National Symphony Orchestra
Performers
National Symphony Orchestra
Gianandrea Noseda, Music Director and Conductor
Daniil Trifonov, Piano
Program
G. WALKER Sinfonia No. 4, "Strands"
PROKOFIEV Piano Concerto No. 2
STRAVINSKY The Firebird
Event Duration
The printed program will last approximately two hours, including one 20-minute intermission.
At a Glance
WALKER Sinfonia No. 4, “Strands”
The composer described his fourth sinfonia, co-commissioned by the National Symphony Orchestra in 2012, as “complex, intense, and compact.” The work weaves into its texture hints of themes from two spirituals—“There is a Balm in Gilead” and “Roll, Jordan, Roll”—and these thematic elements give the sinfonia its subtitle “Strands.” Propelled by lively rhythms and vibrant orchestration, the work lasts 10 minutes in performance.
PROKOFIEV Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor, Op. 16
Viewed as too modern at its premiere in Russia in 1913 and not futuristic enough when it was introduced to the West in Paris in 1924, Prokofiev’s Second Piano Concerto remained one of the composer’s least-performed major works until it finally reached repertory status in the 1970s. Cast in four unusual movements, it is symphonic in its proportions while clearly also reflecting Prokofiev’s identity and his own staggering virtuosity.
STRAVINSKY The Firebird
Dance impresario Sergei Diaghilev was commissioning a new work based on an old Russian fairy tale for the first season of his Ballets Russes in Paris when a young Igor Stravinsky was suggested to him. The Firebird thrust Stravinsky into the limelight of the early 20th century, illuminating a composer who was to become one of the most important and influential of his time.