Shostakovich And Beethoven

Markus Stenz as conductor and Augustin Hadelich in violin.

BEETHOVEN: Leonore Overture No. 2, Op. 72
SHOSTAKOVICH: Violin Concerto No. 1 in A minor, Op. 99
BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67

This concert features an exquisite pairing of the world’s most popular symphony work and one of the 20th century’s most passionate and darkly brilliant concertos for violin. One of today’s brightest violin stars, Augustin Hadelich, so fondly remembered from accompanying the SDSO on the China Friendship Tour a few years back, brings his youthful energy, gorgeous sound and flawless technique to bear on Dmitri Shostakovich’s Violin Concerto No. 1.

Guest conductor Marcus Stenz (Chief Conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra) then leads the Orchestra for Ludwig van Beethoven’s world-shaking masterpiece, his Symphony No. 5, which begins with the most famous four notes in classical music. The concert opens with a rare performance of Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 2, a work quite raw and savage in Beethoven’s day, but perfect for our own tumultuous times.