From an icy Italian winter to the heady, sensual warmth of a South American summer: violinist Joshua Bell leads the Academy of St Martin in the Fields on a musical journey through the sights and sounds of two continents and four very different seasons. Inspired by Vivaldi’s bestknown work, Piazzolla, Argentina’s 20th-century tango king, created his own response, complete with musical quotations. While Vivaldi’s virtuosic concertos celebrate contrast – the freshness of spring, with its sudden thunderstorms, versus the languid heat of summer – Piazzolla’s musical landscape remains more constant, always swaying to the pervasive rhythm of the tango. PROGRAM Vivaldi: The Four Seasons; Piazzolla: The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
Beethoven Piano Concerto Cycle – Jan Lisiecki
Just aged 25, Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki has won acclaim for his extraordinary interpretive maturity, distinctive sound, and poetic sensibility. The New York Times called him “a pianist who makes every note count”. Lisiecki’s insightful interpretations, refined technique and natural affinity for art give him a musical voice that belies his age. The Academy of St Martin in the Fields is one of the world’s finest chamber orchestras, renowned for fresh, brilliant interpretations of the world’s greatest orchestral music.