The Mozart Salons Concert 1, Wilton's Music Hall

Wilton’s Music Hall in Whitechapel is a jewel of the East End. London’s oldest music hall – and one of the few still extent in Europe – it is a captivatingly crumbling space. Recently refurbished, it provides an atmospheric backdrop for musical and theatrical performance.
The venue’s 2016 season opens with two concerts in The Mozart Salons, an international series of concerts and events that connects the incomparable Austrian classicist with contemporary music. Violinist Peter Sheppard Skaerved (Tartini’s Sonate Piccole) will take the lead, accompanied by acclaimed pianist Daniel-Ben Pienaar (Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier).
The first concert, on January 8, sees the pair tackle four of Mozart’s violin sonatas. The concert begins with No. 21 in E Minor (1778), a sombre piece composed around the time of his mother’s death. No. 27 in G Major (1781) follows, which curiously opens with a slow adagio before flourishing into an allegro and Pachelbel-evoking theme. No. 36 (1788) has a similar inversion of form, and sees the piano dominate. Finally, No 32 (1784), which Einstein saw as Mozart’s greatest, is arguably the most balanced in the composer’s repertoire.
These four works will be joined by a world premiere from Michael Alec Rose, Vanderbilt University Professor of Composition and a long-standing collaborator with Skaerved. Il Ritorno is a set of violin movements inspired by the pair’s Dartmoor sojourns.
The concert, which begins at 7.30pm, is preceded by a talk at 7pm.