Hiro Takenouchi Mozart Finale

The culmation of Hiro Takenouchi’s year-long cycle of the Mozart piano sonatas includes some of his greatest works in the genre, including the effervescent D major sonatas and the famous ‘Rondo alla Turca’.

“Perhaps the most celebrated 'sonata-thon' is the monumental series by Beethoven. I have never done it myself, but have heard reports from those who have, about the discovery, the mental journey, the spiritual progress, the journey of the man himself, and so on. I have a sneaking suspicion and a somewhat sanguine wish that I might find the same shining wonder in all the sonatas by Mozart. Although we know that his skills as a composer matured, and he certainly changed his language to suit the evolving musical fashions, I want to test this theory by playing them all, to find the unchanging and sparkling spirit of a man preserved in all the sonatas.

I have now lived longer than Mozart did. Not that this gives me any right or superior insight into his music, but it is an odd feeling that I am in a position to look back at all the ages at which Mozart wrote these 18 works. If I have time, I might endeavour to play the Beethovens, Schuberts, or even the Haydns too!”

(words by Hiro Takenouchi)