William Wallace The Passing of Beatrice
Tchaikovsky Variations on a rococo theme for cello and orchestra
Lyadov Eight Russian Folk-Songs
Shostakovich Symphony No.1

Conductor Stefan Blunier
Cello Gemma Rosefield,

Stefan Blunier, General Music Director of the City of Bonn and here making his BBC SSO debut, opens with William Wallace’s intensely romantic symphonic poem The Passing of Beatrice. Gemma Rosefield, winner of 2007’s prestigious Pierre Fournier Award is the soloist for Tchaikovsky’s charming variations for cello and orchestra. The beautiful arrangement which Lyadov made of eight Russian folk-songs are a perfect foil for Shostakovich’s precocious First Symphony, first performed in 1926 when the composer was just 19.

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