Sylvie Courvoisier. Live in Concert at Hanzas Perons

On Sunday, 18 January, the cultural venue Hanzas perons will open its new concert cycle, “Piano Sundays”, with a performance by the acclaimed Swiss-born pianist, composer, and improviser Sylvie Courvoisier. These will be a series of vibrant solo concerts by outstanding pianists, taking place at the Perons on the third Sunday of each month.

“The fact that her music is both aesthetically beautiful and strangely enigmatic only reaffirms her mastery as a composer,” writes Thom Jurek of All Music Guide about Sylvie Courvoisier. It is hard to disagree—especially once one becomes “hooked” by the curious, mysterious traits in her music that are difficult to label at first encounter. Even more so when witnessing the pianist performing on and then suddenly inside the piano—sometimes without a single curl of hair moving, at other times leaping and dancing along with the music.

A Swiss artist who now calls Brooklyn her home, Courvoisier continues to earn recognition and critical admiration for her ability to represent both worlds—European classical tradition and New York’s avant-garde jazz scene—with equal conviction. On one stage she shines with delicately nuanced chamber music; on another she “grooves” and unleashes her wild energy in the demanding, edgy world of big-city experimental jazz, having made herself at home on nearly every notable stage in New York over the past decades. The New York Times praises her as a bold yet always balanced pianist—one whose performances are a delight whether in Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” or in collaborative projects with icons of New York’s contemporary music scene, such as John Zorn, Evan Parker, Nate Wooley, and others.

“Courvoisier keeps listeners on the edge of their seats, because it feels like the piano can barely contain her. Her solo flights crash over the keyboard, wave after wave,” writes JazzTimes. The artist herself complements this almost stoically:

“The piano is like an orchestra. You can do so much with it, and it’s only natural that I try to draw out everything the instrument can offer!”

Everything—and more. Perhaps this is the reason John Zorn chooses which artists to collaborate with and whose work to release under his Tzadik label, known for its prominent position within the New York “new music” scene. For years, this small but influential label has been home to the cutting edge of New York’s experimental music—to those who seem to walk parallel avenues rather than follow the mainstream.

“A pointillistic compendium of extended piano techniques—plucking, scraping, muting strings, clusters of chords, elbow strikes, blurred pedalling, and harmonics… What makes the album ‘Signs and Epigrams’ persuasive even for the bravest listeners is Courvoisier’s density of sound, daring material, and absolute wildness in live performance,” writes All Music Guide in a review of her solo album.

“My father was an amateur jazz pianist, and thanks to him I regularly attended jazz summer camps in Siena, Italy. But I was the odd one out—at auditions I always played my own compositions. Although things are much better now, I can’t say jazz culture in Switzerland was very inclusive back then. I discovered that inclusivity after moving to Brooklyn in 1998. I immediately felt at home. In Switzerland, no one expected you to be different, but in New York my eccentricity was completely normal—surrounded by countless kindred spirits. I worked with Mark Feldman and musicians he knew. Being welcomed into the creative and supportive circle of geniuses like John Zorn and his Manhattan artist community was incredible!” recalls Sylvie Courvoisier, winner of Switzerland’s Grand Prix Music Award 2025, in an interview.

“There are pianists who treat their instrument like a cathedral. For Sylvie Courvoisier, it’s a playground.”
— NPR Music

In 2026, Hanzas perons—together with Klavieru salons 152—will host an exceptional pianist on the third Sunday of each month, featuring both local and internationally renowned artists.
February will bring Rihards Plešanovs, performing the entire cycle of Dmitri Shostakovich’s 24 Preludes and Fugues (Op. 87).
In March, pianist and GRAMMY-nominated artist Adam Tendler (USA) will visit Latvia for the first time, giving the European premiere of his programme “Inheritances”.
In April, Latvian audiences will once again welcome the acclaimed French pianist Vanessa Wagner, presenting a programme in which Glass converses with Debussy and Bach.

Tickets for Sylvie Courvoisier’s concert at Hanzas perons on 18 January—as well as the following three concerts—are available through Biļešu Paradīze ticketing network.
The first 30 “early bird” tickets for each concert are offered at a special price. Ticket prices will increase as the concert dates approach. A limited number of seating tickets is available.