DUAL DEFINITION OF ROMANTICISM:
SUZHOU SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA CONCERT
2026.03.28（SAT）19 : 30
Jinji Lake Concert Hall SCAC
Conductor LI Biao
Piano Stepan Simonian
Rachmaninoff
Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 18
R. STRAUSS
Don Juan, Op. 20
Der Rosenkavalier Suite, Op. 59
NOTICE TO AUDIENCE
1. DURATION Approximately 104 minutes with a 15-min intermission.
2. SUGGESTED AGE 8 and above.
3. Minimum height for children :1.3m.
As night descends, the stage transforms into a furnace of late Romantic grandeur. Three masterpieces will resonate in succession tonight, taking us through the most exceptional orchestral splendors and emotional landscapes of that era. The Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor by Rachmaninoff is more than just a concerto. The composer’s resurrection from ashes is depicted in this musical epic. Following the failure of his First Piano Concerto and remained silence for a while, Rachmaninoff—reborn through Dr. Dahl’s hypnotherapy. He dedicated this piano concerto to his healer Dr. Dahl with his great appreciation. The Adagio movement sings with velvet warmth and melancholy, just like piercing through the heart; the finale comes with great vitality, it is an eternal symbol of relief. The piano and orchestra engage in powerful dialogue as bell-like chords open into a theme as vast as the Russian steppes. This most heart-wrenching music is intertwined with explosive passion and deep grief. Next, we have Strauss’s masterpiece, Don Juan. This work’s soul is in its realistic depiction of the renowned libertine—his bold desire for love, waves ecstasies, and nihilistic despair. Strauss created stunning musical colors: brass releases a destructive force, woodwinds flickers with humorous motifs, strings create passionate entanglements, and horns blazing the musical theme. It is in the purest form of music, thrilling with intense sensuality and dramatic tension. Lastly, we have one of the most brilliant, compassionate orchestral works of the 20th century, Der Rosenkavalier. Strauss skillfully put the 19th-century waltzes over an 18th-century aristocratic atmosphere. Comedy and longing phrases dance toward transcendent beauty in the finale. The delightful musical languages, delicate arias, and irresistible waltz rhythms blend within its shimmering orchestral palette.
