Santtu conducts Prokofiev and Shostakovich

Programme

‘The greatest graduation piece of all time’ crowns this evening of 20th century classics.

The Philharmonia’s Principal Conductor Santtu opens with Prokofiev’s ‘happy and uncomplicated’, Mozart-inspired Symphony No. 1. Prokofiev wrote in his journal while he was writing the effervescent last movement ‘I was hugging myself with delight all the time I was composing it.’

It’s mind-boggling to think that Shostakovich was just 19 years old when he wrote his First Symphony, as a graduation piece at the Leningrad Conservatory. Don’t be fooled by his young age: already, we hear the composer’s distinctive voice and mastery of the power and potential of the orchestra. His professors arranged a public premiere by the Leningrad Symphony, and it caused a sensation.

Shostakovich was at a much lower point in his rollercoaster relationship with officialdom when he composed his Violin Concerto No. 1. Written in the shadow of his denunciation by the Soviet authorities, the piece did not receive its premiere until after Stalin’s death. By turns anguished, sardonic, yearning and defiant, it’s easy to interpret this virtuosic concerto as Shostakovich’s response to Soviet oppression. Tonight’s performance by the Philharmonia’s Featured Artist Nemanja Radulović is a chance to experience his ‘energy and firepower’ (Gramophone), but also his warmth and empathy.

This is the first of three Philharmonia concerts marking the 50^th anniversary of Shostakovich’s death. Look out for Shostakovich’s final symphony, No. 15, on 13 April, and artist William Kentridge’s take on his Symphony No. 10 on 24 April.