Prokofiev / Schumann

The contrast between Schumann and Prokofiev forms the basis of a programme that toys with contradiction between romantic reverie and post-romantic irony. The overture to Genoveva encapsulates in just a few minutes the dramatic contrasts of Schumann’s only opera, alternating between heroic gestures and dark passions, whilst the Symphony No. 4 showcases the German composer’s most visionary side, as he sought to create a cyclical entity: four movements that are thematically interwoven, such that the initial motifs reappear transformed throughout the work. Between the two, the Violin Concerto nº1 by Prokofiev combines a fairy-tale atmosphere with a captivating lyricism interspersed with highly sarcastic and rhythmically unruly episodes. Akiko Suwanai, one of the most outstanding Japanese violinists of her generation, will take centre stage alongside conductor Philipp von Steinaecker, one of the founders of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the driving force behind the Mahler Academy today.