Narek Hakhnazaryan, OBC & Juanjo Mena

Dmitri Xostakóvitx’s Concert n. 1 for violoncello displays all its ambiguity, dramatism and irony in an emotive piece of great virtuosity for the soloist. The Russian composer used a small orchestra to create compelling interplay between the cello and the orchestra, where the horn particularly stands out.

Alegrías is a symphonic suite based on themes from Flamenco, a ballet with which Robert Gerhard was commissioned by the Rambert Dance Company in 1941; a factor that would condition the composer’s work, calling for clichéd images of Spain that would be understood in London. Despite these limitations and the hardships of his exile, he created a brilliant, avant-garde symphonic pastiche. 
Carl Nielsen embarked on a new creative stage with his Symphony No. 4, the most highly praised of his symphonies and a celebration of life, premiered halfway through the First World War