Mozart & Shostakovich: Concertos for Piano and Strings & Piano Sonata Saskia Giorgini, Per Ivarsson, Trondheim Soloists

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 - 1791): Piano Concerto No. 12 in A Major, K. 414:
• 1 Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 12 in A Major, K. 414: I. Allegro 10:35
• 2 Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 12 in A Major, K. 414: II. Andante 08:05
• 3 Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 12 in A Major, K. 414: III. Rondeau. Allegretto 06:48
• Dmitri Shostakovich (1906 - 1975): Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and String Orchestra Op. 35:
• 4 Shostakovich: Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and String Orchestra Op. 35: I. Allegro moderato 06:14
• 5 Shostakovich: Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and String Orchestra Op. 35: II. Lento 07:46
• 6 Shostakovich: Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and String Orchestra Op. 35: III. Moderato 01:28
• 7 Shostakovich: Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and String Orchestra Op. 35: IV. Allegro con brio 06:55
• Piano Sonata No. 2 in B Minor, Op. 61:
• 8 Shostakovich: Piano Sonata No. 2 in B Minor, Op. 61: I. Allegretto 07:22
• 9 Shostakovich: Piano Sonata No. 2 in B Minor, Op. 61: II. Largo 08:03
• 10 Shostakovich: Piano Sonata No. 2 in B Minor, Op. 61: III. Moderato 13:46
• Total Runtime 01:17:02

Info for Mozart & Shostakovich: Concertos for Piano and Strings & Piano Sonata

In this captivating album, pianist Saskia Giorgini explores the porous boundaries between chamber music and concerto, weaving a nuanced narrative that connects Mozart’s lyrical elegance with Shostakovich’s biting wit. Mozart’s Piano Concerto in A Major, KV 414, originally conceived for both orchestra and string quartet, reveals its intimate side in this chamber setting—its melodic grace and quiet complexity enriched by subtle interplay. In contrast, Shostakovich’s Concerto No. 1 for Piano, Trumpet, and Strings bursts with irony and theatrical flair, shifting from parody to poignancy in a flash. The album closes with Shostakovich’s Piano Sonata No. 2, a work of stark introspection and formal ingenuity. Written in 1943 and dedicated to his late teacher Leonid Nikolayev, the Sonata carries a subtle, tragic undercurrent as it moves between baroque clarity, melancholic lyricism, and quietly defiant modernism—offering a deeply personal counterpoint to the extroverted brilliance of the concerto. Together, these works trace a lineage of innovation, where form, function, and emotion collide—delivering music that is as emotionally compelling as it is stylistically daring.

A pianist of exceptional depth and imagination, Saskia Giorgini, brings her signature refinement to every phrase. Her acclaimed discography with PENTATONE includes Liszt’s Harmonies poétiques et religieuses (Diapason d’or, 2021) and Consolations (Gramophone Critics’ Choice 2023), both hailed for their poetic insight and technical brilliance. She has also collaborated with tenor Ian Bostridge on celebrated recordings of Schubert’s Die schöne Müllerin (2020), Respighi Songs (2021), and Twilight Schumann Songs (2025). This release also marks the PENTATONE debut of trumpeter Per Ivarsson, while the Trondheim Soloists return to the label following two previous recordings: Transfigured Night – Haydn/Schoenberg (2018) with Alisa Weilerstein, and Haydn & Stamitz (2020) with Ana de la Vega and Ramón Ortega Quero. With this new album, Giorgini once again confirms her status as one of today’s most compelling and versatile pianists.

Saskia Giorgini, piano
Per Ivarsson, trumpet
Trondheim Soloists

Saskia Giorgini
She has also recorded an album with Enescu´s piano music and a Szymanowski album with violinist Francesca Bonaita for Brilliant Classics, and for Pentatone an acclaimed Schöne Müllerin (2020), Respighi Songs (2021), and Schumann Songs(2025) with tenor Ian Bostridge. Her most recent project, dedicated to Mozart and Shostakovich with the Trondheim Soloists and Per Ivarssen, will be released in November 2025.

Winner of the International Mozart Competition in Salzburg (2016), Saskia Giorgini has appeared in acclaimed recitals and live radio broadcasts in prestigious halls and festivals including Teatro La Fenice (Venice), Concerti del Quirinale (Rome), MiTo Settembre Musica Festival, Unione Musicale Torino, Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Meistersingerhalle (Nürnberg), Liederhalle (Stuttgart), Großer Saal Stiftung Mozarteum (Salzburg), Konzerthaus and Musikverein (Vienna), Philharmonia (St. Petersburg), Vancouver Summer Festival, Warsaw Philharmonia (Filharmonia Narodowa), Katowice Radio Hall, Seoul Arts Center, Cairo Opera House, Toppan Hall and Suntory Hall (Tokyo), and Wigmore Hall (London).

She has performed with numerous orchestras, among them the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra, Łódź Philharmonic Orchestra (Poland), CBC Radio Orchestra (Canada), under conductors including Simon Gaudenz, Eliahu Inbal, Mario Bernardi, Antonello Manacorda, Heribert Beissl, Tadeusz Wojciechowski, Andrea Battistoni, and Massimiliano Caldi.

