Revolution

Tom Woods conductor
Anthony Marwood violin

Vasks Distant Light Violin Concerto
Shostakovich Symphony No.11 (1905)

Saturday 13th October, 7.30pm
Aurora Centre

Latvian Peteris Vasks is one of the many distinctive voices to emerge from the Baltic states since the dismantling of the Soviet empire. He grew up in the repressive atmosphere of Russian domination, only becoming known outside Latvia during the 1990s. Today Vasks is amongst Europe’s best known and acclaimed composers. The Distant Light violin concerto is typical of his lucid and accessible compositions.

English violinist Anthony Marwood is recognised throughout the world for his exceptional artistry, passionate intelligence and very complete musicianship. As an orchestral soloist, chamber musician, recitalist and ensemble leader, Marwood receives plaudits from audiences, critics and collaborators alike.

Shostakovich’s massive symphony can be heard as a portrait of the year which became the prequel of the Russian Revolution. Described as ``a film score without a film’’, the symphony was written in 1957 and first performed in the same year. With four movements played without a break, the hour-long work was an overnight success in the Soviet Union where it was awarded the Lenin Prize and earned Shostakovich political rehabilitation after years in the wilderness. Throughout the work, he gives us a series of musical images stripped on histrionics and propaganda. His use of revolutionary songs and folk music gives this work a harsh reality. Shostakovich wears his emotions on his sleeve as he depicts the massacre of protest marchers outside the Winter Palace in a thunderous denunciation of oppressive autocracy. The work ends on a note of uncertainty as he looks apprehensively towards the events of 1917.