Our chamber music concert centres around two piano quintets: Elgar’s deeply expressive work and Mustonen’s contemporary counterpart. Composer Olli Mustonen joins us at the piano himself.
Artistic director Candida Thompson and the Finnish pianist and composer Olli Mustonen share a long musical friendship. That makes his return to Amsterdam Sinfonietta, after ten years, extra special. Mustonen’s exceptional musicianship cannot be praised enough. His very personal compositional style is very clear in his only Piano Quintet: a virtuosic work that begins with passion and, from its mysterious and hypnotic middle, builds towards a joyful and euphoric ending. Elgar’s expressive Piano Quintet shows an unmistakable late-Romantic style. It is a large-scale work that creates an almost orchestral sound world. Together with pianist Mustonen, the strings of Amsterdam Sinfonietta perform this true tour de force.