NSOI: Barry Douglas plays Shostakovich

National Symphony Orchestra Ireland
Anna Sułkowska-Migoń, conductor
Barry Douglas, piano
Darren Moore, trumpet 

Lili Boulanger D’un soir triste
Shostakovich Concerto for Piano, Trumpet and String Orchestra
Rimsky-Korsakov Scheherazade

‘The new name to remember in the expanding galaxy of female conductors’ (Le Devoir), multi-award-winning Anna Sułkowska-Migoń makes her National Symphony Orchestra Ireland debut with master pianist Barry Douglas in a Shostakovich rarity, spellbinding Rimsky-Korsakov and soul-stirring Boulanger.

Barry Douglas brings his renowned feeling and flair for Russian music to bear on Shostakovich’s edgy, exuberant Concerto for Piano, Trumpet, and String Orchestra. Laced with biting satire, tongue-in-cheek references to Haydn, Beethoven and Mahler, a splash of jazz and a volatile unpredictability, its high-spirited dialogue with the trumpet is shared with NSOI principal trumpet, Darren Moore.

Inspired by the exotic tales of the Arabian Nights, Rimsky-Korsakov’s Scheherazade is a spectacular showcase for a symphony orchestra at its most expressive. Sensuous, dramatic and seductive, its blend of adventure and romance never fails to enchant.

A pioneering and prominent figure in French music, the ailing Lili Boulanger’s introspective and anguished D’un soir triste (Of a Sad Evening), composed in the last year of her young life (she died aged 24) includes complex, dark harmonies, sombre lyricism and a heart-rending climax that fades resignedly away. 

Presented by NCH