Glasgow Life Presents:

National Symphony Orchestra of Ukraine

Conductor: Volodymyr Sirenko

Soloist: Maria Pukhlianko, piano

Maksym Berezovsky The First Ukrainian Symphony in C Major

Mozart Piano Concerto no. 23 (Maria Pukhlianko)



Delius On Hearing the First Cuckoo of Spring & Summer Night on the River

Mendelssohn Symphony no. 4 Italian

Ukraine’s premier orchestra will be making history when it visits Glasgow this March, as it’s been over 20 years since an international orchestra graced the Royal Concert Hall’s stage. Famed for its fearless performances, this heroic band of musicians, has continued to give concerts throughout the conflict in Ukraine, including several acclaimed international tours.

For this performance it announces the arrival of spring with a programme that’s light on its feet and bursting with upbeat energy. Maksym Beresovsky was a pioneering figure in 18th-century Ukrainian music and celebrated as the first in his country to compose a symphony. His miniature masterpiece in C is a cheerful example of Classical style and a delightful entrée to Mozart’s elegant Piano Concerto of 1786. Written whilst he was also composing The Marriage of Figaro, it shares the opera’s matchless lyricism, trailing some of his loveliest melodies through its melancholic slow movement and then letting loose with some joyful virtuosity in an unstoppable finale. Maria Pukhlianko, one of Ukraine’s most garlanded pianists, is the soloist.

There’s a change of mood as Frederick Delius’ two famous miniature tone-poems evoke the unmistakable song of the cuckoo and the lulling motion of river boats in his uniquely impressionistic musical palette. Finally, we’re swept up in the high spirits of Mendelssohn’s best-loved symphony. Inspired by the sights and sounds of his grand tour of Italy in 1830, it’s a joyful excursion, complete with Mediterranean sunshine, historic art and traditional dances, before hurtling to a close with the revelry of an irresistible saltarello.