Arnold Four Scottish Dances Beethoven Piano Concerto No 5 Tchaikovsky Symphony No 1 Winter Daydreams' Conductor -Robert Guy Piano- Anna McCargow With sounds of bagpipes, reels and Scotch snap rhythms, Arnold's dance suite conjures up vivid images of Scotland with comic elements in the shape of a tipsy bassoon and moments of calm in a slow, graceful melody evoking thoughts of a calm day in the Hebrides and Scottish ballads like the Skye Boat Song. The concerto this evening is one of the most popular works in classical music. Our soloist is the wonderful Anna McCargow, winner of our own international young musicians competition last March who joins us this evening from Germany. Tchaikovsky's first attempt at symphonic form remained one of his favourites. Although its composition took its toll on him, at a point where he had four symphonies behind him he wrote: " It has more substance and is better than any of my other more mature works". A symphony of charm and melody with hints of Russian folk music, Tom Service called it " one of the most ... attractive first symphonies ever written". with an "irresistibly over-the-top conclusion ".