Moonlight Sonata at Christmas at St. Giles' Cathedral
Edinburgh, St. Giles' Cathedral — Main
About the Event
For an extraordinary evening of piano classics, visit the impressive St. Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh to hear the masterpieces of Ludwig van Beethoven, George Gershwin, Frederic Chopin, Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff, Claude Debussy and Franz Liszt.
Treat yourself and your loved ones to an exceptional pre‐Christmas piano recital in the beautiful candlelit setting of St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh. Renowned British concert pianist, Warren Mailley‐Smith, will perform an outstanding selection of much‐loved piano works, including Beethoven's masterpiece, The Moonlight Sonata.
In 2016 Warren Mailley‐Smith became the first British pianist to perform Chopin's complete works for solo piano from memory in a series of 11 recitals at St John's Smith Square. Hailed by the critics as an 'epic achievement', Mailley‐Smith will repeat the series at several venues in 2023‐4. He has given acclaimed solo recitals at The Wigmore Hall, Carnegie Hall and has performed for the British Royal Family on numerous occasions. He is one of the busiest concert pianists of his generation and has given over 200 performances in the last year.
Program
- Ludwig van Beethoven – Moonlight Sonata
- Franz Liszt – Hungarian Rhapsody
- Frederic Chopin – Scherzo no. 1
- Frederic Chopin – Berceuse
- Claude Debussy – Clair de Lune
- Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff – Prelude in C sharp minor
- George Gershwin – Rhapsody in Blue
Artists
| Piano: | Warren Mailley‐Smith |
|---|
Ludwig van Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German pianist and composer of the late 18th century. He is well known as the most influential composers of all time as well as crucial figure to the Classical music scene. In fact, he demonstrated his musical talent at an early age, taking lessons from his father and composer/conductor Christian Gottlob Neefe. Later, he moved to Vienna where he gained the reputation of a virtuoso pianist by composing his popular masterpieces. He created his most admired works in his last 15 years of life, all the while being almost completely deaf.
Frederic Chopin
Frederic Chopin was a Polish composer and pianist of the Romantic area (early 19th century). He wrote primarily piano solos but also piano concerts, chamber pieces and songs set to Polish lyrics. He is well-known as a poetic genius without competition of his generation. In fact, he created the concept of instrumental ballade and his performances were noted for their sensitivity and fine distinction. He spent most of his life in Paris, where he performed for the intimate atmospheres of salons. For most of his life, he suffered poor health. As a result, he died quite young at the age of 39, probably of tuberculosis.
Franz Liszt
Franz Liszt was a Hungarian composer, pianist and conductor of the 19th century Romantic era. He was well-known for his prodigious virtuosic skill as a pianist all over Europe. In fact, he was one of the most prominent representatives of the New German School (Neudeutsche Schule) as a composer. Over the course of his career he created extensive and diverse bodies of works that influenced contemporaries and anticipated many 20th-century ideas and trends. For instance, his most notable musical contributions were the invention of the symphonic poem, making radical departures in harmony and developing the concept of thematic transformation as part of his experiments in musical form.
Address
St. Giles' Cathedral, High Street, Edinburgh, United Kingdom — Google Maps
