Category Archives: Recitals

Recital 11 February: Ugnius Pauliukonis

Our next recital will be on Tuesday 11 February 2020 at 7.15 pm in the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens.  The pianist is Ugnius Pauliukonis who will be playing**:

Haydn:    Sonata no.52 in E flat
Chopin:   Two Nocturnes Op.62
.                 Two Waltzes Op.34 nos.1&3
.                 Two Études Op.25 no.5 & Op.10 no.12

INTERVAL

Debussy:  Images Book I
Chopin:    Sonata no. 2 in B flat minor, Op.35

** Please note that this is a change of programme, although the Haydn Sonata remains the same, and there is still plenty of Chopin!

Non-members welcome. Tickets at the door are £12.50.  (Free for accompanied children 16 & under; £6.00 for full time students and those on unemployment benefit).

Review of Recital by Grace Yeo 19 November 2019

The 77th season of the Sunderland Pianoforte Society continued with a recital given by Korean pianist Grace Yeo in the Pottery room at Sunderland Museum. It was well attended by an enthusiastic audience who enjoyed listening to works by Robert and Clara Schumann, Beethoven, and Scriabin, and were privileged to be present for the first performance of local composer David Pennycuick’s Preludes op.19 [nos. 20, 21, 24 and 6]. These were well contrasted preludes which were well received by the audience and beautifully played by Grace Yeo who had a clear understanding of the works.

The first half of the recital consisted of Robert Schumann’s Arabeske, op.18 and Sonata in G minor, op.11 as well as Clara Schumann’s Romance in A flat and Deuxième Scherzo in C. The second half began with the Pennycuick Preludes which were followed by Sonata op.10 no.3 by Beethoven and the recital finished with a brilliant performance of Scriabin’s Sonata no.4 in F sharp. However the audience wanted more and were given two encores, Liszt’s Gnomenreigen and Schumann’s Träumerei.

Grace Yeo was making her second visit to Sunderland and is an artist of great technical ability as well as a clear understanding of the music and gave the audience a most enjoyable evening.

Lily Scott

Recital 19 November: Grace Yeo

Our next recital will be on Tuesday 19 November at 7.15 pm in the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens.  The pianist is Grace Yeo who will be playing:

Robert Schumann:   Arabeske  Op.18
Clara Schumann:      Deuxième Scherzo in C   Op.14
.                                     Romance in A flat  Op.11 no.3
Robert Schumann:  
 Sonata no.2 in G minor  Op.22

INTERVAL

David Pennycuick:   Preludes  Op.19 nos. 20,21,24,6
Beethoven:    Sonata no.7 in D  Op.10 no.3
Scriabin:         Sonata no.4 in F sharp  Op.30

Please note that this is an amended programme, although all the composers, and many of the pieces, remain as in the brochure.

Non-members welcome. Tickets at the door are £12.50.  (Free for accompanied children 16 & under; £6.00 for full time students and those on unemployment benefit).

Review of Recital by Alexander Soares 22 October 2019

On Tuesday, 22nd October Sunderland Pianoforte Society continued its 77th season with a recital given by Alexander Soares who played works by Bach, Beethoven, Albéniz and Messiaën. This was attended by an appreciative audience who enjoyed the Bach English Suite in G minor which opened the recital. The first half continued with El Puerto and El Albaicin by Albéniz and Regard de l’Église d’Amour by Messiaën which was a good contrast to the Bach and which was brilliantly played, showing a clear understanding of the music as well as a huge technique. The Messiaën in particular was most impressive. After the interval we heard the well loved Beethoven late sonata op.111 which was followed by an encore, Morceau de Lecture à Vue by Messiaën. Altogether a good evening given by a brilliant young pianist who is assured of a successful career.

Alexander is a graduate from Cambridge and his recent performances include Wigmore Hall, St. Johns Smith Square and the Barbican Centre.

Lily Scott

Recital 22 October: Alexander Soares

Our next recital will be on Tuesday 22 October at 7.15 pm in the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens.  The pianist is Alexander Soares who will be playing:

Bach:                English Suite no.3 in G minor  BWV 808
Albeniz:           El Puerto & El Albacin  (from Iberia Books 1 and 3)
Messiaen:       Regard de l’Église d’Amour  (from Vingt Regards)

INTERVAL

Beethoven:    Sonata no.32 in C minor  Op.111

Non-members welcome. Tickets at the door are £12.50.  (Free for accompanied children 16 & under; £6.00 for full time students and those on unemployment benefit).

Review of Recital by Dinara Klinton 24 September 2019

The Sunderland Pianoforte Society opened its 77th season with a recital of sheer perfection given by Dinara Klinton who played to an enthusiastic audience in Sunderland Museum on Tuesday evening.

The recital began with five works by Tchaikovsky ending with the Andante Maestoso from the Nutcracker Suite which was brilliantly played with both power and virtuosity and followed by the Beethoven Sonata in A major, op. 101. Again, well played, particularly the 2nd and 4th movements which always present a challenge both technically and artistically. After the interval we heard the Elegie and 2 preludes (op.23 nos.4 and 5) by Rachmaninoff, romantic music which was a good introduction to the Prokofiev Sonata no.6 in A major. Composed in February 1940 this sonata expresses the cruelty and tragedy of the times he was living through and Dinara Klinton’s performance portrayed this perfectly. The dynamic range and technique were impressive but at the end of the evening the audience still wanted more. Dinara gave an encore of two Scarlatti sonatas in A major and B flat major.

