This promises to be an interesting evening of contrasting music by Smetana and Rachmaninov. At their ProArte guest appearance, the Korean pianist Seong-Jin Cho and the Czech Philharmonic are determined to keep us on the edge of our seats with everything from lively dance rhythms to exhilarating soundscapes, dazzling piano passages and lush orchestral sounds. However, if we take a closer look, the music that seems so different on paper is perhaps not so different after all. Smetana’s famous comic opera »The Bartered Bride« and Rachmaninov’s »Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini« are both fast-paced, require technical brilliance and are filled with emotional drama. The two composers also shared the same musical language of the Romantic period and were highly skilled in the art of orchestration. Add to this the fact that their music is in the hands of the best orchestra in the Czech Republic and South Korea’s star pianist, and you are guaranteed a breathtaking concert experience.
PERFORMERS
Tschechische Philharmonie orchestra
Seong-Jin Cho piano
Semyon Bychkov conductor
PROGRAM
Bedřich Smetana
Die verkaufte Braut B 143 (excerpts)
Sergej Rachmaninow
Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 43
- Interval -
Sergej Rachmaninow
Symphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27
