Santtu and Víkingur Ólafsson

Programme

The Philharmonia’s Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali opens the season with the first of two Mahler symphonies. 

If you’ve only ever heard one piece of music by Gustav Mahler, it’s likely to be the Adagietto from his Fifth symphony. But there’s a lot more to Mahler 5 than that. Take a journey with the Philharmonia, ‘London’s Mahlerian orchestra par excellence’ (Bachtrack) from the sinister opening trumpet fanfare to the joyful affirmation of the finale.

John Adams describes his piano concerto, steeped in the sounds of American funk and rock music, as full of “tongue-in-cheek wickedness” and “outrageous virtuosity”. Perfect, then, for the outrageously talented Víkingur Ólafsson, “the new superstar of classical piano” (The Telegraph). 

First, enjoy Masquerade by Anna Clyne, the Philharmonia’s Featured Composer this season. This short, celebratory piece is inspired by London’s 18th-century pleasure gardens – the most famous of which was just down the river at Vauxhall.