Internationally acclaimed Australian pianist, Sarah Grunstein, returns to the Sydney Opera House by popular demand, to perform in April 2024. While Grunstein is distinguished for her interpretation of Bach’s works, the praise she has received is not limited to her performances of Bach. Grunstein’s playing has “evoked memories” of the intimate and poetic performance styles of the early 20th century English piano giants, Harold Samuel and Dame Myra Hess.
Her 2024 Sydney Opera House recital is a program entitled Beethoven’s Last Sonatas, which will comprise of the final three of Beethoven’s thirty-two piano sonatas: Sonata in E major, Op. 109, Sonata in A-flat major, Op. 110, and his Sonata in C minor, Op. 111.
Grunstein remarks, “In his piano sonatas, Beethoven takes us on a journey. His intent was always to arouse his listeners’ emotions. Beethoven’s late sonatas are a profound journey into the expressiveness of his late style, his inventiveness with structure and the artist’s sound palette, and his demands on the performer and the instrument. The works are at once dramatic and spiritual, harking back to early 18th century styles, and looking ahead to poetic Romanticism. Each sonata is distinct, yet the three together become a journey. For the music-lover’s soul, this journey is one of transcendence.”
Described by The New York Times for her “penetrating musical intelligence” this concert will be a rare chance to hear one of Australia’s finest international pianists. Of Grunstein’s Beethoven, The New York Times wrote: “Beethoven’s Sonata in D was delivered with a directness that only heightened the tragedy that propels the central Largo; the surrounding three movements danced with appropriate grace…”
Many will remember Sarah Grunstein as the pianist who, as a young teenager, performed the soundtrack for Bruce Beresford’s early Australian film, The Getting of Wisdom. Sarah soon after moved to New York, graduating from The Juilliard School (where she was later appointed as a Teaching Fellow), and earned her doctorate at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. Her career has included concerts at London’s Southbank Centre, New York’s Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall, Italy, Austria, Hungary, the U.K., New Zealand, and her homeland.
Grunstein states, “When I perform, it is as if I am bringing to my audience a dear friend, whom I wish for my audience to get to know. In this case I am bringing to my listeners Beethoven in his last piano sonatas – with all their drama, improvisatory aspects, poetic and rhetorical qualities, and transcendent spirit. Beethoven at once alluded to the past yet was breaking ground in the poetic qualities of his instrumental writing, and in his demands of the piano and the pianist. Among my passions is sharing this transcendental journey with my listeners.”
This concert presents a rare opportunity to hear one of Australia’s finest international pianists.
Venue Utzon Room, Sydney Opera House
Bookings 02 9250 7777 or sydneyoperahouse.com
Date / Time Thursday 4 April 2024 at 7.30pm
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