Fabio Luisi conducts Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky — With Yefim Bronfman

Bronfman starts the program off at maximum intensity with the iconic and formidable Piano Concerto No. 3 by Rachmaninov (often known as the "Rach 3," especially to fans of the 1995 Oscar-winning film Shine). The composer's own favorite of his concertos, the Rach 3 is not only diabolically difficult; it is also lyrical, plaintive, and charged with emotion from its mournful opening motif in D minor to the explosive C-major apotheosis of its concluding measures. Maestro Luisi and the RCO continue with one of the rare works whose epic scale and emotional heft can match those of the concerto: Tchaikovsky's Pathétique Symphony No. 6, a heart-rending tour de force full of rich melodies and dynamic extremes—and the last of Tchaikovsky's works premiered in his lifetime, with the composer conducting its first performance just days before his death in 1893.

Photo: Yefim Bronfman © Milagro Elstak