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THE LATE BEETHOVEN
Piano Sonatas op. 101 · 106 · 109 · 110 · 111
Piotr Kowal – piano
Beethoven’s last five piano sonatas (Opp. 101, 106, 109, 110, and 111) rank among the most significant works in the history of music. Written at the very end of his life, when the composer was already completely deaf, they testify to his extraordinary spiritual strength and inner freedom. Rather than repeating earlier formulas, Beethoven transcends the traditional framework of the classical sonata, directing his music toward increasing concentration of expression, polyphonic complexity, and profound contemplative intensity. These are works in which structural economy coexists with immense emotional and intellectual depth.
Piotr Kowal is a Polish pianist, chamber musician and educator associated with the musical life of Kraków. A graduate of the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Kraków in the class of Prof. Andrzej Pikul, he received a doctoral degree in 2018 for his work on the interpretation of Beethoven’s late piano sonatas, including the B-flat major Sonata Op. 106 “Hammerklavier”, and a postdoctoral (habilitation) degree in 2025. He currently serves as Assistant Professor at the Department of Piano at the Krzysztof Penderecki Academy of Music in Kraków and heads the Piano Department at the Bronisław Rutkowski State Music School in Kraków.