1.00pm on Tuesday October 21

Live and Free at Scots’ Church

Jonathan Xian

Programme

Johann Sebastian BACH – Partita No. 1 in B-flat major, BWV 825

Prelude
Allemande
Courante
Sarabande
Minuet I – Minuet II – Minuet I (da capo)
Gigue

Frédéric CHOPIN – Nocturne in B major, Op. 62 No. 1

Franz LISZT – Sonata in B minor, S. 178

Programme notes

Partita No. 1, the first of Bach’s six Partitas for keyboard, follows the traditional structure of a Baroque suite (Allemande, Courante, Sarabande, Gigue) with the addition of a Prelude and a pair of Minuets. In this series of dances, each dance shines with its own distinctive character, style and rhythm.

Chopin’s Nocturne in B major, Op. 62 No. 1 opens with two searching chords, before unfolding into a deeply expressive and reflective meditation.

Liszt’s Sonata in B minor is a monumental work and is widely considered his greatest masterpiece. Written as a single 30-minute movement, its architecture is founded on sonata form and comprises three main sections, unified by the same thematic material. It is a great journey through loss, struggle, divine love, hope and triumph.

Biography

Jonathan Xian is a pianist and composer from Melbourne. A previous winner of 3MBS’s The Talent, his performances and compositions are imbued with sensitivity and depth of emotion.

Jonathan is a graduate of the Sir Zelman Cowen School of Music, where he studied under the tutelage of Dr Mikhail Solovei and was a finalist in the Concerto Competition, playing Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2. He has had a long affiliation with BottledSnail Productions, having performed Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Melbourne Lawyers’ Orchestra and frequently in the Supreme Court Library of Victoria. He has also performed regularly with Music Matinee over several years, including live-streamed recitals during two years of lockdown.

As a composer, Jonathan recorded his debut album of original works, I Was Warm, in 2021.