A15 by Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Von Weber, Fra (2021/2021), Dirigent Vanich Potavanich, Thailand Cultural Centre, Main Hall, Bangkok, Thailand

German violin maestro Niklas Liepe is fondly remembered in Thailand for the two spectacular concerto appearances he made with the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra at the very start of this year. After a period quite unlike any other in living memory, the RBSO is thankfully safely back where it belongs – on the stage of the Thailand Cultural Centre – as Liepe returns by popular demand to conclude the year in fine style with a performance of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor. His youthful exuberance, astonishingly polished technique, and powerful musical personality have earned him much critical acclaim and many admirers in the violin playing world and beyond. A student of some of the most respected pedagogues of recent times, including Professors Zakhar Bron and Ana Chumachenco at the Kronsberg Academy in the stunning Taunus area of Germany, he pursues a bold path of invention and experimentation with unconventional performance scenarios. Having typically interpreted a central work from the standard repertoire, his choice of a novel encore is always guaranteed to surprise and delight! In contrast, conductor Vanich Potavanich will finish this concert with a towering masterpiece of the utmost profundity and compositional rigour – Sibelius’ glorious Symphony No. 5 in E-flat major.