Next Tuesday, June 3 at 7.30 pm, the Fundación Excelentia presents an excellent concert in the Auditorio Nacional de Música of Madrid, with three protagonists, Sibelius, Rachmaninov and Brahms.
Under the direction of Daniel Raiskin and the solo piano of Lukáš Vondráček (pictured), the Orquesta Clásica Santa Cecilia will perform the piece Finland by the composer Jean Sibelius; the Concerto for piano and orchestra nr. 2, by Sergei Rachmaninoff, and Symphony No. 4, by Johannes Brahms.
Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 is a very popular and well-known work, especially for its melodic beauty and dramatic character. It was composed between 1900 and 1901, and its first performance was a success that boosted the recovery of the Russian composer after a period of depression.
The Symphony No 4 in E minor Op.98 was composed during the summer of 1884 during Brahms’ holiday stay at Mürzzuschlag, a small village in Austria’s Styria. During a meeting held at his home in the autumn of 1885, he presented to the piano with his friend Ignaz Brüll, fragments of the work. Among the listeners were Eduard Hanslick, Hans Richter, Theodor Billroth, Max Kalbeck, who did not welcome the work. Especially they did not like the shape of the finale.
All of the above results in that the play was not premiered in Vienna, like the previous ones, nor was it directed by Hans Richter. The premiere took place in Meiningen on 25 October 1885. The work was conducted by the composer himself with the Meininger Hofkapelle Orchestra. And this time the symphony was well received by the public and Brahms made a tour of Germany and Holland conducting his latest symphony. Tickets can be purchased at this link.
