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Alessio Bax makes his TSO debut as the soloist in Beethoven’s monumental Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor”. Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony and Carlos Simon’s Fate Now Conquers complete this program built on themes of unrest and power.
Both the concerto and symphony were composed during periods of great unrest: the Beethoven when the Napoleonic wars arrived in Vienna, and the Shostakovich as Stalin’s power grew and the composer was in increasing danger.
Considered the greatest of Shostakovich’s symphonies, the Fifth is more classical in style than his earlier works, a direct response to criticism from Stalin. While it features a finale that at first appears triumphant, it is perhaps a satirical picture of the dictator.
Influenced by both a journal entry by Beethoven and the harmonic structure of his Seventh Symphony, Carlos Simon’s Fate Now Conquers completes the program. Individual event tickets go on sale August 1, 2025. This concert is available as part of a Classic Series or Create Your Own Subscription. This concert will be preceded by Concert Comments, a pre-concert talk, beginning one hour before each performance. Linda Ronstadt Music Hall has a clear bag policy. Read more about this venue Beethoven wrote out a cadenza, instead of the standard practice of the soloist improvising. The title “Emperor,” is a mystery. At the work’s 1812 premiere, a French army officer supposedly called the work “an emperor among concertos.” It’s also possible an early publisher gave it the “emperor” nickname. Bernstein conducted the Shostakovich Symphony No. 5 with the New York Philharmonic in Moscow in 1959, a highlight of the U.S.–Soviet cultural exchange during the Cold War era.Plan Your Visit
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