On Wednesday, February 25 at 7:30 p.m., the Sociedad de Conciertos La Filarmónica brings violinists Pinchas Zukerman (in the photo) and Fumiaki Miura to the Auditorio Nacional of Madrid, as well as the Warsaw Symphony. Tickets can be purchased here.
The programme consists of Bach’s Concerto for two violins; Kilar’s Orawa; Mozart’s Concertante Symphony for violin and viola, and Symphony No. 8, by Dvořák.
Pablo Casals, whose 150th anniversary of his birth is celebrated this year, was one of the greatest musicians of the twentieth century, turned the cello into a first-rate solo instrument, modernizing its technique. One owes him, among many other things, the recovery and recreation of the Bach Suites. He was also a composer, festival-maker and a constant mentor of young musicians.
In May 2019, Pinchas Zukerman and Fumiaki Miura were invited to the Miyazaki Festival to perform Mozart’s Concertante Symphony. The night before the concert, in the hotel room, Zukerman shared with Miura the influence that Casals had on him in his youth. In the early morning, they both decided to add Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins to the program of the next day and dedicate it to Maestro Casals.
From Casals to Zukerman and from Zukerman to Miura, the tradition continues. On February 25, Zukerman and Miura will perform, alongside the Warsaw Symphony, the same program they offered in Japan.
Pinchas Zukerman (“sugar man”) comes from a Polish family that resided in Opatów. When the war broke out, several relatives were deported and died in the concentration camp of Auschwitz. After the conflict, survivors, including their parents, settled in Warsaw, from where they soon had to flee due to pogroms. They began a long journey that took them to Berlin, Cologne, Bari and Cyprus, as far as Tel Aviv, where Pinchas was born.