Her passion for chamber music regularly brings her together with renowned partners such as Ian Bostridge, Julian Pregardien, Vilde Frang, Martin Fröst, Janine Jansen, Gilles Apap, Mario Brunello, Thomas Demenga, among many others.

Past and upcoming highlights include: a residency at the Auditori in Barcelona in the 2026/27 season; the Enescu Festival in Bucharest with the Athens State Orchestra and Stefanos Tsialis; Mozart concertos with the Copenhagen Philharmonic and Christian Øland; Grieg’s Piano Concerto with the Orchestra del Teatro Regio Torino and Hannu Lintu; Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 2 with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra and Marc Soustrot; Signe Lund’s Concerto with the Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen and Cathrine Winnes; Schumann’s Concerto Op. 54 with the Sønderjyllands Symfoniorkester and Simon Gaudenz in Germany and Denmark; and solo recitals at MiTo Festival, Unione Musicale, the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Wigmore Hall London, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Konzerthaus Wien, and in Switzerland, Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and Lithuania.

Saskia Giorgini received her musical training under Leonid Margarius at the Accademia Internazionale di Imola, Enrico Pace at the Accademia di Pinerolo, Elisso Virsaladze at the Accademia di Musica in Fiesole, and Pavel Gililov at the Mozarteum Salzburg. She currently holds a professorship in piano at the Anton Bruckner Privatuniversität in Linz. In addition, she serves on the juries of prestigious international piano competitions, including the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition (2025) and the Liszt Utrecht Competition (2026). She is a Bösendorfer Artist.

“A superb recording… a miraculous experience… a major voice in the world of Liszt.” (International Piano)

“La noblesse incarnée. Après l’ascétique Ciccolini, après le rayonnant Kempff, Saskia Giorgini nous offre la grande version moderne de ces trois recueils lisztiens.” (Diapason)

Per Ivarsson
er was born in 1984 in Malmö, Sweden, and received lessons at an early age from Björn Lovén, solo trumpeter of the Malmö Symphony Orchestra.

Later, he moved to Karlsruhe, Germany, where he spent six years studying with Professors Reinhold Friedrich, Edward H. Tarr, and Laura Vukobratovic.

At the age of 22, Per won the audition for the position of stand-in solo trumpeter with the Malmö Symphony Orchestra. He held this position for four years, from 2007 to 2011.

In 2010, he succeeded in the audition for solo trumpeter with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, and has held this position since January 2011.

During the 2015-16 season, he served as solo trumpeter with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. At the same time, Per studied soloist classes under Professor Håkan Hardenberger in Malmö, Sweden.

Per was appointed as a lecturer in trumpet at the Gothenburg State Music School in 2014, and has since given masterclasses at academies in Vilnius, Lithuania; the Metropolitana in Lisbon, Portugal; trumpet masterclasses on Tenerife during Trumpet Week, Tenerife, Spain; Lilla Akademien in Stockholm; and the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo.

He frequently appears with other orchestras as a guest soloist, such as the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, and NorrlandsOperan Umeå.

Other orchestras he has performed as a solo trumpeter with include the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Swedish Opera, Sveriges Radio Symphony Orchestra, Mahler Chamber Orchestra, KlangForum Wien, and the Gothenburg Opera Orchestra.

Soloist engagements include repertoire from 20th-century France, such as works by Jolivet, Alfred Desenclos (who he premiered in Sweden after its composition in 1954), and Tomasi; concerts by Swedish composers Rolf Martinsson and Jan Sandström; Baroque repertoire by W. A. Mozart, Hertel, Telemann, Marcello, among others; chamber music repertoire including Jolivet, Stravinsky, Skalkottas, Ives, Cage, Hindemith, and more.

Per performs regularly with percussionist Martin Ödlund and has performed André Jolivet’s substantial 7-movement “Heptade” at numerous chamber concerts, such as at Klubb Krinolin in Malmö and Stenhammarsalen in Gothenburg’s chamber music series.

Trondheim Soloists
are a musical chamber ensemble of string players, Grammy winner, based in Trondheim, Norway. The ensemble was founded in 1988 and has been an arena for professional concert training for string-players at the Music Conservatory at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. It started in 1988. The ensemble for training young string players soon became known for its energy and warmth. On its first foreign tour, London audiences wouldn’t stop clapping. The Trondheim Soloists turned professional, but the spirit of apprenticeship stayed: student musicians became part of its constitution. Major collaborations followed. Anne-Sophie Mutter sought-out the ensemble’s energy and verve. Leif Ove Andsnes tapped into its smoothness and sensitivity. Folk and rock artists discovered its versatility and openness. Today the orchestra revels under Øyvind – a musician with the enthusiasm of a teenager and the brain of a virtuoso. He has tapped into ensemble’s lifeblood of youth and discovery. He has pushed the boundaries of its repertoire and taken it around the world. The founding vision of violinist Bjarne Fiskum remains, but now the Trondheim Soloists are heard in New York and Beijing, London, Berlin and Cape Town.

Booklet for Mozart & Shostakovich: Concertos for Piano and Strings & Piano Sonata