In the Company of Lang Lang

Without reservation, Lang Lang is one of the world’s most prominent and instantly recognisable concert pianists. After making his solo debut at the famed Proms in London, one critic described the event as nothing short of historic. Since then, he has been a classical superstar, performing at major occasions including the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize ceremony for Barack Obama in Oslo, and at the opening of the Beijing Olympics the year before.

Lang Lang has appeared at Konserthuset Stockholm on several occasions – both in solo recitals and with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra. Notably, he performed Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto at the 2008 Nobel Prize Concert. His most recent visit was in 2016, when he gave a recital featuring music by Tchaikovsky, Bach and Chopin.

A planned concert in 2021 was cancelled due to the pandemic, but now at last we can look forward to welcoming Lang Lang back to Konserthuset. He opens with a playful Rondo by Mozart, followed by two of Beethoven’s most beloved piano sonatas: the Pathétique and his penultimate sonata – as dramatic as it is life-affirming.

After the intermission, we are treated to romantic excursions to Spain in Isaac Albéniz’s Suite española and one of Enrique Granados’s Goyescas, music inspired by the Spanish painter Francisco de Goya. There’s also a musical adventure through Italy in Franz Liszt’s hyper-virtuosic Venezia e Napoli: Tarantella from Années de pèlerinage – Years of Pilgrimage.