Solomon plays Beethoven Sonata No.14 “Moonlight” (II)

by admin
2022-02-01

Piano Sonata in C-sharp minor, “Quasi una fantasia”, composed in 1801.

PART I : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHffjDG_pJ0
– Adagio sostenuto

PART II :
– Allegretto
– Presto agitato

Solomon was well known for performances of the Beethoven sonatas and piano concertos as well as his Mozart, Chopin, Brahms, and Debussy. He toured abroad a good deal, particularly during and shortly after World War II, when he gave numerous much-cherished recitals in the USA and Australia.

A plan to record the Beethoven concertos with the Philharmonia Orchestra under Wilhelm Furtwängler proved unsuccessful; the pianist objected to working with Wilhelm Furtwängler due to the latter’s activities in Germany during the Nazi regime.

In 1955, Solomon became part of a very promising piano trio with violinist Zino Francescatti and cellist Pierre Fournier, but it was not to last. In 1956, while on vacation in France, he suffered a stroke that left him paralysed on his right side, bringing his career to an end. He never recorded or performed in public again, but lived another 32 years.

He died in London at the age of 86, in 1988.

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