Hélène Grimaud

In January 2015 Hélène Grimaud thrilled audiences at the Auditorium with Brahms’ Concerto No. 1. Needless to say that her performance of the Second is eagerly awaited. Written 20 years after the First, premiered by Brahms himself in Budapest (an immense success) this concerto is one of the most monumental in the entire history of music. Divided into four movements the concerto is symphonic in magnitude. It certainly has all the variety of a symphony: a first majestic movement, a devilish scherzo, a slow, exquisitely poetic movement (introduced by the solo cello) and a lively fourth movement, with its swaying and distinctive Hungarian rhythms. This jewel of the classical music repertoire will be accompanied by two other beautiful orchestral works: Mantovani’s Cycle des gris, and Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations, an exciting orchestral jewel in the crown of the English repertoire.