Jan Mrácek

Debussy Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune
Mendelssohn Violin Concerto
Shostakovich Symphony No.5

Conductor Martyn Brabbins
Violin Jan Mrá?ek

Opening this summer concert is Debussy’s sumptuous and dreamlike Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune conducted by Martyn Brabbins, depicting the tale of a mythical faun, playing his pipes alone in the woods. Jan Mrá?ek follows with one of the foremost violin concertos of the Romantic era, full of warmth and vitality, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. Filled with wonderful melodies and stirring rhythms, Shostakovich’s imposing Symphony No.5 is bursting with tremendous power and rebellious beauty. Writing under Stalin’s constricting Soviet regime, Shostakovich created a blend of satire and submission that intrigues audiences to this day.