Sinfonietta

In the organizer's words:

8th Philharmonic Concert / Dmitri Shostakovich/Mino Marani: Prelude and Fugue op. 87 no. 24 / Leoš Janáček: Sinfonietta op. 60 / Sergei Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 1 in D minor op. 13

Inspired by the 200th anniversary of Bach's death, Dmitri Shostakovich composed his 24 Preludes and Fugues in 1950/51. The composer was only allowed to play excerpts from the work in front of a select audience. It was only when pianist Tatyana Nikolayeva campaigned for the work to be "approved" by the party that it was recognized. Prelude and Fugue No. 24 was orchestrated by Mino Marani.

Leoš Janáček's Sinfonietta radiates optimism. A work with which the composer also pays tribute to the Moravian capital Brno. His love for Kamila Stösslová, the recognition his work finally received and the fact that Czechoslovakia had become an independent state filled the seventy-one-year-old composer with confidence.

Sergei Rachmaninov's First Symphony was composed in 1895 and is the last work of the great Russian Romantic composer's youthful creative period.