Martin Helmchen

The young German pianist Martin Helmchen doesn't let the grass grow under his feet. At the age of eleven he went to the Berlin Musikhochschule and at 19 he won the prestigious Clara Haskil Competition. Since then he has conquered the major concert stages with ease and has performed with the best artists. His route to success is the result of sheer ability and musicality. Clever marketing strategies are not the thing for this straightforward guy. Moreover, Helmchen is not easily intimidated. He was not yet 30 when he dared to programme the infamous 'Hammerklaviersonate'. His fearlessness is indisputable because these 32 Beethoven sonatas are the longest and technically the most difficult. This monumental work was long considered unplayable. Beethoven always sought extremes on every level and reached far and beyond the boundaries of the pianoforte instruments of his time. It was only in 1836 that the first complete public performance was presented, by no one other than Franz Liszt. In fact even today there are few pianists who include the 'Hammerklaviersonate' in their programme. Prior to this tour de force, Helmchen will stretch his fingers in the First Partita by Bach, the short character pieces by Schoenberg and in some of Mendelssohn's 'Lieder ohne Worte'.