HAYDN:
The Last Seven Words of Christ, Hob. XX:1C
(fortepiano version, 1787)

The concert will feature excerpts from Péter Pázmány’s work entitled The Seven Words of Christ Spoken on the Cross.

(Language: Hungarian)

The Seven Last Words of Our Saviour on the Cross, now a customary annual feature of the Haydneum Sacred Music Festival and Concerts, ranks among the most popular works in the classical repertoire. This is hardly surprising, as Haydn unfolds these emblematic utterances with remarkable imagination and profound emotional depth. This is hardly surprising, as Haydn unfolds these emblematic utterances with astonishing remarkable and profound emotional depth. The work was originally commissioned in Spain for a distintictve Good Friday liturgy held in a rock-hewn church. Its original orchestral version, together with its oratorio and string quartet arrangements, appear frequently in concert programmes. It is therefore all the more striking that the fortepiano version, also prepared by Haydn himself, is so seldom heard, even though the intimacy of Christ’s words is most faithfully conveyed through the monologue of a solo instrument. The internationally renowned exponent of period keyboard performance, Petra Somlai, brings great sensitivity and refinement to this interpretation, offering an opportunity for deep spiritual reflection. The experience is further enriched by readings from the relevant writings of Péter Pázmány, delivered by András Berecz.