A relaxed 1-hour concert at 6.30pm
Absorb Prokofiev’s wistful final symphony in the relaxed atmosphere of this early-evening concert, conducted and introduced by Gianandrea Noseda.
The Seventh Symphony was commissioned by the Soviet state radio for children. But while it recalls treasured memories of the composer’s youth, this final symphony contains a deeper message of farewell.
It begins with yearning strings, summons childhood with flute and glockenspiel, remembers happy times in a whirling waltz, and ends with the tick-tock of the composer’s beating heart. The symphony was premiered in October 1952; Prokofiev would die in March 1953, on the same day as Stalin.
