BSO: Tchaikovsky Six

All the characteristics we value most highly in Tchaikovsky’s music are present in his Sixth Symphony: imaginative orchestration, drama, delicious themes and sweeping emotive power. Whether or not the symphony hides some specific message, hinting at his personal melancholy and untimely death, it is clearly a work of deep and turbulent pathos and remains testament to a musical genius. Written at the end of Dvořák’s three-year contract in New York, the Cello Concerto reflects some of his American experiences but is at the same time filled with the spirit of his beloved Bohemia where he longed to return. It contains some of his most memorable melodies and its glowing orchestration is an excellent foil to the richness of the cello; the result is most delicate and translucent. Liadov’s impeccably crafted tone poem immediately conjures the scene of waters gently stirring under starry skies. Using the enchanting colours of harp and celeste, it is marvel of musical serenity.