SD Symphony: Invocations to the Spirits - Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4
Anja Bihlmaier, conductor
Steven Osborne, piano
San Diego Symphony Orchestra
OLLY WILSON: Shango Memory
BEETHOVEN: Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58
SIBELIUS: Symphony No. 1 in E minor, Op. 39
The power of music to suggest our deepest feelings of spiritual awe has been understood since ancient times. In this program, three composers write pieces capture the human yearning for another level of experience. The late great African American composer Olly Wilson drew on his roots in jazz and the music of his African ancestors to suggest the terrifying power of Shango, the ancient Yoruba god of thunder and lightning. In the slow movement of his Fourth Piano Concerto, Beethoven calls to mind the Greek divinity Orpheus who tamed wild beasts with the beauty of his music. Sibelius’ First Symphony plunges deep into the imaginary mystical mythology of prehistoric Finland.