Patricia Kopatchinskaja battles the elements in Edinburgh

By Simon Thompson, 09 August 2021

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Reviewed at Old College, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh on 9 August 2021

Beethoven, Violin Sonata no. 7 in C minor, Op.30 no.2

Schoenberg, Phantasy for violin and piano, Op.47

Beethoven, Violin Sonata no. 9 in A major "Kreutzer", Op.47

Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Violin

Joonas Ahonen, Piano

Smart, stylish Klangforum Wien residency wraps at Prague Spring

Frank Kuznik, 1st June

Klangforum Wien finishes a far-reaching excursion into the boldest realms of modern music with a flourish.

****1

Moonstruck! Patricia Kopatchinskaja sings Pierrot lunaire

Christopher Woodley, 2nd December

Schoenberg's modernist masterpiece gets lost in a fog of words and feral newsprint at the Southbank Centre's Purcell Room.

***11

Klangforum Wien play music in the space–time continuum, in London

Paul Kilbey, 26th June

Kings Place’s Out Hear series of contemporary music is second to none in London, but these concerts – though never less than interesting – can also be strangely low-key. In a lot of ways, this Wednesday’s Out Hear concert, the last this season, was quite a big deal: a rare visit to London from leading contemporary ensemble Klangforum Wien, containing a world première.

***11

The Kuusisto effect: Brahms, Ives and Ligeti in Siuntio, Finland

Bèla Bianca, 11th November

Last Sunday, Pekka Kuusisto performed in Siuntio, a Finnish town not so far from Helsinki, as part of the Lux Musicae Festival, together with pianist Joonas Ahonen and hornist Hervé Joulain. In the penumbra of the candles and the gentle lights of a beautiful church from the 1400s, the first notes of Brahms’ Violin Sonata in G major resounded. Kuusisto’s sound is all about the power of simplicity.

****1

Pierrot lunaire dans tous ses éclats par Kopatchinskaja au Louvre

Chloë Rouge, 20th November

Habité par son personnage, la violoniste, chanteuse, compositrice et comédienne livre une performance de premier choix avec des partenaires au diapason.

*****

A curious evening from Noseda, Kopatchinskaja and the LSO

Mark Valencia, 26th February

Good, bad, but never ugly, a curious evening unfolds at the Barbican, inspired at times, ill-judged in places.

***11

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Simon Thompson

Simon lives and works in Edinburgh, and teaches History and Modern Studies at a local high school when he is not writing about music. Born an Irishman, he is an enthusiastic adopted Scot, and has lived in the capital for fifteen years since university days, making the most of its many avenues for classical music. He spends his spare time enthusing about music, theatre, art and literature to anyone who will listen, including his long-suffering students, who have no choice.