Thursday, 21st March 2024, 19:00 | brick-15, Herklotzgasse 21, 1150 Vienna
The Future of the Past | Hommage à Sara Levy
The central figure is a Jewish harpsichordist who experienced three stylistic eras and left to posterity a collection of musical treasures of immeasurable value. Without the remarkable patronage of Sara Levy in her Berlin salon, the Bach Renaissance under Felix Mendelssohn would have looked very different. The mysterious traces of two trio sonatas by Bach's son, Wilhelm Friedemann, lead ensemble freymut to the extraordinarily fascinating life story of the Berlin musician and patron Sara Levy.
Daniel Serrano's commissioned compositions were funded by the City of Vienna Culture in 2023. UA 2024, Vienna
©Damián Posse
In her Berlin salon, where famous contemporaries such as Felix and Fanny Mendelssohn, E. T. A. Hoffmann, and Bettina Brentano were guests, Levy also paid tribute to her great passion for the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. To illustrate Sara Levy's forgotten role in history, a concert programme was developed in collaboration with the Spanish composer Daniel Serrano, honoring the harpsichordist in an unique way. The Andalusian composer draws compositional ideas from Sara Levy's collection for a tribute to the famous musician and patron, resulting in a contemporary suite for four instruments—a musical adventure that immediately touches and makes music an open sonic space across centuries.
Sara Levy (1761 - 1854)
Harpsichordist, patron and music collector