Dinara’s music education began at the age of five in her native Kharkiv, Ukraine and she graduated with highest honours from Moscow Central Music School, where she studied with Valery Piassetsky. After playing throughout the world with many orchestras, Dinara is a young pianist who is already a great success.

Lily Scott

Recital 24 September: Dinara Klinton

The first recital of the new season will be on Tuesday 24 September at 7.15 pm in the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens.  The pianist is Dinara Klinton who will be playing**

Tchaikovsky:    Nocturne & Humoresque  Op.10
.                           Meditation  Op.72 no.5
.                           Valse Sentimentale  Op. 51 no.6
Tchaikovsky/Pletnev:   Andante Maestoso from Nutcracker Suite
Beethoven:       Sonata no.28 in A major  Op.101

INTERVAL

Rachmaninoff: Elegie Op.3 no.1
Rachmaninoff: 
Preludes Op.23 nos.4&5
Prokofiev:        
 Sonata no.6 in A major  Op.82

**Please note that the second half of this programme is amended. The first half is as in the brochure.

Tickets at the door are £12.50.  (Free for accompanied children 16 & under; £6.00 for full time students and those on unemployment benefit).  If you would like to become a member of the Society, the annual subscription is £60 and includes free entry to all six regular concerts.  Simply come to the first recital with a cheque payable to Sunderland Pianoforte Society.

 

Concert by Members and Friends: 14 May 2019

The 76th season ended with a concert by members and friends of the society, organised by our chairman, Kevin Walsh.  A good audience at the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens enjoyed a varied programme, with interval refreshments.  The pianists and the pieces they played were:

Alan Bowers

Schubert: Impromptu in A flat (op 90 no 4)

Alan England

Debussy: The Girl with the Flaxen Hair

Mark Tanner: Fishing Off Logan Rock

James Barker

Bach: Gigue from French Suite no 2

Chopin: Mazurka (op 59 no 2)

Sarah Robinson

Chopin: Preludes nos 1,2,5,6,7,8,9,10 (op 28)

Kevin Walsh

Chopin: Nocturne in G (op 37 no 2)

Ben Richards

Alexander Ilyinski: Étude (op 31 no 1)

INTERVAL

Fabio Raciti

Chopin: Nocturne in C sharp minor (op posth.)

.             Polonaise in A flat (op 53)

Peter Hayes

Scott Joplin: The Ragtime Dance

.                     Elite Syncopations

Graeme Humphries

Brahms: Intermezzo (op 118 no 2)

John Welch

A selection of music from The Threepenny Opera by Bertold Brecht, Kurt Weill and Elisabeth Hauptmann: Overture – Mack the Knife – Pirate Jenny – Tango Ballade – What Keeps Mankind Alive -The Flick Knife Song (Mack Reprise)

David MacRae

Granados: Spanish Dance no 5 “Andalusia”

Liszt: Hungarian Rhapsody no 2

Thanks to all the pianists for their contributions to what was a very pleasant and successful evening.

 

Review of Recital by Valentin Schiedermair 9 April 2019

The 76th season of the Society finished with a recital by the world famous pianist Valentin Schiedermair who entertained the audience with a popular programme of well loved music. The recital began with two Preludes and Fugues from Book Two of the Well Tempered Clavier by J. S. Bach which were played with clarity and great authority. These were followed by a delightful performance of the Mozart Sonata in B flat, K570 and the first half of the recital ended with the Impromptu in F sharp Op. 36 and the Barcarolle in F sharp Op. 60 by Chopin. After the interval we heard the most splendid performance of Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky which was a complete contrast to the first half of the recital.

Valentin Schiedermair certainly impressed the audience with his sheer stamina and brilliant technique, yet everything was played with musicality and detail. The audience demanded more, and the Mussorgsky was followed by a beautifully played Chopin Nocturne in F sharp op.15 no. 2.

From a musical family, Valentin has studied in many parts of the world with famous teachers and spends a very busy life both performing and teaching. Since his first radio recording aged 16 he has developed a large repertoire and is to be admired for his ability to involve the audience in his performance.

Lily Scott.

Recital 9 April: Valentin Schiedermair

Our next recital will be on Tuesday 9 April at 7.15 pm in the Sunderland Museum and Winter Gardens.  The pianist is Valentin Schiedermair who will be playing

Bach:               Prelude & Fugue in B flat major WTC II
.                        Prelude & Fugue in B flat minor WTC II
Mozart:          
Sonata in B flat major K.570
Chopin:          
Impromptu in F sharp major Op.36
.                        Barcarolle in F sharp major Op.60
Mussorgsky: 
Pictures at an Exhibition

Tickets at the door are £12.50.  (Free for accompanied children 16 & under; £6.00 for full time students and those on unemployment benefit).