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Isaac van der Merwe Piano Recital

On Sunday, July 21st, at 3 PM we welcome to Shed & Silo Country Restaurant the talented South African pianist Isaac van der Merwe, presenting works by Bach, Beethoven, Chopin, and Liszt, as well as a number of his solo compositions.

South African pianist Isaac van der Merwe (21) has achieved great successes in competitions in recent years, winning both the Hennie Joubert National Piano Competition as well as the Atterbury Piano Competition in 2022. Additionally, he has received top prizes in the 7 th Unisa National Piano Competition, the Johann Vos Music Competition, as well as the Pieter Kooij Music Competition. Based in Cape Town, Isaac is currently studying with Francois du Toit towards the completion of his BMus degree at UCT. He has participated in the Stellenbosch Piano Symposium and Chamber Music Festivals, and frequently plays orchestral piano with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Six Partitas for keyboard by J.S. Bach are considered by many to be the most famous and challenging collection of suites in music history. Their musical texture is infused with ingenious counterpoint and contain some of the most audacious and dramatic melodic embellishments ever written. The Partita no. 6 in E minor has been described as J.S. Bach’s crowning achievement in suite form.

Ludwig van Beethoven composed the Sonata no 30, Op. 109 in E major during the years from 1820-1821, whilst also working on the Missa Solemnis and the Ninth Symphony. In sharp contrast to its instrumental predecessor – the monumental Hammerklavier Sonata, Op. 106 – this work is characterised by its intimacy, both in scale and character. The lyrical, seemingly improvised theme of the opening movement is briefly interrupted by a slow recitative-like theme. The fierce Prestissimo erupts from the subdued close of the first movement, showing off the extreme registers of Beethoven’s piano. A hauntingly beautiful set of six variations based on a sarabande-like dance in slow triple metre brings the sonata to a quiet conclusion, showing the composer’s intent in concentrating the weight of these late sonatas toward the end.

Frédéric Chopin was greatly influenced by the folk music of his native Poland and composed a large amount of works influenced by national dances such as the mazurka, krakowiak, and polonaise. Of the latter, his Heroic Polonaise is arguably the most celebrated. According to musicologist Hugo Leichtentritt, “everything that the polonaise contains in terms of sparkle, distinction, strength and enthusiasm was expressed in this masterpiece in the most exhilarating way possible”.

Hungarian pianist-composer Franz Liszt wrote Funérailles as an elegy in October 1849 in response to the crushing of the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 by the Habsburgs. Composed in four sections, the first is a dark and gloomy adagio evoking the sound of muffled bells from across a battlefield. A sudden trumpet call leads into the second section, a somber funeral march, which modulates into a beautiful lagrimoso melody. The third section, a powerful warrior march, contains triumphant chords and ostinato octaves closely related to the middle section of Chopin’s Heroic Polonaise. Liszt reintroduces each theme in the conclusion section, before the piece ends quietly.

Join us at Shed & Silo Country Restaurant at Norton’s Home Estate, Benoni on Sunday, July 21st, at 3 PM for an afternoon of exquisite beauty in the company of the world’s most beautiful piano music.

If you want to enjoy a delectable lunch at Shed & Silo Country Restaurant before the concert, we highly recommend making a reservation.

Artists

Isaac Van Der Merwe

Date & Time

July 21, 2024

|

15:00

Ticket Price

R200 - R250

City
Venue

Shed and Silo

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