Music that Demands Perfection – Susanna Mälkki & Kirill Gerstein by Benjamin, Hindemith, Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff, og. 30 aza. 2023, Noiztik (2023/2023), Zuzendaria Susanna Mälkki, Barbican Centre, London, United Kingdom

The Programme The journey to the climactic summit of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No 3 places unique demands on a performer. But for an audience, the effect is electrifying. This is music in the grand manner: sincere, impressive and emotionally direct. Every instrument is a soloist in George Benjamin’s Concerto for Orchestra, with especially dramatic roles for fervent first violins and unpredictable tuba. The Performers Long-time master of its dizzying technical challenges, Kirill Gerstein – a Spotlight Artist with the LSO in 2023/24 – offers a clear, fresh view of the fabulous structure of Rachmaninoff’s masterwork. Susanna Mälkki and the LSO make both new and enduring repertoire feel like a revelation. ‘Probably the only time I could have learned that magnificent knuckle-breaker would have been when I was still too young to know fear’ ~ Pianist Gary Graffman on Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No 3