SHOSTAKOVICH ENCRYPYTED

Dmitri Shostakovich obeyed the principles of party discipline in his symphonies, straying from the official path only between the lines. The Ninth Symphony was meant to celebrate victory in World War II with fitting solemnity. Instead, it became a work steeped in irony, brimming with pitch-black humour. By contrast, his Second Violin Concerto was written without state interference. Composed for the master violinist David Oistrakh, the work is an intensely atmospheric piece for violin and orchestra that leaves no one unmoved.

Alberto Ginastera’s concert music is tuned to the wavelength of Argentinian folk dances. The main work of his so-called ‘subjective nationalist’ period is a magnificent set of variations, Variaciones concertantes, in which every instrument has at least one moment in the spotlight.

Tami Pohjola, who captivated audiences last spring as the soloist in Kalevi Aho’s Second Violin Concerto, returns to the Sibelius Hall, and Finland’s exciting new conducting talent Mikael Loponen makes his debut with the Lahti Symphony Orchestra.