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Pianist Yuan Fang. Photos courtesy of Shenzhen Concert Hall
If you haven’t yet made plans for Women’s Day, why not treat yourself or your loved ones to a concert at the Shenzhen Concert Hall?
Under the baton of Lin Daye, music director of the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra (SZSO), pianist Yuan Fang will take center stage alongside the orchestra. This year commemorates the 255th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth, and the concert will feature his first and last piano concertos.
The first concerto, in C major, was actually the second piano concerto Beethoven composed, but it was the first one he published — hence the mix-up. He began composing it in 1794, two years after arriving in Vienna, intending it to showcase his virtuosic piano skills. However, he continued refining the concerto until its final form in 1800.
Departing from the styles of Mozart and Haydn, this piece reveals the emergence of Beethoven’s unmistakable voice, characterized by bold melodic ideas and daring harmonies. The outer movements are infused with a marvelous sense of humor, especially the finale, while the slow movement’s dignity and introspection foreshadow the depth of his late string quartets.
Lin Daye, music director of SZSO, will conduct the concert on March 8.
The fifth and final piano concerto, known as the “Emperor Concerto,” is a masterpiece celebrated for its grandeur, bold melodies, and heroic spirit. Dedicated to Archduke Rudolf, a friend and student of Beethoven, it premiered in Leipzig, Germany, in 1811.
It remains the most renowned and frequently performed of Beethoven’s five piano concertos. With its dazzling solo part, the work was also a favorite of the great pianist and composer Franz Liszt. The qualities of magnificence, pomp, ceremony, power, nobility, and majesty in this piece are reminiscent of Beethoven’s other E-flat major masterpiece, the “Eroica” Symphony.
Yuan Fang, a professor at the School of Music of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, is one of China’s most acclaimed pianists. She graduated from the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich in 2008 with the highest degree in piano performance and chamber music.
Beyond her success as an educator, Yuan is an active soloist and chamber musician. She has performed worldwide with leading orchestras, including the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, and Czech Philharmonic Orchestra, under the batons of renowned conductors such as Zubin Mehta and Lawrence Foster. Her recordings are published by Sony Classical.
Prepare to be moved by the awe-inspiring power of music as Yuan and the SZSO bring Beethoven’s genius to life — a perfect gift for International Women’s Day.
Tickets: 80-480 yuan
Time: 8 p.m., March 8
