Lara Downes piano

Lara Downes is a devoted champion of classical music by women composers and Black Americans, and an equally unequivocal advocate for the cause of democracy and freedom. Her programme today stems from her Pentatone releases Hold These Truths and Love at Last, exploring works that span generations, continents and cultures, united in a stubborn belief in the possibility of humanity, brotherhood, peace, compassion and the everlasting power of love. The inspiration for Love at Last comes from a poem by the 19th-century Odessa-born poet Shaul Tchernichovsky, whilst Hold These Truths draws on the pianist’s extraordinary two-year odyssey across the United States reflecting on the complexities of contemporary American life.

Part of the Pentatone 25th Anniversary Festival

Elie Siegmeister – III. Lusty and Joyful