September 21, 2021 – Sarasota
Flashes of lightning. Restless energy. Jagged arpeggios. Mozart’s flair for the sensational is just as present in his Piano Concerto No. 20 as it is in his most dramatic of operas. Ever the charmer, he doesn’t forget to smooth it over with the most soothing of melodies in the work’s inner “Romanze” movement.
So thrilling was this particular work, it remained popular well into the more-turbulent Romantic era, earning a distinguished place in the repertoire of the likes of virtuoso pianist Clara Schumann–not to mention it was one of the few Mozart concertos to be performed by perhaps the most mercurial of figures in classical music, Ludwig van Beethoven.
To counter the theatrics, Maestro Kensho Watanabe opens the program with Valerie Coleman’s Seven O’Clock Shout, a jubilant work that matches the triumphant, hopeful return to the concert hall with winds, brass, percussion, and strings reunited. Finally, Schumann’s “Spring” Symphony promises the spiritual warmth and sunshine we all have been craving.
Discover Mozart: Rebirth
Kensho Watanabe, conductor
Dominic Cheli, piano
Saturday, October 2 | 7:30 pm | Sarasota Opera House
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