Sunday 01 October 2023, 3pm

MUSSORGSKY arr. RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Night on the Bare Mountain

TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35

RACHMANINOFF Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27

Roderick Dunk – Conductor
Joo Yeon Sir – Violin

Artist Bio

The opening item for the RTWSO’s 23-24 season is not for the faint-hearted! Mussorgsky’s A Night on the Bare Mountain (as re-orchestrated by Rimsky-Korsakov) tells of a Witches’ Sabbath, with music that featured in the Leopold Stokowski Disney film Fantasia.

Originally considered too difficult to actually play, Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto has now gained its rightful place in the repertoire. We are thrilled to welcome back soloist Joo Yeon Sir for what promises to be a dazzling performance.

The concert ends with Rachmaninoff’s perfectly proportioned Symphony No. 2. Those who follow such things will know how successful his Piano Concerto No. 2 is in Classic FM’s Hall of Fame, but his Symphony No. 2 is also a regular item on that list. This is in no small part due to the lush orchestration and memorable theme in the romantic third movement. The whole piece is full of sweeping tunes and concludes in a typical Rachmaninoff way, with the characteristic and decisive triplet rhythm ahead of the last note, leaving no doubt that this epic piece has ended.