Igor Levit / Piano Recital

»In terms of structure and scale, the Hammerklavier Sonata goes well beyond anything else that has ever been attempted or achieved in the field of sonata composition,« wrote Alfred Brendel about Beethoven’s Piano Sonata op. 106. The piece was long regarded as unplayable. Decades after Beethoven’s death, none other than Franz Liszt courageously stepped up to the challenge and gave the work its first public performance. Igor Levit can never be accused of a false sense of shyness. In addition to artistic versatility, he is also known for bold political engagement, on and off stage. Although still in his early 30s, the German-Russian piano virtuoso has already grappled intensively with Ludwig van Beethoven’s complete piano sonatas. After his acclaimed recordings of all the sonatas, he now presents them for ProArte in eight concerts at the Elbphilharmonie.