Missy Mazzoli Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres)
Schubert arr. Tabakova Arpeggione Sonata
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4

Maxim Rysanov Conductor/Viola

Ukranian star Maxim Rysanov play-directs a concert that – appropriately enough – starts in the heavens! Missy Mazzoli’s Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) is based on the shape of a solar system, with musical ideas twisting and turning as they connect with each other.

Rysanov has a long-standing collaborative partnership with composer Dobrinka Tabakova, and her arrangement of Schubert’s Arpeggione Sonata was written for him. The arrangement perfectly transfers Schubert’s lines and melodies to the orchestra and Rysanov is a brilliant interpreter of the piece, with The Strad’s review of his recording of the work stating that “…he captures Schubert’s elusive sound world with bullseye accuracy.”

Closing the concert is Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony. Written after a disastrous marriage, a deep period of writer’s block and a period of depression, it’s no surprise that this is a deeply emotional and turbulent work. Nonetheless, it’s also full of Tchaikovsky’s gorgeously rich melodies and is a blazing finale to the evening.