OBC, Lucas Debargue & Ludovic Morlot

Known for his operas and symphonic poems, Strauss gives a detailed explanation in music of each scene and character but, when asked about the story behind Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, the composer replied: “Were I to put into words the thoughts which its several incidents suggest to me, they would not suffice for the listener and might even give offence.”

Along with this work, the programme includes pieces in highly contrasting styles. In one direction, Inferno by the recently departed Josep Soler, is a piece for chamber ensemble verging on expressionism. In the other, we have two concertante pieces: Ludwig van Beethoven’s brilliant Third Piano Concerto, premiered by its composer, much larger and more ambitious than its two predecessors, and György Ligeti’s unusual Double Concerto for Oboe and Flute, which takes us into the sound universe of a Hungarian composer who was a tireless researcher into the orchestra’s timbral texture.