Pianist Brian Ganz will play an all-Chopin program at 8 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 4, at Auerbach Auditorium at St. Mary’s Hall, a run-through of the program he will play at the Music Center at Strathmore Feb. 11, as he continues his quest to play every piece Chopin composed.
The program will include the Fantaisie in F minor, Op. 49; Fantaisie-Impromptu; and Polonaise-Fantaisie, one of Chopin’s most profound works. He will also play several mazurkas and a waltz. Rounding out the program will be the rousing Andante Spianato and Grand Polonaise.
“The theme of this recital is ‘Dances and Fantasies,’ ” Ganz said. “Chopin loved to write dance music, and his polonaises, waltzes and mazurkas are among his most beloved works. The two halves of our theme come together in the Polonaise-Fantaisie, Chopin’s last large-scale masterpiece for solo piano. It’s a work of extraordinary beauty and forms the heart of the program. I’ll talk about the piece a bit before I play it.”
Tickets to the Feb. 11 recital at Strathmore can be purchased by visiting www.nationalphilharmonic.org.