Sally Beamish Piano Concerto No. 1 Hill Stanzas
Mozart Piano Concerto No. 27
Sibelius Symphony No. 3

Jac van Steen Conductor
Ronald Brautigam Piano

Legendary pianist Ronald Brautigam has not performed with the Ulster Orchestra for some ten years, so it is a treat to welcome him back, alongside his good friend Jac van Steen. Brautigam performs two works for this concert, Mozart’s serene and intimate Piano Concerto No. 27 and Sally Beamish’s Piano Concerto No. 1, which the pianist commissioned in 2016. His request to connect the work in some way with the North East of Scotland (where he frequently stays with his Scottish wife) saw Beamish move to the Cairngorms to write the work and it is imbued with the vast wildness of the area.

Sibelius’s Third Symphony is the first in which he really sought to reflect his homeland. Traditional folk songs are sprinkled throughout and the symphony’s atmosphere evokes beauty, mystery, colour and light. It’s an energetic and uplifting end to this wonderful concert.