Kariné Poghosyan | Vienna: Mozart270
May 3 @ 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm
Following her critically successful Khachaturian recital last year, the virtuoso pianist Kariné Poghosyan returns to Pianoforte Chicago with a triumphant celebration of Mozart’s 270th anniversary and the composer’s beloved city of Vienna. This unique program, titled Vienna: Mozart270, will include Mozart’s own F Major Sonata, Beethoven’s iconic Symphony no.5 written and premiered in Vienna, transcribed for piano by Liszt. A short masterwork by the native Viennese Franz Schubert will follow – the beloved lied Ständchen, also in Liszt’s transcription. The grand finale of the program is Franz Liszt’s most virtuosic and profoundly creative tribute to Mozart and his opera Don Giovanni, a work which Busoni labeled “the highest point of pianism.” Described as ‘The Powerhouse Pianist’ ‘extraordinary’ and ‘larger than life,’ the award-winning Armenian pianist has been praised for her “ability to get to the heart of the works she performs.” Her performances truly exemplify the difference between listening to music and experiencing music. As such, they ultimately bring a fresh new appeal to classical music that transcends all generations.
Program
MOZART Piano Sonata in F Major, K. 332
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5 in C Minor (arr. Liszt for solo piano)
LISZT “Ständchen” from Lieder aus Franz Schubert’s Schwanengesang
LISZT Réminiscences de “Don Juan” de Mozart – Grande Fantasie, S.418
“There’s such a sense of joy, even ecstasy as she plays.” This is how NY1’s Stephanie Simon describes the Armenian-American concert pianist Kariné Poghosyan‘s performances. Ms. Poghosyan’s recent concerts include recitals at Musikverein and Ehbar Saal in Vienna, Casa Armena in Milan, Chicago Cultural Center, the Sheldon in Saint Louis, the Soraya Performing Arts Center in Northridge, California, and several sold- out recitals at Carnegie Hall, including a Release concert of her “Rachmaninoff and Stravinsky” CD. This recording has garnered rave reviews, with Gramophone Magazine praising its “masterly textural layering and resounding climaxes,” and the American Record Guide stating that “a more heroic program would be hard to find, and few could play as well as the Armenian-American Poghosyan.” She was also featured on WQXR and was interviewed by David Osenberg on his award-winning program on WWFM, Cadenza. Renowned pianist and WWFM radio host Jed Distler described her performance in the following way, “This is big piano playing, but big in the sense of being in the moment, being present, and totally owning her vitality and imagination.” Oscar-winning screenwriter Alex Dinelaris said, “Listening to and watching Karine Poghosyan play fills one with life and energy. The combination of her formidable skill and her unchecked passion is an experience I recommend for anyone who needs to be reminded of the artist and art within themselves.
During the pandemic, Ms. Poghosyan performed 100 consecutive free weekly virtual concerts, gathering a loyal world-wide following as well as press coverage from the Pianist Magazine, Katie Couric’s newsletter The Wake-up Call, NY1’s Stephanie Simon, and ABC’s Rick Rowe. In February 2023, Ms. Poghosyan released her third album Folk Themes on Parma Recordings, to wonderful reviews. The TakeEffectReviews wrote “A body of work that’s passionate and exploratory, Folk Themes illustrates much tenderness and vibrancy via Poghosyan’s riveting playing,” and Lucid-Culture called it “a colorful, expressive, minutely jeweled new album.”
In January 2021, Ms. Poghosyan launched her own monthly recital broadcast series on Patreon, which she performs live from New York to a global audience of patrons and an intimate in- person audience. She has since created and performed 5 different 12-recital series, with a new hour long program each. Ms. Poghosyan’s 2025-2026 season includes an exhilarating monthly recital broadcast series she produces and performs on the last Sunday of each month from various venues in NYC, which one can attend in person in NY or virtually through her Patreon. Additional performances include a collaboration with the Harlem Chamber Players, solo performances at Carnegie Hall, Milan, Chicago, Jacksonville, and a return residency at Saint Louis University.
The recital is co-presented by the PianoForte Foundation and AGBU Chicago