Work: Piano Concerto no. 2

A UK première, movements from a rarely performed Prokofiev ballet by Prokofiev and a revitalising performance of Petrushka demonstrates the LPO's bold programming. 

There was a time, perhaps not too long ago, when music lovers in Los Angeles would look towards New York and its august Philharmonic Orchestra with a mixture of respect and envy. The roster of its past music directors—among them Bernstein, Mitropoulos, Toscanini, Mengelberg, and Mahler—was, alone, enough to inspire jaw-gaping awe.

Magnus Lindberg’s music draws upon the idioms of the classical canon, even as it exploits the myriad innovations and stylistic resources available to contemporary composers. His Piano Concerto no. 2, given its world premiere by the New York Philharmonic on this program, flits between key signatures rather than staying rooted in strict atonality.