GIANNIS GEORGIADIS & SVETLANA SMOLINA: ROMANCE AND PASSION

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PROGRAMME

E. Grieg: Sonata for violin for piano no. 3 in C minor, op. 45
A. Khachaturian: Adagio from the Spartacus Ballet Suite
R. Glière: Romance for violin and piano in D major, op. 3  
P. I. Tchaikovsky: Concert Suite from the ballet Nutcracker
                          (piano arrangement by Mikhail Pletnev)
R. Strauss: Sonata in E flat major, op. 18    

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Violinist Giannis Georgiadis and pianist Svetlana Smolina meet on stage to perform works by Grieg, Khachaturian, Glière, Tchaikovsky/Pletnev and R. Strauss.
The Scandinavian composer’s Sonata No. 3 in C minor features a large number of folk motifs and melodies of his country through the descriptive, enchanting atmosphere of Norwegian fjords.
Aram Khachaturian was inspired by the story of the Thracian hero Spartacus and composed the homonymous ballet music. Through his exquisite yet epic musical writing, he describes the great uprising of slaves and other oppressed people against the Romans, led by the legendary Spartacus.
The music of Kiev-born Reinhold Glière traces the turmoil of the Russian Revolution through Ilya Muromets’ monumental Third Symphony, two complete operas, hundreds of songs, concertos and ballet music. In Romance, Op. 3 for violin and piano, he sensitively articulates a delicate dialogue between the two instruments.
Pianist Svetlana Smolina performs two characteristic excerpts from the Concerto Suite from Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker, works that require rich lyricism and extreme virtuosity. The solo piano transcription comes from the legendary orchestra director and composer Mikhail Pletnev.
Richard Strauss was only 23 years old when, already had a rich compositional oeuvre, he composed the Sonata, Op.18. It was the time when he met his future wife, soprano Pauline de Ahna, and his feelings for her permeate throughout the work. The particularly idyllic second movement, described as an ‘improvisation,’ is also released individually. The third movement begins with a silent piano prelude before the energetic main theme is heard, which is closely related to the opening but also to the emphatic closing of the first movement. The first movement is emotionally charged and structured with superb mastery and virtuosity.