‘Belgian National Orchestra, Bloxham & Shaham’

Haydn’s First Symphony lasts 12 minutes, has three movements and was written for strings, two oboes and two horns. He composed it at the age of 27 in 1759 as the Kapellmeister in a Czech village. The difference between this piece and Mozart’s final symphony, No. 41, composed in 1788, is immense and spans the musical developments that unfolded during the Classical period. However, Mozart also looks back in his Jupiter Symphony: the fourth and final movement is a majestic marriage of a Baroque five-voiced fugue and the gallant Classical style. The Belgian National Orchestra complements this with a Belgian premiere by composer in residence Thomas Adès and the rarely performed Third Violin Concerto by Camille Saint-Saëns with star violinist Gil Shaham.