Santtu and Víkingur Ólafsson

Our Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali returns to Bedford, joined by phenomenal pianist Víkingur Ólafsson, the Philharmonia’s Featured Artist this season.  

Beethoven didn’t think up the ‘Emperor’ title to his Piano Concerto No. 5 himself, but it’s easy to understand what may have inspired it when you hear the majestic sweep of the opening movement. Then comes a beautiful, graceful central Adagio, leading into a brilliant finale.  

After hearing a new piece by Gabriela Ortiz, the Philharmonia’s Featured Composer this season, we close the concert with Sibelius’s Symphony No. 5. Arguably the composer’s most popular symphony, it’s a 30-minute masterclass in orchestral writing. Transport yourself to a serene Finnish landscape and prepare yourself for the goosebumps moment in the final movement: Sibelius’s famous depiction of swans in flight, evoked by glorious horn writing.