Canadian pianist Michael Lam, a first-year Music Performance Scholar at the University of Kent and Kent and Medway Medical School (KMMS), will mark the occasion with a filmed performance of the composer’s Piano Sonata in A major, Op.101.

The performance will be filmed in the Colyer-Fergusson Hall on the University’s Steinway piano and premiered on the music department’s YouTube channel.

A keen enthusiast of Beethoven’s rich repertoire for piano, Michael’s performance will be a continuous unedited take of the first of Beethoven’s Late Period piano sonatas, rich in complexity and a formidable challenge to pianists everywhere. 

Daniel Harding, Head of Music Performance at the University of Kent, said: "Michael’s one-take performance of Beethoven’s epic Late Period piano sonata promises to be quite a remarkable event as this year’s Beethoven anniversary celebrations draw to a close.

"It’s wonderful to have such a gifted pianist amongst this year’s Music Performance Scholars, and exciting to present this opportunity at the outset of Michael’s time as part of both the Music Department as well as the Kent and Medway Medical School."

Michael Lam spoke about his upcoming performance. He said: "This year we celebrate the 250^th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven. I would like to thank the KMMS Team, music at Kent (Dan Harding, Sophie Meikle, Matthew King), and the Gulbenkian film crew for allowing me to share what I consider to be one of the greatest masterpieces in all of human history. At the time it was written, Beethoven was already completely deaf, so he had to imagine all of it in his head."

Watch Michael Lam’s performance at 13.00 on Wednesday 16 December via this link.