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Duke Arts Presents

Paul Lewis, Piano

Friday, April 3, 2015 | 8:00 pm

Baldwin Auditorium


English pianist Paul Lewis, a protégé of Alfred Brendel, has devoted much of his career to the music of Beethoven. His award-winning recordings of the complete Beethoven sonatas on Harmonia Mundi were praised as “an unmissable benchmark” by the Guardian; the New York Times’ Anthony Tommasini went further still: “There are many prized recordings of the Beethoven sonatas from past masters and current artists. But if I had to recommend a single complete set, I would suggest Mr. Lewis’s distinguished recordings.”

Lewis brings his signature vigor and authoritative command to Beethoven’s final three sonatas for piano, written at a time when the composer was extending the boundaries of classical style. The program begins with the passionate and melancholy No. 30 in E Major, op. 109. The central work, No. 31 in A Flat Major, op. 110, expresses the wide-ranging moods of a man losing his hearing. To close the program, Lewis plays No. 32 in C Minor, op. 111, in which Beethoven evokes a journey from darkness to celestial light.

Program

Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 30 in E Major, op. 109
Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 31 in A-flat Major, op. 110
Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 32 in C Minor, op. 111