Acclaimed international musicians and orchestra to perform at LCSD’s “Great Music 2025” from September to November (with photos)
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The “Great Music 2025”, presented by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department, will continue to present a series of spectacular performances from September to November, featuring numerous world-class musicians and a celebrated orchestra, showcasing the city’s unique charm as an international centre of arts and culture.
Details of the programmes are as follows:
Piano Recital by Nikolai Lugansky
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Date and time: September 14 (Sunday), 8pm
Venue: Concert Hall, Hong Kong City Hall
Ticket prices: $250 to $550
Pianist Nikolai Lugansky, hailed by British magazine “Gramophone” as “the most trailblazing and meteoric performer of all”, will make his Hong Kong recital debut. The programme will open with Beethoven’s “The Tempest” Sonata, followed by Schumann’s “Faschingsschwank aus Wien” and three transcriptions of excerpts from Wagner’s operas – “Das Rheingold”, “Die Walküre” and “Parsifal”. The recital will culminate with Liszt’s “St François de Paule: Marchant sur les flots”.
“Makedonissimo by Simon Trpčeski and Friends” concert
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Date and time: October 21 (Tuesday), 8pm
Venue: Concert Hall, Hong Kong City Hall
Ticket prices: $200 to $420
Macedonian pianist Simon Trpčeski with four fellow Macedonian musicians will present “Makedonissimo”, featuring a programme of diverse musical styles that blends Macedonian folk traditions with elements of jazz and classical music. The Macedonian musicians will also collaborate with the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra Suona Principal Ma Wai-him and huqin player Chan Pik-sum to deliver a finale of two medleys rearranged by pop music composer Johnny Yim, combining Macedonian folk tunes with Chinese music and Cantopop to achieve an East-meets-West musical collaboration.
Piano Recital by Dang Thai Son
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Date and time: November 17 (Monday), 8pm
Venue: Concert Hall, Hong Kong City Hall
Ticket prices: $220 to $480
Dang Thai Son, a legendary international pianist who rose from practising in bomb shelters to gracing some of the world’s most renowned stages, is the first Asian pianist to win the First Prize at the International Chopin Piano Competition. He will return to Hong Kong City Hall after seven years with a programme featuring works by French composers Fauré and Ravel, as well as selected pieces of Chopin, from his nocturnes, waltzes to polonaises and a scherzo, to delight his devoted audience.
“Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Roma” concert
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Date and time: November 20 and 21 (Thursday and Friday), 8pm
Venue: Concert Hall, Hong Kong Cultural Centre
Ticket prices: $450 to $1,450
Returning to Hong Kong after seven years’ absence, the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia – Roma, under the baton of its newly appointed artistic director and world-class conductor Daniel Harding, will give performances in the city. The two concerts will open with Verdi’s “Overture to Les vȇpres siciliennes”, while the first concert will feature Rachmaninov’s “Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27”, as well as Ravel’s “Piano Concerto in G” with world-renowned pianist Beatrice Rana as soloist. The second concert will include overtures from Rossini’s “William Tell” and Verdi’s “La forza del destino”, as well as Act I of Wagner’s “Die Walkure”, with vocal solos by soprano Miina-Liisa Vȁrelȁ, tenor Klaus Florian Vogt and bass Kwangchul Youn.
Duo Recital by Mischa Maisky (Cello) and Lily Maisky (Piano)
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Date and time: November 22 (Saturday), 8pm
Venue: Concert Hall, Hong Kong City Hall
Ticket prices: $280 to $880
The legendary cellist Mischa Maisky will return to Hong Kong for a much-anticipated duo recital with his daughter, pianist Lily Maisky. Marking their 20th anniversary of musical partnership this year, the duo will present a captivating programme featuring Beethoven’s variations on themes from the opera “The Magic Flute”, followed by a sonata for cello and piano by Shostakovich, and a selection of art songs by Brahms and Schumann. The concert will culminate with Schumann’s “Fantasiestücke, Op. 73”, bringing this year’s “Great Music” to a perfect close.
Tickets for the above programmes will be available from July 23 (Wednesday) onwards at URBTIX (www.urbtix.hk). For telephone bookings, please call 3166 1288. For programme enquiries and concessionary schemes, please call 2268 7321 or visit www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/Programme/en/music/groups_1840.html. The Piano Recital by Nikolai Lugansky, the “Makedonissimo by Simon Trpčeski and Friends” concert, the Piano Recital by Dang Thai Son and the Duo Recital by Mischa Maisky (Cello) and Lily Maisky (Piano) are also programmes of this year’s Asia+ Festival.