26 year-old Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki’s newest recording is a double album of Chopin’s Nocturnes. Under exclusive contract with the Deutsche Gramophon record company since he was 15, Lisiecki will present the nocturnes in an unusual way on Friday, April 29 at 2 pm in the Dalton Center Recital Hall at the Gilmore Piano Festival.
“I wanted to showcase the nocturnes,” says Lisiecki about his recital. “That was my quest. How do I showcase the nocturnes in a way that leaves them at the forefront? …Ultimately I settled on pairing them with the Etudes (Op. 10). They are intertwined…They complement each other, they play off of each other, they contrast with each other.”
In a conversation with Cara Lieurance, Lisiecki also says the festival is an opportunity to spend time with fellow pianists he rarely sees. He shares his approach to teaching masterclasses as a pianist not much older than the students. At the festival, Lisiecki will offer a masterclass at 1 pm on Thursday, Apr 28 at the Joliffe Theatre in the Epic Center.
