Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.2
Sat 15 February 2020
West Road Concert Hall
Dvorák Notturno for Strings
Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.2
Smetana Má Vlast (Vysehrad, Vltava and Sárka)
Cambridge University Orchestra
Jac van Steen conductor
Churen Li piano (CUMS Concerto Competition 2019 Winner)
Sergei Rachmaninov composed his most enduring work in the depths of a deep depression. After the disastrous performance of and reception to his First Symphony the bright-young-thing of Russian music was unable to compose for three years. It was the intervention of the Piano Concerto No. 2’s dedicatee, a therapist, Dr Nicolai Dahl, which rejuvenated Rachmaninov’s creativity and sent him down a considerably more mellifluous path. The piece opened to immense acclaim and catapulted its young composer to international stardom.
Rachmaninov’s masterwork is combined with Dvorák’s spellbinding Notturno for Strings and Smetana’s hymn to his Czech homeland, Má Vlast. Má Vlast (My Fatherland) viscerally depicts the grandeur of ancient kings and warriors, every twist and turn of the mighty river Vltava, the depths of Bohemia’s forests and its magnificent castles. Under the masterful direction of Dutch maestro Jac van Steen Cambridge University Musical Society’s own bright-young-things—Concerto Competition 2019 prize-winner Churen Li, who will be more than a match for the solo part, the most notorious zenith of pianistic endeavour; and Cambridge University Orchestra, CUMS’ flagship orchestra—will be sure to provide a breath-taking and romantically charged evening.
Cost: £20, £14, £10; concessions: £18, £12, £8; students and under-18s: £5
Enquiries and booking
Please note that booking is required for this event.
Enquiries: ADC Box Office Website Telephone: 01223 300085