Springtime Romance – Boulanger, Barber, Rachmaninoff

The sun comes out in Lili Boulanger’s lively tone poem, and lyrical feelings bloom in music by Samuel Barber and Serge Rachmaninoff.

The Programme

D’un matin de printemps is one of the few glimpses we have of Lili Boulanger’s compositional genius, a sparkling miniature that leaves a lasting impression of spring.

The emotional sincerity of Samuel Barber’s lyrical Violin Concerto cuts to the heart, its nervy third movement building up to a burst of feeling. And passion reigns in Rachmaninoff’s opulent Second Symphony. Its third movement contains some of the most beautiful music he ever wrote.

The Performers

‘I try to put my whole being into my music,’ says Janine Jansen, one of the world’s most expressive violinists. Here she evokes the raptures of Barber’s concerto with stirring support from Sir Antonio Pappano and the LSO.

There’s no reason music should be difficult for an audience to understand’ – Samuel Barber

Header Image © Mark Allan