Life is full of surprises. Up until 5:30 PM today I had no idea I will be heading to Wrocław, Poland, to perform Beethoven's 5th Piano Concerto at the "Closing of the NFM Wrocław Philharmonic Season" concert tomorrow, June 3rd, 2016, replacing Richard Goode who could not perform. Maestro Benjamin Shwartz will be conducting.
http://www.nfm.wroclaw.pl/component/nfmcalendar/event/2798
This is roughly on 26 hrs notice, and I made quick decision to come here from Katowice, where I wanted to attend Andrey Boreyko's performance with the Polish Radio National Symphony Orchestra and Ilya Gringolts as a soloist tonight, June 2nd. For the fifth time we will not see each other despite of many attempts made (twice in US, twice in Germany), including the latest one, where I decided to come to Katowice from Warsaw today, after Maestro told me that he will be so close. It didn't work again. I hope Maestro Boreyko will forgive me that disappearance... Interestingly, we both, Maestro Boreyko and I, did save another evening in Wrocław years ago, when both - conductor and soloist - could not perform. This in fact was how we met for the first time on stage. That one however was on slightly more than 48 hrs notice with Grieg's Piano Concerto on the program.
Well, here I am, accepting what life has just brought me...
There is something magical about the night time practicing in this extraordinary concert hall...
National Forum of Music, Main Hall, Wrocław, Poland