Tickets on Monday 5 May from 10 am

Rain date: Sunday, July 13

RAIN RULES

Coriolan Overture, Op. 62
Romance No. 2 in F major, Op. 50
Romance No. 1 in G major, Op. 40
Symphony No. 4 in B-flat major, Op. 60

Attila Falvay violin

Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra

Conductor: György Vashegyi

Egmont, Prometheus and Coriolan: Beethoven often paid tribute to humanity’s noteworthy rebels as he perhaps saw them as kindred spirits. You might think that the Corolian Overture (1807) was written for the Shakespeare drama of the same name, but this wildly passionate and tempestuous work was instead intended as introductory music to a tragedy written by a contemporary of Beethoven’s, Heinrich Joseph von Collin. Following the dark mood of the overture, the Romances in F and G major (1798, 1801), composed for solo violin and orchestra, offer up a striking contrast. In both works, Beethoven shows us his tender side, with the atmosphere of the compositions characterised by moderate tempos, a contemplative tranquility and an occasionally elevated tone reminiscent of prayer. The violin parts do not demand virtuosity and are much more song-like in nature. According to Schumann, Symphony No. 4 (1806) is “a Greek maiden between two Nordic titans”, where the latter are the Third and the Fifth Symphonies. A defining element of the work is the energy and cheerfulness of its outer movements, along with its lively character and brisk rhythms. The conductor for this concert is the general music director of the Hungarian National Philharmonic, György Vashegyi, who is remarkably at home in the world of Viennese classical music. In performing the violin solos in the two romances, the orchestra’s concertmaster Attila Falvay bids farewell after two decades.