HKFO2012: Rhapsody in Red
Mary Wu's Rachmaninoff

RIMSKY-KORSAKOV: Overture to “The Tsar’s Bride”
RACHMANINOFF: Piano Concerto No.2 in C minor, Op. 18
TCHAIKOVSKY: Symphony No. 5 in E minor, Op.64

HKFO2012: “Rhapsody in Red” brings the audience back to the fateful Imperial and Modern Russia, presenting two nights of irresistible Russian classics.

Our journey begins on 16 August, as HKFO join hands with the rising star saxophonist Timothy Sun performing Glazunov’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone and String Orchestra. This is followed by the international star pianist Rachel Cheung performing Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini. Essentially a piano concerto in three connected parts, the rhapsody is a programmatic telling of Paganini’s dramatic legends, from his alleged unholy alliance with the Devil to his ultimate fateful defeat.

On 17 August, HKFO continues the rhapsodic journey performing Rimsky-Korsakov Overture to “The Tsar’s Bride”, leading the audience to witness the fateful dramas in the Imperial Russian courts. This is followed by Hong Kong’s great piano maestro Mary Wu’s rendition of Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No.2, an absolute piano classic representing the exiled composer’s struggle against depression.

Both nights conclude with Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.5, a momentous work in the Russian repertory. A piece which symbolizes the composer’s “ultimate victory over fate”, the Symphony concludes our fateful Rhapsody with the triumphant march overcoming all challenges and adversaries, progressing from darkness to light, from melancholy to joy.