Proposed by the Philharmonique de Namur
István Várdai offers us Elgar’s Cello Concerto. Composed at the end of the First World War and premiered in 1919, this piece expresses the horror of the conflict. The composer lets his rebellious cry be heard through the low notes and expressive power of the cello, unaware that he is giving life to one of the most beautiful concertos ever written for this instrument. So beautiful, in fact, that to offer it to you twice in this 24-25 season by two performers is not too much.
A radical change of mood: when an inaccessible Irish actress becomes the object of all the fantasies of a composer with a feverish imagination, it inspires one of the most extravagant symphonies in the history of music. With his ‘Fantastique’ of 1830, Berlioz threw himself into the arena of Romanticism: his passion for Harriet Smithson turned into the psychedelic delirium of a young artist under the effects of opium.
Edward Elgar (1857-1938)
Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85
Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)
Symphonie fantastique op. 14
