Paintings and Dreams
Celebrated pianist, Sebastian Stanley, takes you on a sensory journey into the heart of some of the most poetic music to ever grace the ear. To toast Sebastian’s upcoming Piano Classics release of the Albeniz Suites Espagnoles, he brings to life these ‘sketches’ of some of the greatest Spanish masterpieces.
Albéniz’s biographer, Walter Aaron Clark, describes Asturias as "pure Andalusian flamenco” and the entire Suite Espagnoles takes a voyage to Spain’s most colourful locations. These subtle and creative works are often heard through their guitar arrangements, although originally written for piano. To follow, the playful El Pelele and phenomenal, yet tragic Love and Death by Granados, (based on paintings by the same name), bring our tour of Spain to a close.
The vivid pictorial themes, evolve into the nocturnal dream-scapes of Liszt and Chopin. Liszt’s famous work, Notturno Leibestraum No,3 based on Freiligrath's poem "Love as long as you can!” is followed by Chopin’s darkest Nocturne and the turbulent Ballade No.2. The recital ends on Rachmaninov’s Chopin Variations, a powerhouse of virtuosity, bringing the programme to a rousing close.