The German pianist Stefan Arnold returns to the Radio Hall stage this Wednesday (January 15th, 2025). Together with the Radio Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Cristian Mandeal, he will perform Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat major, by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

What is your perspective on Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat major, KV 595, the last piano concerto he composed, written in the final year of his life?

This point is often misinterpreted. When Mozart composed this concerto, he was not contemplating his death. He wrote it in the spring, and it's an incredibly positive piece! It's deeply moving how the work almost seems like an ascent into the light. Even the main theme of the final movement, which Mozart also used in his lied "Longing for Spring" written around the same time, draws attention to this idea.

In the previous year, Mozart had been working hard on Piano Concerto No. 26, known as the "Coronation Concerto," while struggling with a difficult situation in Vienna. Yet this final concerto, No. 27, reaches an almost unimaginable depth of light. In the first movement, for instance, one can hear echoes of the Requiem, a divine nuance, a glimpse of eternal light. I'd say the major key and the atmosphere of the second movement offer a taste of the most sorrowful light imaginable, something we later encounter in Franz Schubert's music.

Thus, the uniqueness of this piece lies in its positive, optimistic nature, despite being Mozart's final piano concerto.

Some critics and musicologists see resignation and nostalgia in this final piano concerto. Would you say you disagree?

It's not about resignation at all-it's about the depth that Mozart always expressed, but here it's reflected with a new maturity. He also wanted to write a virtuoso concerto and achieved something revolutionary. Beethoven adopted this in his Piano Concerto No. 3: introducing a rather quiet theme in the final movement, then developing it with virtuosity. But Mozart does not do this for the sake of virtuosity alone-he maintains the lightness and joyfulness of the theme.

This is the highest level of virtuosity: a perfect skill that is never flaunted or displayed but instead becomes pure expression. It's similar to Franz Liszt, who is often misunderstood as a composer and pianist who pursued virtuosity. But, for example, his Sonata in B Minor is pure expression, almost a testimony. When we listen to it, we shouldn't hear a "virtuoso pianist" for even a moment.

So, I believe the second movement of Mozart's concerto is not resignation; it's a backward glance, full of wisdom and, of course, tinged with the inherent sadness of existence. This can also be found in Mozart's Clarinet Concerto. But I don't see resignation-resignation would mean a kind of giving up, which I can't associate with Mozart. He was far too full of life, forward-thinking, and didn't anticipate dying nine months later.

In the end, this is a concerto that makes you sweat-in the best way! It invigorates you, gives you life. The mood it inspires is fantastic!

How would you describe your connection with conductor Cristian Mandeal? You recently collaborated in Brașov as well.

I have enormous respect for Maestro Mandeal; we've known each other for a long time. We recently performed together, indeed. He's a great musician, an incredible listener, and communicates the direction of the music to the orchestra perfectly. Cristian explains very clearly what he wants and what's happening musically. And he's the opposite of superficial. For example, he listens extremely carefully to what I play and responds 100%-I love that!

This program is a great example of his thoughtful approach. Combining Brahms's Serenade, such a rarely heard work, with Schubert's Overture in the Italian Style works perfectly. But above all, I love the juxtaposition in the first part of Mozart and a very young Romanian composer, Andrei Petrache, who is only 26 years old! Including his music in this context-and Cristian undoubtedly does this with full conviction-means so much in supporting the new generation of composers. Unfortunately, this doesn't happen often enough. The presence of this contemporary work beautifully reflects Mandeal's attitude, I'd say. And this combination-a new work by a young composer placed alongside Mozart's last piano concerto-is no coincidence, I'm sure. Knowing how Mandeal designs concert programs, when I saw this, I smiled broadly in silence!