Pianist Robert Thies will perform at St. Matthews.
St. Matthew’s Music Guild will continue its 40th anniversary season at 8 p.m. on November 1, with music devoted to Ludwig van Beethoven, featuring renowned Southern California pianist Robert Thies. The Friday November 1 program will also feature The Chamber Orchestra at St. Matthew’s conducted by Dwayne S. Milburn.
The L.A. Times writes that Thies is “a pianist of “unerring, warm-toned refinement, revealing judicious glimmers of power.”
He first captured worldwide attention in 1995 when he won the Gold Medal at the Second International Prokofiev Competition in St. Petersburg, Russia. He has been the only American pianist to win a Russian piano competition since Van Cliburn in 1958.
Praised for his “thoughtful and intensely moving interpretations,” Thies has appeared with such orchestras as the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic, Liepāja Symphony (Latvia), Mexico City Philharmonic, the National Symphony of Mexico, Auckland Philharmonia (New Zealand), Louisville Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Pasadena Symphony, and the Naples Philharmonic.
At St. Matthews, Thies will perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor. Also on the program is Beethoven’s most famous work – the Symphony No. 5 in C minor. From its iconic four-note opening to its triumphant finale, the symphony has loomed large over all facets of the musical landscape, including the fanfare signifying a strike-out at Dodger Stadium. At various times, Symphony No. 5 has been given the nicknames “Fate” and “Victory.”
The only one of Beethoven’s piano concertos in a minor key, many scholars consider the Piano Concerto No. 3 to be first major work of Beethoven’s middle period.
On its surface, the concerto follows the well-established three movements, “fast-slow-fast” classical concerto form, but the music unfolds in a manner that shows Beethoven convincingly pushing any number of envelopes.
In 1800, the 29-year-old Beethoven was commissioned to write his first major work for the stage, a ballet based on the myth of the Greek god Prometheus. Although initially a success, the ballet fell out of the repertoire quickly. However, the tuneful overture remains a staple of the orchestral repertoire.
Concerts take place at St. Matthew’s Church, 1031 Bienveneda Ave. Tickets are $45 or Music Guild Season pass. A free pre-concert lecture offered by Music Director and Conductor Dwayne Milburn begins at 7:10 p.m. For complete information, visit MusicGuildOnline.org or call (310) 573-7422.