PERMISSION TO PLAY

Camelopardalis by the contemporary composer Andrea Tarrodi, known for her lush, melodic orchestral poems, follows the logic of a dream. We ride toward the constellation of the Giraffe, through flocks of colourful birds, across the African savanna glistening in the evening twilight…

In the music of the American composer Nico Muhly, minimalist comprehensibility and modern art-music sonorities rub shoulders in a sparkling interplay. The Concerto Grosso, commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic, invites four soloists to join in a shared musical adventure. The solos, by turns athletic and lyrical, let the orchestra’s own musicians show their mettle.

Beethoven drew inspiration from Scottish and Irish folk dances when composing his Seventh Symphony. His contemporaries saw it as evidence of the composer’s final descent into madness; Beethoven himself regarded it as his finest work. History has sided with the latter view.

Pekka Kuusisto’s guest appearances as conductor always have a special energy. This time, too, we’ll hear a programme that is second to none in its inventiveness, where every piece could be the highlight of the evening.