Angela Hewitt: Beethoven Sonatas

Angela Hewitt is playing Beethoven's piano sonatas at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities on Sunday 16 May 2027. It's part of the Oxford International Piano Series, and the programme runs from Beethoven's early sonatas through to the Piano Sonata in A-flat major, Op. 110.

If you're not familiar with the venue, the Schwarzman Centre opened to the public in April 2026. It's a big addition to the university, housing seven of Oxford's humanities faculties alongside the Bodleian Humanities Library, with state-of-the-art performance, screening and exhibition spaces. Hewitt will be performing in the Sohmen Concert Hall, one of those spaces.

The recital sits within the Centre's 2027 cultural programme, which brings together international musicians, artists, choreographers and filmmakers. A lot of the projects are commissioned and developed in collaboration with Oxford University researchers, looking at connections between the arts, science, technology, the environment and human wellbeing. Hewitt's Beethoven programme is one of the bookings in that line-up.

As for the music, it's a broad sweep of Beethoven's piano writing. Starting with the early sonatas and working up to Op. 110 means you'll hear the composer's style shift over time, from the more classical roots of his youth towards the later, more complex works. It's a good way to trace how his approach to the piano changed across his career, all in one evening. The date is Sunday 16 May 2027, at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities in Oxford.