Debussy, Ravel & Rare Gem

He’s been called a “musical omnivore” but anyone who’s experienced the BBC SSO’s former Chief Conductor (and current Creative Partner) Ilan Volkov knows that he’s an artist who sees music differently – and turns every concert into a voyage of discovery.

Today, he conducts a programme with a French flavour, and with Volkov’s insights the bittersweet beauty of Ravel’s waltzes – like the luminous colours of Debussy’s ravishing Nocturnes – will sound fresher than ever. But we open with a different (and eye-opening) angle on French music: a delightful, rarely-heard symphony from the decade that the BBC SSO was founded. And pianist Nicolas Hodges dives deep into the visionary sonic world of Maurice Ohana, the Casablanca-born composer with a voice that was entirely his own.