"Disinclined to follow the herd and record Beethoven's three final piano sonatas as a job lot, Vikingur Olafsson has chosen to circle one of them, No 30 in E major, Op 109, locating it in a musical timeline that reflects both the composer's past and the Viennese milieu of the early 18th century. For Olafsson, looking backwards means turning to Bach, whose musical fingerprints he detects all over late Beethoven. The latter's uninhibited invention, he argues, has its roots firmly in the baroque with its improvisatory elements and enthusiasm for the dance."
"The album opens with Bach's E major Prelude from The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1 (indeed, all the works here are either in E major or E minor, keys that the Icelandic pianist, who is synaesthetic, associates with different shades of green). Notes sounded with a delicate baroque detachment carry over into a diaphanous reading of Beethoven's Piano Sonata No 27 in E minor, Op 90, a work Olafsson sees as a direct precursor of Op 109."
A pianist selects Beethoven's Piano Sonata No.30 in E major, Op.109, and situates it within a timeline connecting Beethoven's late style to Baroque and early Viennese influences. The program opens with Bach's E major Prelude from The Well-Tempered Clavier and includes Bach's final Partita and Schubert's Piano Sonata No.6 in E minor, creating key and color unity in E major/minor. Baroque detachment and dance-like improvisation are emphasized to illuminate links between Bach and late Beethoven, with Op.90 positioned as a precursor to Op.109. The performance of Op.109 offers wide articulation, transcendent beauty, and a daring interpretive vision that challenges traditional expectations.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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