The world's most sought-after pianist, Queen Argerich, returns to Monaco on Sunday with the Philharmonic

Here she is, the queen, the empress, the dazzling, the legendary Martha Argerich. She has dominated the world of classical piano for half a century. At over 80 years old, she is the most famous and sought-after pianist in the world. Monaco had the unique opportunity to hear her perform twice this year, during the same season.

On February 9, she gave an unforgettable performance of Ravel's concerto with the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Charles Dutoit. She returns Sunday with Shostakovich's flamboyant Concerto for Piano and Trumpet. Although the work is for piano and trumpet, the piano plays the lion's share of the spotlight.

Martha Argerich will be able to display all the power of her musicality and all the brilliance of her virtuosity. The trumpet part will be entrusted to the brilliant Russian concert pianist Sergei Nakariakov.

The entire concert will be devoted to works by the Russian composer Shostakovich, to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of his death.

A work that shocked Stalin

In addition to the concerto , there will be symphonic excerpts from the opera "Katerina Ismailova ." The modernism of the first version of this work so shocked Stalin when it was first performed that the composer was declared an "enemy of the people" and threatened with deportation to the gulag.

Psychologically tortured by the USSR regime, torn between terror and creativity, the broken man had to turn back to modernism and compose more classical symphonies, such as the fifth that the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic performed for us in February and the sixth that it will perform for us this Sunday.

The concert will be conducted by the Moscow-born Finnish conductor Dima Sloboneniouk, who has already been applauded in Monaco.

Due to the ongoing Formula E Grand Prix, the concert, which was scheduled for 6 p.m., will be moved to 8 p.m. But one thing is certain: no racing champion will surpass Martha Argerich in keyboard virtuosity!