Cal Performances presents The Complete Piano Sonatas of Ludwig van Beethoven, pt 5 of 7, featuring Jonathan Biss
Alfred Hertz Memorial Concert Hall
U.C. Berkeley, Bancroft Way at College Ave, Berkeley, CA 94720 USA
3:00 PM, Sunday, December 15, 2019

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All works on today's program by Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827)

[3:06 PM lights down, no announcements, JB enters without a word]

Beethoven: Sonata No. 25 in G Major, Op. 79, (1809) Cuckoo

1. [3:07 PM] Presto alla tedesca
2. [3:11 PM] Andante
3. [3:14 PM] Vivace
   [work ends 3:15 PM; JB off; back for a small bow; then off for a breather; back onstage at 3:17 PM]

Beethoven: Sonata No. 11 in B-flat Major, Op. 22, (1800)

1. [3:17 PM] Allegro con brio
2. [3:27 PM] Adagio con molta espressione
3. [3:31 PM] Menuetto
4. [3:34 PM] Rondo: Allegretto
   [work ends 3:40 PM; JB off; back again; then off again, without a word; back onstage at 3:41 PM]

Beethoven: Sonata No. 14 in C-sharp minor, Op. 27, No. 2, (1801) Moonlight

1. [3:41 PM] Adagio sostenuto
2. [3:46 PM] Allegretto
3. [3:49 PM] Presto agitato
   [set ends 3:55 PM; JB does the back and forth shuffle; break at 3:56 PM]

[4:12 PM lights down, JB out as the straggler's are still filing in]

Beethoven: Sonata No. 24 in F-sharp Major, Op. 78, (1809) À Thérèse

1. [4:14 PM] Adagio cantabile: Allegro ma non troppo
2. [4:21 PM] Allegro vivace
   [work ends 4:23 PM; JB does the back and forth shuffle again; back at 4:24 PM]

Beethoven: Sonata No. 30 in E Major, Op. 109, (1822)

1. [4:25 PM] Vivace ma non troppo: Adagio espressivo
2. [4:28 PM] Prestissimo
3. [4:31 PM] Gesangvoll, mit innigster Empfindung
   [set ends 4:44 PM; JB back for a small bow; no encore; done 4:45 PM]

• Jonathan Biss: piano.

Half-way through the month before my first show? Was ist hier los?

The show-drought (nearly three weeks!) was broken with a compelling recital, featuring an astounding performance by Jonathan Biss, reeling off five Beethoven sonatas from memory, yet offering not so much as a peep to the audience. To say that we were stunned is to underestimate the event. At the end of the show, the audience was completely rapt: Biss ended… and sat… and no one did anything but contemplate the silence for a good 30 seconds before Biss raised his hands to indicate “OK I'm done”, at which the crowd erupted in applause. Makes me think I should have put more of his recitals on my schedule (I'm only seeing this one, out of seven covering the complete piano sonata cycle), but it's probably too late to do much to change things now.

Program Notes or program notes

Lily O'Brien posted an interesting interview with Biss before the start of this year's performance cycle.

Back to the previous event! ☸ Up to the 2019 yearbox! ☸ Up to the 2019 event list! ☸ On to the next event!