to C. P. E. Bach’s Harpsichord Sonata in G Minor.
While Richard Strauss’s “Four Last Songs” were written for soprano and orchestra, occasionally, and that includes this evening, we hear them sung with piano accompaniment instead. Barbara Bonney, whose birthday it is (1956), sings the “Vier letze Lieder” with support from pianist Malcolm Martineau. Little-known choral works by Strauss can be heard performed by the American Symphony Orchestra and the Concert Chorale of New York under Leon Botstein at Avery Fischer Hall on April 17th.
The Russian National Orchestra was formed by Pletnev in 1990 and—under his leadership as its Music Director and Principal Conductor—has achieved acclamation as one of the best performing groups around. We hear Pletnev lead his band this evening in works by fellow Russians Tchaikovsky, Liadov, and Tcherepnin. We’ll sample his keyboard artistry as well, as we listen to C. P. E. Bach’s Harpsichord Sonata in G Minor.
While Richard Strauss’s “Four Last Songs” were written for soprano and orchestra, occasionally, and that includes this evening, we hear them sung with piano accompaniment instead. Barbara Bonney, whose birthday it is (1956), sings the “Vier letze Lieder” with support from pianist Malcolm Martineau. Little-known choral works by Strauss can be heard performed by the American Symphony Orchestra and the Concert Chorale of New York under Leon Botstein at Avery Fischer Hall on April 17th.
