Ludwig van Beethoven鈥檚 Fifth Piano Concerto, the 鈥楨mperor鈥�, is his final word on the genre. As revolutionary as it is grand, he pits orchestra against soloist in a way that would influence concerto writing for the rest of the 19th century. It is played by 大象传媒 Radio 3 New Generation Artist Tom Borrow, who joins forces with Chief Conductor Sakari Oramo for this live broadcast from Maida Vale Studios.
While Beethoven anticipates a later era of sumptuous Romanticism, Jean Sibelius described his Sixth Symphony as 鈥榗old spring water鈥�. Premiered in 1923, it shuns the modernist gestural style that many of Sibelius鈥檚 contemporaries embraced in the post-war period. Its unassuming purity and subtle lyricism reminded the composer of the scent of fresh snow 鈥� perfect for a December afternoon.
