Among the foremost musicians of his generation, the versatile and imaginative pianist Paavali Jumppanen (Finland/Australia) presents an evening of repertoire spanning the last two centuries. Featuring works by Chopin, Debussy, and Bartók, the concert also marks the upcoming centenary of composer Pierre Boulez with whom Mr. Jumppanen worked closely.
The event is free and open to the public.
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Program
Béla Bartók: Improvisations on Hungarian Peasant Songs, op. 20
Frédéric Chopin: Piano Sonata no. 2 in B-flat Minor (“Funeral March"), op. 35
Pierre Boulez: Piano Sonata no. 1
Claude Debussy: Twelve Etudes, L 136 (selections)
Etude no. 11 for Composite Arpeggios
Etude no. 3 for Fourths
Etude no. 5 for Octaves
Bios
Piano virtuoso Paavali Jumppanen has established himself as a dynamic musician of seemingly unlimited capability who has cut a wide swath internationally as an orchestral and recital soloist, recording artist, artistic director, and frequent performer of contemporary and avant-garde music. Mr. Jumppanen has performed extensively in the United States, Europe, Japan, China, and Australia and collaborated with conductors including Esa-Pekka Salonen, Jaap van Zweden, Susanna Mälkki, David Robertson, and Sakari Oramo. He has commissioned numerous works and collaborated with composers such as Pierre Boulez, Tristan Murail, Henri Dutilleux, and Krzysztof Penderecki. The Boston Globe praised the “overflowing energy of his musicianship” and The New York Times cited his “power and an extraordinary range of colors.”
In recent years, Jumppanen has dedicated much of his time to performing cycles of the complete Beethoven and Mozart piano sonatas, and has performed all of Beethoven’s concertos and chamber sonatas on numerous occasions. Mr. Jumppanen’s expanding discography includes “the best recorded disc of Boulez’s piano music so far” (The Guardian on the three sonatas recorded on a DGG disc at the composer’s request) and the complete Beethoven Piano Sonatas on Ondine.
Jumppanen attended the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and later worked with Krystian Zimerman at the Basel Music Academy in Switzerland where he also studied the organ, fortepiano, and clavichord. He spent the 2011–12 season as a visiting scholar at Harvard University studying musicology and theory to deepen his immersion in Viennese 18th century music. Russian-born pianist Konstantin Bogino has remained an important mentor throughout his career. Since 2020, Paavali Jumppanen has served as the Artistic Director of the Australian National Academy of Music.