Austrian pianist Buchbinder returns to China with Beethoven sonatas

BEIJING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Austrian pianist Rudolf Buchbinder kicked off the first of his seven concerts in Beijing on Tuesday night, performing Beethoven piano sonatas at the National Center for the Performing Arts (NCPA).

The 76-year-old piano virtuoso, renowned for his exceptional interpretations of Beethoven's music, will perform the complete collection of 32 Beethoven piano sonatas during his tour in Beijing that will end on May 17.

"(Performing) a concert is always a challenge," said the musician. "(For the audience) this is a fantastic discovery of new pieces that are seldom, practically never played."

Buchbinder performed the complete piano sonatas of Beethoven for the first time in China at the 15th Beijing Music Festival in 2012.

In May 2019, he joined Staatskapelle Dresden as the pianist and conductor to stage Beethoven's five piano concertos in Beijing.

Tuesday's performance is part of this year's NCPA May Festival, which began on May 1 and will last till May 27.

The festival brings performances of musicians from home and abroad, including world-renowned French violinist Renaud Capucon and celebrated Chinese cellist Wang Jian.