program
The Poem of Ecstasy
Laterna Magica
Scriabin: The Poem of Ecstasy Op. 54.
performances
If you would like assistance purchasing tickets for patrons with disabilities, please call the box office at 415-864-6000.
Event Description
Two superstars of classical music, violin virtuoso Nikolaj Znaider and conductor Susanna Mälkki, join forces to present Tchaikovsky's monumental Violin Concerto. Experience Mälkki’s "charismatic and dynamic podium presence" (Chicago Classical Review) and "the glowing tone" (The New York Times) of Znaider in a concert also featuring Scriabin's wonderfully mystical The Poem of Ecstasy.
Take a peek behind-the-scenes and experience a San Francisco Symphony performance in the making. It begins at 8:30am with coffee, doughnuts, and a half-hour informative talk at 9am. Then, watch as the conductor and musicians collaborate to bring the music to life.
At a Glance
TCHAIKOVSKY
Violin Concerto 1878 | 33 mins
Soloist William Hagen makes his entrance for this firecracker of a concerto after a gracious and suspense-building orchestral introduction. The first movement calls for remarkably virtuosic playing while the second movement is melodically inspired. Tchaikovsky’s finale might sound to us like an urban, cultured genre picture of country life but it struck some early listeners as pretty uncivilized!
RACHMANINOFF
Symphony No. 2 1907 | 56 mins
Rachmaninoff used to be criticized for wearing his heart on his sleeve; but, really, who would be so callous as to complain that such music as this enriches our world? The third movement’s principal theme, sung out by the clarinet, is irresistible, spun out at great length and balancing, as Rachmaninoff could do so ably, between the aesthetics of the concert hall and the most elevated sort of popular music. The Second Symphony is trademark Rachmaninoff.
JEANETTE YU is Director of Publications at the San Francisco Symphony.
Concert Extras
Inside Music, an informative talk by Elizabeth Seitz, begins one hour prior to the rehearsal. Free to ticketholders. Learn More.
