SECOND EDITION 2025 14-16 NOV 2025
BERLIN - LONDON - VIENNA - PARIS
A MUSIC CELEBRATION FEATURING PIANO MUSIC IN EUROPEAN SALONS
SECOND EDITION 2025 14-16 NOV 2025
BERLIN - LONDON - VIENNA - PARIS
A MUSIC CELEBRATION FEATURING PIANO MUSIC IN EUROPEAN SALONS
FRIDAY 14 NOV 2025
7PM Raffles Hotel-Le Royal
Grand Opening
SATURDAY 15 NOV 2025
7PM Raffles Hotel-Le Royal
A Piano Recital
SUNDAY 16 NOV 2025
7PM Raffles Hotel-Le Royal
Finale – A Piano Recital
SATURDAY 15 NOV 2025
RAFFLES HOTEL-LE ROYAL
6:00 – 6:30 PM Pre-Concert Talk given by
the musicologist Prof. Dr. Monika Hennemann
Cardiff University School of Music, Wales
Enrich your concert experience with insights
into the music, background information on the works,
and the lives of the composers.
Free admission
………………………………………
7PM CONCERT – BACH & ROSSINI
RAFFLES HOTEL-LE ROYAL
Piano recital with Giovanni De Cecco
PROGRAM
Zimmermann’s Coffee House, Leipzig
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH
(1792-1868)
Concerto BWV 978
(Transcription of the violin concerto RV 310 composed by Antonio Vivaldi)
1. Allegro
2. Largo
3. Allegro
Johann Sebastian Bach’s transcriptions of works by Antonio Vivaldi are some of the most famous examples of Baroque adaptation and homage. Bach deeply admired Vivaldi’s concerto form, rhythmic vitality, and clear structure, and during his time in Weimar (1708–1717), he studied and transcribed several of Vivaldi’s concertos for keyboard instruments and organ. Bach’s BWV 978 is a masterful transcription that captures Vivaldi’s vibrant Italian style while injecting it with Bach’s keyboard fluency and contrapuntal logic. It stands as an elegant and historically rich example of how composers learned, borrowed, and innovated during the Baroque era.
Salon Theresa Cornely’s at Carlisle House, Soho Square, London
JOHANN CHRISTIAN BACH
(1792-1868)
Sonata op. 5 No. 6
1. Grave
2. Allegro moderato (Fuga)
3. Allegretto
This sonata exemplifies the Galant Style: light textures, homophonic writing, and graceful melodic ornamentation. J.C. Bach was a mentor and major influence on the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, especially in terms of form, elegance, and melody. Mozart met J.C. Bach in London in 1764–65, and you can hear echoes of this sonata’s clarity and charm in Mozart’s early sonatas. This sonata shows the shift away from counterpoint (typical of J.S. Bach) toward melodic simplicity and harmonic clarity. It’s part of the evolution that would soon be perfected by Haydn and Mozart.
Salon Sara Levy, Berlin
CARL PHILIPP EMANUEL BACH
(1792-1868)
Sonata IV Wq.55/4 ; H.186
1 Allegro assai
2 Poco adagio
3 Allegro
C.P.E. Bach’s Sonata in A minor, Wq. 55/4 is a masterwork of the Empfindsamer Stil, displaying fierce individuality, dramatic expression, and formal innovation. It marks a pivotal moment in the history of the keyboard sonata—bridging Baroque intensity and Classical clarity with early Romantic passion.
- Haydn studied C.P.E. Bach’s sonatas and credited him as a major influence.
- Mozart said: “He is the father; we are the children.”
- Beethoven owned and studied C.P.E. Bach’s keyboard works and drew inspiration from their expressive power and dramatic pacing.
Gioacchino Rossini’s Salon, Paris
GIOACCHINO ROSSINI
(1792-1868)
Spécimen de mon temps
Memento homo
Un Profond Sommeil
Fantasia ‘Moses in Egypt’
(transcription by S.Thalberg)
Rossini’s Paris salon was far more than a social gathering—it was a cultural institution, a place where the artistic spirit of the 19th century was exchanged, debated, and celebrated. Through it, Rossini remained a central figure in European music, shaping tastes and influencing composers long after he left the opera stage. Rossini’s piano music reveals a different side of the composer: private, personal, and humorous.
While not as well-known as his operas, these works are gems of 19th-century salon music, showing his mastery of form, melody, and subtle expression. They influenced later composers of light character pieces and inspired pianists who appreciate refined understatement.