Osmo conducts Beethoven

Russian pianist Yevgeny Sudbin has won numerous awards for his playing in the past few years. His recent CD of works by Scriabin was named CD of the Year by the Telegraph, whose critic said he was “potentially one of the greatest pianists of the 21^st century”. On this programme he performs Mozart's magnificent Concerto no. 23 in A Major, a memorable juxtaposition of storm and sunshine.

Osmo Vänskä is considered one of the most interesting interpreters of Beethoven in the present day, and his recordings with the Minnesota Orchestra have received excellent reviews. Here he presents Beethoven's stunning Symphony no. 7, one of the composer's most lively and a work that Wagner called “the apotheosis of the dance.”

Although there is no shortage of exciting composers from Finland, Kalevi Aho stands out with his colourful and accessible works that are sometimes reminiscent of Shostakovich. One of Aho's most interesting compositions is Minea, which can be described as a sort of concerto for orchestra, in which each instrumental group is given some time in the spotlight. Aho wrote the piece in 2008 for the Minnesota Orchestra and Osmo Vänskä. Few recent orchestral compositions have been so unanimously praised by both critics and audiences as this fresh and intriguing work now heard for the first time in Iceland.