Kirill Gerstein, Piano

Thursday, March 3, 2016 | 8:00 pm

Baldwin Auditorium

Five years ago, The New York Times declared that Kirill Gerstein was “emerging as one of the most respected pianists of his generation.” That emergence is now complete, with the Russian-born musician and winner of the prestigious Gilmore Artist Award in high demand both as a recitalist and concerto soloist on the great stages of the classical world. The Guardian wrote of his playing: “This is the kind of serious, intelligent, and virtuosic music-making that keeps classical music alive.”

Gerstein returns to Duke Performances with an ambitious program of masterpieces that show off his astounding technique. The interlacing voices of Bach’s sublime Four Duettos prefigure one of Brahms’ first compositions, the dramatic Sonata in F-sharp Minor. He centers the recital on two Beethoven sonatas: No. 13 in E-flat, and his famous Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp Minor (“Moonlight”).  Gerstein follows these titanic sonatas with the fireworks of the teenage Franz Liszt’s Transcendental Etudes.

Program