Beethoven      Sonata No. 2, Op. 2, No. 2
Rachmaninov Études-Tableaux, Op. 39, No. 2
Bach/Liszt       Prelude and Fugue, BWV 543
Mendelssohn Rondo Capriccioso, Op. 14

Praised for his “unfailingly communicative” playing, Leon McCawley performs a programme full of contrasts. Beethoven’s dramatic early sonatas appeared like a bolt of lightning to Viennese audiences, yet also acknowledged the tradition of Mozart and Haydn. The mood changes with Rachmaninov’s study, “Sea and the Seagulls”, picturing a desolate grey sea, and reflecting the composer’s exile after the Russian Revolution. The following pieces are more upbeat, with Liszt’s rewriting of a pastoral organ work by Bach, before a virtuosic concert piece that the young prodigy Mendelssohn completed after becoming infatuated with a pianist while on his Grand Tour.

Ticket price includes tea, coffee and cake before or after the concert.