Dvořák and Poulenc in England
The Â鶹Éç Philharmonic, conducted by Clemens Schuldt, perform French music commissioned by the Â鶹Éç and Czech music commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society.
In 1957 Maxim Shostakovich received a special nineteenth birthday present; a piano concerto from his father which Maxim played for his graduation from the Moscow Conservatoire. Written after Stalin's death this Second Concerto is light-hearted and charming and apparently contains private jokes and messages between father and son, (as well as passages guaranteed to sound suitably virtuosic) but it's the astonishingly beautiful bitter-sweet lyricism of the slow movement that lingers in the memory long after a performance finishes. The concert ends with Dvořák's evergreen Seventh Symphony; Dvořák loved being in London, writing glowing reports of performances of his music at the Royal Albert Hall and his own warm reception. The Royal Philharmonic Society appointed him an Honorary Member and commissioned this Symphony. He was keen to provide more music that his audiences would enjoy, " Wherever I go, I think of nothing by my Symphony which must be capable of stirring the world." The concert opens with another British commission, this time from the Â鶹Éç, by Francis Poulenc. "Don't analyse my music", he said, "love it" and his Sinfonietta is delightfully tuneful, witty and charming.
Live from the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
Presented by Sarah Walker
Poulenc: Sinfonietta
Shostakovich: Piano Concerto No.2
8.25 Music Interval
Dvořák: Symphony No.7
Simon Trpceski (piano)
Â鶹Éç Philharmonic
Clemens Schuldt (conductor)
