Beethoven live with Pires, Dumay and Libeer

In 2012, Gilles Ledure, director of Flagey (Brussels), surprised Julien Libeer and myself by suggesting we should give a complete cycle of the Beethoven violin sonatas there. The kind of offer you can’t refuse. The music of Beethoven fashioned our culture: this spiritual child of the French Revolution is perhaps the first composer in our history to have embodied, in both his music and his life, the values of the Enlightenment. Which can only make him all the more appealing in these troubled and uncertain times.

It’s been three years now since our reunion around these sonatas began to structure our lives as musicians. And what started as a one-off project has turned into a major journey. From 10 to 12 April 2016, we will be presenting the Beethoven violin sonatas at Flagey. The last day will be extra special, when we are joined by Maria João Pires and Augustin Dumay, musicians that have formed us in many ways.

Julien and Lorenzo have made a recording of three of Beethoven’s sonatas. You can find more information here.