Concerts of excellence

Dall’oscurità alla luce – From Darkness to Light | Sol Gabetta II

Bertrand Chamayou

Sol Gabetta

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Date

Wednesday, 30.09

Hours 19:30

Location

Chiesa del Collegio Papio, Ascona

Via delle Cappelle 1, 6612 Ascona

Price categories

CHF 85 / 70 / 55 / 40

Recital for Chamber Orchestra and Piano

Concert information

Argentine cellist Sol Gabetta and French pianist Bertrand Chamayou share an artistic friendship that has endured for more than two decades. Critics describe their dialogue as “congenial.” In their new program of cello sonatas, the unusually powerful music of Rachmaninov meets the melancholy of Nordic Grieg.

In their new cello sonata program, an exceptionally powerful work — remarkable even by Rachmaninoff’s standards — meets the Nordic melancholic Grieg. Rachmaninoff was a great admirer of Grieg, whose piano concerto was his favourite. His cello sonata was written shortly after his Second Piano Concerto, which feels like a liberation after a period of severe depression, following successful treatment. His cello sonata is entirely shaped by this spirit of new beginnings. Grieg composed the Cello Sonata in A minor in 1882 and 1883, during a personal crisis marked by illness, marital tension, and creative doubts. He dedicated it to his brother John, a successful businessman,

who, however, devoted much of his free time to the instrument.

Program

Sol Gabetta, Cello
Artist in Residence 2026
Bertrand Chamayou, Piano

Benjamin Britten (1913-1976)
Cello Sonata in C minor, Op. 65

Edvard Grieg (1843-1907)
Sonata for Cello in A minor op. 36

Break

Witold Lutosławski (1913-1994)
“Grave,” Metamorphosis for Cello and Piano

Sergei Rachmaninov (1873-1943)
Cello Sonata in G minor op. 19

Duration: 120′ (break included)

The Artists

Bertrand Chamayou

Piano

Bertrand Chamayou’s talent was recognized at an early age by Jean-François Heisser. He completed his studies with Maria Curcio. He has won the Victoires de la Musique five times and, in 2019, the Gramophone Classical Music Awards for the Saint-Saëns piano concertos. He shares a long-standing musical friendship with Sol Gabetta. He is the Artistic Director of the Festival Ravel in the Basque Country.

Sol Gabetta

Cello

Full of virtuosity or full of passion? Superstar Sol Gabetta combines both. As founder and artistic director of the Solsberg Festival, a lecturer at the Hochschule für Musik Basel, and through her masterclass at classicAscona, she nurtures young talents. She has already been named “Instrumentalist of the Year” (OPUS Klassik) and is a winner of the Swiss Music Awards and the Europäischer Kulturpreis.

Venue information: Chiesa del Collegio Papio, Ascona

The Chiesa Santa Maria della Misericordia at the Roman Catholic secondary school “Collegio Papio” is a Renaissance-era building, renowned for its impressive altarpieces and wall paintings by Giovanni Serodine (17th century) and Marco D’Oggioni (16th century). Because of its size and excellent acoustics, the church is regularly used for concerts, including major concerts organized by classicAscona. The College’s other premises host master classes and other side events.

The College’s other premises are used for master classes and other side events.