Performances of Jean Sibelius at BBC Proms

This second concert by the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra pairs Sibelius’s tempestuous First Symphony with the deeply felt emotions of Prokofiev’s Second Violin Concerto, closing with Strauss’s waltz-filled Der Rosenkavalier suite.

Violinist Pekka Kuusisto traces the evolution of Finland’s classical tradition, from improvised folk beginnings to the sophisticated brilliance of Sibelius’s Violin Concerto. The concert closes with the composer’s nature-inspired Fifth Symphony.

Tchaikovsky’s much-loved ‘Pathétique’ Symphony, with its thrilling Scherzo, and Sibelius’s colourful Karelia suite, are joined by Mieczysław Weinberg’s Cello Concerto, which remained unperformed until after Stalin’s death. Sol Gabetta is the soloist.

Sakari Oramo conducts a wide-ranging concert inspired by the natural world with Sibelius’s stirring Fifth Symphony at its heart. Boundary-breaking singer Nora Fischer is the soloist in the UK premiere of Louis Andriessen’s The Only One.