Daniel Lebhardt

Returning to Sligo after a memorable debut in 2024, Daniel Lebhardt presents a richly varied programme that journeys through some of the most evocative landscapes of the piano repertoire.

Tchaikovsky’s Autumn Song (October), from The Seasons, Op. 37a, is one of a set of twelve character pieces depicting the months of the year in Russia. From its gentle melancholy, the programme moves to Beethoven’s Sonata in D minor, Op. 31 No. 2, the celebrated “Tempest” Sonata. Written during a period when Beethoven was beginning to confront the reality of his worsening hearing loss, the work is among the most dramatic and innovative of his middle-period sonatas. Liszt’s Nuages gris (Grey Clouds), composed late in the composer’s life, offers a striking glimpse into his experimental final style, anticipating harmonic developments that would emerge decades later. Chopin’s Scherzo No. 1 in B minor, Op. 20 follows, a work of extraordinary virtuosity and emotional intensity that remains one of the most demanding pieces in the piano repertoire. Brahms’s Four Piano Pieces, Op. 119, composed near the end of his career, are intimate and deeply personal works. The programme concludes with Schubert’s richly imaginative Three Piano Pieces which were completed in May 1828, the final year of the composer’s life.