Valentina Lisitsa, the most downloaded classical musician on the internet, will be in Cape Town for a masterclass with young pianists Qden Blaauw, 13, Victoria Fokkens,17, and Mike Wang, 10; a concert with the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra; and for the Cape Town Concert Series.
The masterclass takes place on the Opera House Stage at the Artscape Theatre Centre on Saturday, November 11, at 11 am. Seating is limited but it is open to the public free of charge on a first come, first served basis.
The following Thursday, November 16, she will perform the Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini by Rachmaninov at the Cape Town City Hall at 8pm. Martin Panteleev will conduct the CPO in the concert, which also features the Marche Solonnelle by Tchaikovsky and the Symphony no 10 by Shostakovich.
The Cape Town Concert Series celebrity fundraising recital takes place at the Baxter Concert Hall on Saturday, November 18, at 8pm. On the programme is the Appassionata Sonata by Beethoven as well as Gaspard de la nuit by Ravel, Three Nocturnes and a Scherzo by Chopin and Pictures at an Exhibition by Mussorgsky.
After immigrating to the US from the Ukraine, Lisitsa launched herself in a piano duo with her husband. Soon established as a concerto artist and competition winner, she looked for other avenues to enlarge her audience.
She posted her first video on the internet platform YouTube in 2007, a recording of the Etude Op. 39, No. 6 by Sergei Rachmaninov. The foundation stone of a social-network career unparalleled in the history of classical music was laid. Her YouTube channel now records 346 000 subscribers and 147 million views with an average 75000 views per day, all captivated by her beauty, talent and charm.
Entrance to the master class is free; tickets for the CPO concert from Artscape Dial-A-Seat on 021 421 7695; tickets for the Concert Series recital from Computicket. Student discounts at the box office on the night. For more details on the CPO: email [email protected]/ and for the concert series: [email protected]