About this concert
Yunchan Lim is currently the up-and-coming star of the piano world. If you witnessed his sensational Concertgebouw Orchestra debut in January 2026, you know it’s no hype! Barely a year later, he is back again, this time with the cheerful Piano Concerto No. 2 by Ludwig van Beethoven, who died 200 years ago. The influence of Haydn and – especially – Mozart is evident in this early work, but original twists and sharp contrasts already point towards the later Beethoven. In the demanding slow movement, Yunchan Lim will be able to showcase his most lyrical side.
Conductor Iván Fischer juxtaposes the piano concerto with two high points from the early Romantic period. Carl Maria von Weber ushered in a new era in opera with his innovative Der Freischütz. The overture weaves melodies from the opera into an independent orchestral work, which has remained successful to this day.
In his sublime Ninth Symphony, Schubert takes the orchestra out of its comfort zone, giving the wind section in particular unusually intense parts. The symphony would not be performed until eleven years after Schubert’s death. In fact, it was Robert Schumann who found the manuscript and recognised the work as a masterpiece. ‘All the instruments were like human voices, and immensely full of life and wit,’ he wrote. This is Schubert at the peak of his powers: pure bliss!
This is Schubert at the peak of his powers: pure bliss!
