Repertoire

Franz Schubert: Allegro D 947 “Lebenstürme”
Franz Schubert: Fantasia D 940
Franz Schubert: Grand Duo D 812

Artists

Elisabeth Leonskaja, Julius Drake, piano duet

Programme

Two outstanding international careers will meet on a single keyboard: Elisabeth Leonskaja and Julius Drake, undisputed giants of the piano scene in recent decades, are coming together for an exceptional event to explore Schubert’s personal, visionary creations for four hands. This format, domestic in origin and symphonic in ambition, makes the piano a shared space where breathing, personal presence and phrasing must merge with almost choreographic precision. Playing four hands involves negotiating each instinct, sharing the spotlight and building a single soundscape from two perspectives: an exercise of trust, radical listening and physical rapport that also becomes expressive rapport.

The programme brings together three gems from Schubert’s mature period: the tempestuous, dramatic Allegro D. 947 “Lebensstürme”; the Fantasia D. 940, with its almost orchestral nature and free-spirited architecture; and the expansive and structurally symphonic Grand Duo D. 812. Written towards the end of the composer’s life, these works reflect the budding Romanticism of 1820 Vienna, where piano was becoming a laboratory for extreme emotions. In the interplay of hands – treble and bass, impulse and resonance – the orchestra lying dormant within the keyboard fully emerges. This will be a powerfully poetic evening of sublime musical dialogue.