Belgian National Orchestra, Hermus & Gavrylyuk

Some music seems to burst with energy before the first note has even settled. Sergei Prokofiev’s popular Third Piano Concerto is one such work. It sparkles and collides from every angle — sharp-edged yet irresistibly vibrant. Written between Russia, France and the United States, the concerto embodies a spirit of boundless freedom. As André Previn once remarked, it may well be the finest piano concerto of the post-Romantic era: fleet-fingered, unmistakably Russian, and extraordinarily demanding. The piano dances and provokes. The tone is light yet ironic — almost Mozartian in its clarity — but threaded with rhythmic tensions that grip and unsettle. With acclaimed soloist Alexander Gavrylyuk, this masterpiece finds an interpreter who combines power and precision, turning every motif into a surge of pure energy. After the interval, Tchaikovsky unfolds his monumental Manfred Symphony. Above all, Tchaikovsky was a master of melody. His broad, singing lines unfailingly captured the hearts of audiences. In Manfred, that melodic gift is fused with a grand Romantic narrative of longing, inner turmoil and fate, based on the eponymous poem by Lord Byron. The symphony is steeped in sweeping melodrama, inspired , richly orchestrated and emotionally intense. Each climax, expertly shaped by conductor Antony Hermus, rises like a wave that lifts and carries you away; each lyrical passage breathes nostalgia and passion. A Sunday Symphony where youthful energy and Romantic come intensely together.