Philharmonia Orchestra

Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 is an ever-popular staple of the piano repertoire; and it’s easy to hear why. Full of romantic, sweeping melodies and stormy dramatic episodes, the fiendish virtuosity required along with deep emotional insight is a powerful blend that never fails to affect the listener. Similarly, Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique Symphony is renowned for its memorable moments; the lop-sided 5/4 waltz of the second movement, for example, which leads into the march of the third movement. The finale builds to an impassioned climax before subsiding, sliding into silence. This was the last work composed before Tchaikovsky’s sudden death; and he described it as “my very best… I love it as I have never loved any of my musical children.”