Rachmaninov, Prokofiev and Shostakovich

Trumpets ring out as Shostakovich prepares to cut loose and party. Sergei Prokofiev meets a French violinist and writes a concerto with a Spanish sizzle: music that sings, dances and tingles in the ear. And, exiled from Russia, Sergei Rachmaninov discovers a glittering world of fast cars and big bands – and pours it all into a symphony that still, somehow, yearns and aches for a homeland he would never see again. All music tells a story and tonight, guest conductor Robert Treviño recreates a world of revolution, exile and burning emotions: three very different but equally colourful 20th-century Russian masterpieces, striking sparks off each other. RPO Artist-in-Residence Johan Dalene takes the spotlight in Prokofiev’s vibrant Violin Concerto No.2, the perfect showcase for Gramophone’s 2022 Young Artist of the Year.

"[Johan's strengths were] the clarity of his playing, the savoury quality of his tone, his vast range of expression wrought from apparently simple means and his ability to steer a phrase to its end point with a sense of inevitability." Gramophone

Find out more about Johan Dalene

Large print versions and digital formats of the programme for this concert are available on request for customers with accessibility requirements. Please email your request to Doran Crowhurst crowhurstd@rpo.co.uk at least one full week before the performance.