NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra / Nikolai Tokarev / Michał Nesterowicz
Grieg / Prokofiev
Nikolai Tokarev, the superstar from Moscow, makes his debut with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra in this concert. As reported by the Süddeutsche Zeitung, Germany’s largest daily newspaper, this exceptional pianist masters every piece of repertoire placed before him. Tokarev has cultivated a certain reputation for a »wide span of colours and multitude of overtones« in his interpretations of Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg’s works.
Timpani drum roll – the piece that has just begun is recognizable to almost everyone. Edvard Grieg’s Concerto for Piano is not far from the »Peer Gynt« Suites as the composer’s most recognisable work. After the opening chords, at times bacchanal, other times solemn, and then again rhythmically playful and folk-inspired music unfolds. The German magazine Fono Forum describes Tokarev’s depiction of the second movement like »a Nordic fairy singing«; in his execution of the Finale, it is heard »rarely so arabesque-like, partly the scampering of a small leprechaun, partly fanciful-playful«, according to the German music magazine Rondo.
Michał Nesterowicz has conducted many of the major orchestras and leading ensembles in Europe. Following his successful 2014 debut with the NDR Symphony Orchestra, Nesterowicz takes to the podium tonight, conducting Sergei Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony after the interval. The world premiere of the symphony took place on 13 January 1945, during the Ardennes counter-offensive in Belgium and Luxembourg, which resulted in an Allied victory about a week later. In Prokofiev’s own portentous words, the symphony is dedicated to »the grandeur of the human spirit«.
Performers
NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester
Nikolai Tokarev piano
conductor Michał Nesterowicz
Programme
Edvard Grieg
Konzert für Klavier und Orchester a-Moll op. 16
Sergej Prokofjew
Sinfonie Nr. 5 B-Dur op. 100