Jan Lisiecki plays Chopin

Tivoli Copenhagen Phil
Conductor: Junping Qian
Soloist: Jan Lisiecki, piano

They say there are two cures for heartache: time and the music of Chopin. While we can’t offer the former, we can certainly provide the latter when piano phenomenon Jan Lisiecki returns to Tivoli Concert Hall with the concerto that earned him a Deutsche Grammophon recording contract at the astonishing age of 15.

 
The program features one of the world’s foremost interpreters of Chopin: the 29-year-old Canadian virtuoso with Polish roots, who first rose to fame as a child prodigy performing Chopin’s piano concertos. Since then, Lisiecki has captivated audiences worldwide with his refined, elegant playing and exceptional artistry. 

The enchanting Piano Concerto No. 1 is a youthful masterpiece, composed by a teenage Chopin with grand ambitions for the piano’s role in a concerto. Jan Lisiecki will dazzle us with his flawless streams of notes, as the orchestra provides a subtle, supportive accompaniment. Originally intended as a showcase for Chopin’s rising fame as a virtuoso pianist, the concerto also contains moments of such profound beauty that it has the power to mend even the most broken heart. 
After the intermission, the orchestra takes centre stage with Tchaikovsky’s monumental Symphony No. 4, a work that drives the relentless force of fate through us with its emotionally charged and soul-stirring music. The first of Tchaikovsky’s three “fate symphonies,” it draws inspiration from Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 and has since achieved a similarly iconic status. Tchaikovsky, unafraid to bare his pain, described this symphony in a letter as reflecting fate’s relentless grip on life—its whims and the way it strikes unexpectedly. This is music that penetrates deeply, culminating in a defiant symphonic outburst of epic proportions. 

The evening opens with Debussy’s Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, a work of sensuality and innovation. With its daring harmonies, this seductive piece paved the way for the dissolution of tonality and remains one of the most groundbreaking and influential works of Impressionist music.