About this Event
What if the Goldberg Variations opened their doors to the music of today?
Pianist Cristian Sandrin, praised for his bold, crystalline interpretations, has invited twelve living composers to each write a new variation on Bach’s Aria. They range from Julian Anderson, Dan Dediu, Michaël Levinas and Livia Teodorescu-Ciocănea to younger voices from Japan, Iran, the Czech Republic, Italy and Romania. Each new variation starts from the same bass line Bach used, then goes its own way. Placed within the original sequence, they make Bach’s 1741 masterpiece a nest for new music.
A new fascinating way to hear Bach’s much beloved Goldberg Variations, alongside the music of our times.
PROGRAMME
J.S. Bach – Goldberg Variations, BWV 988
interwoven with new variations by:
Julian Anderson – Adagio (world premiere)
Dan Dediu - New Variation (world premiere)
Louise Drewett – Canone alla Decima
Philip Dutton – Kanchenjunga
Michaël Levinas - New Variation (world premiere)
Cristian Monti - Liminas Maemoria (world premiere)
Miharu Ogura – Another Arabesque (world premiere)
George Pais - New Variation (world premiere)
Andrei Petrache - Bach speaks Latin (world premiere)
Farhad Poupel – Reng
Iuliana Teodorescu - Heirloom (world premiere)
Livia Teodorescu-Ciocănea – Liebe Anna Magdalena (world premiere)
CRISTIAN SANDRIN, piano
“Cristian Sandrin sets the bar very high” ★★★★★ BBC Music Magazine
Born in Bucharest into a family of musicians, Cristian Sandrin has lived in London since 2012. His acclaimed Wigmore Hall recital established him as a bold and luminous interpreter of Baroque and Classical repertoire. He has performed at the Konzerthaus Berlin, the Beethoven-Haus Bonn, the Sala Puccini in Milan, and the Romanian Athenaeum with the George Enescu Philharmonic. In 2025 he toured the UK with the English Chamber Orchestra Ensemble and the London Mozart Players, playing Mozart piano concertos. His recordings have been named BBC Music Magazine’s Instrumental Choice of the Month and Piano News’s CD of the Month, and his Purcell album was a Presto Music Awards finalist. He is Artistic Director of the Kettner Concerts in London and the creator of the New Goldberg Variations project.
The project began in London in early 2025 at Sinfonia Smith Square with three new variations. It now returns with twelve. Nine are world premieres: the variations by Julian Anderson, Dan Dediu, Michaël Levinas, Cristian Monti, Miharu Ogura, George Pais, Andrei Petrache, Iuliana Teodorescu and Livia Teodorescu-Ciocănea.
Read more about the project on Bachtrack: https://bachtrack.com/interview-cristian-sandrin-new-goldberg-variations-bach-kettner-society-december-2024
Event venue & nearby stays
National Liberal Club, 1 Whitehall Place, London, United Kingdom
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