Nailsworth: Eastern Echoes

Frédéric Chopin Piano Concerto No.2 Op.21
Dmitri Shostakovich Gadfly Suite

Viv McLean piano

Our season opens with the lyrical beauty of Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2, composed in 1829 when he was just 20 years old. Premiered in Warsaw to a sold-out audience with Chopin himself at the keyboard, this concerto showcases the composer’s gift for haunting melodies and brilliant pianism. The central Adagio, tender and romantic, was inspired by his youthful infatuation with soprano Konstancja Gładkowska.

Dmitri Shostakovich’s Gadfly Suite brings cinematic drama to the concert hall. Composed for the 1955 Soviet film The Gadfly, it follows the tale of a 19th-century Austrian revolutionary. The suite includes the dashing Galop and the lush, unforgettable Romance.

Tea and cakes served at 4pm. Tickets £15, available on the door and online at the Bristol Ensemble box office