Reflections on a Waltz

R. Schumann Papillons, op.2
Satie Gymnopédie no.3
Lili Boulanger D'un jardin clair, no.2 from Trois Morceaux pour piano
Lyadov A Musical Snuff Box, op.32
Kreisler (arr. Rachmaninov) Liebesleid
Ravel Valses nobles et sentimentales
Interval
Beethoven 33 Variations on a Waltz by Diabelli, op.120

A force on the international stage since winning the Naumburg International Piano Competition in 1997, Scottish pianist Steven Osborne has appeared 15 times at BBC Proms and is a regular visitor to Wigmore Hall and Lincoln Center, New York. In the New Year’s Honours 2022 he was appointed OBE for Services to Music.

Tonight, Steven invites us to join him for ‘Reflections on a Waltz’. There’s a young Robert Schumann imagining a masked ball, Lili Boulanger strolling dreamily in a garden, Ravel’s 8-movement suite of melodically beautiful but thoroughly modern music. Then come the Diabelli Variations. This was Beethoven’s response to a challenge from his publisher to compose a set of variations on a simple waltz tune. Beethoven submitted his entry late, but it was magnificent - in Alfred Brendel’s opinion ‘the greatest of all piano works’. A wonderful opening concert for the new series.

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