Igor Levit's upcoming 16-hour performance of Erik Satie's 'Vexations' at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall challenges both the performer and audience to embrace emptiness. Levit, who streamed a 15-hour version during lockdown in 2020, encourages spectators to let go of expectations and fully immerse themselves in the music's repetitive motifs. This performance, renowned for its endurance test, invites audiences to experience time and space uniquely, as Satie originally suggested preparing in silence for the task. Historically, the piece has been rarely performed in full by a single pianist, making this event a remarkable first in the UK.
Levit's approach to Satie's Vexations invites the audience to embrace emptiness with no agenda or meaning, ultimately promoting a freeing experience through patience.
When Igor Levit first streamed Vexations during lockdown, he fulfilled a long-held dream, suggesting there's beauty in endurance and repetition—an exploration of time itself.
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