François-Frédéric Guy

For his return to the Dijon Opera, the pianist François-Frédéric Guy continues his systematic exploration of Beethoven with a concert that mirrors to two sonatas belonging to the two extremes of the composer’s pianistic work. Completed in 1795, the Sonata n°1 was the first to be published by Beethoven. In contrast to his later scores, this first attempt seems more well-behaved, but that is only the deformation of historical perspective: for audiences of the time, 

the originality of Beethoven’s writing was jarring. More than 20 years later, the Hammerklaviersonata would project the keyboard into a new universe of thunderous dimensions that remains striking still today. This monster of exceptional breadth concludes with a fabulous and crushing fugue that combines the most strict compositional rigour with a spirit of unfettered improvisation. Sonata op. 28, for its part, offers a moment of lyrical and serene relief in whose classicism is hidden a subtle questioning of the traditional equilibrium.