Hallé – Mussorgsky’s Pictures from an Exhibition

Cristian Măcelaru conductor | Nicola Benedetti violin

Bernstein Overture: Candide 5′
Wynton Marsalis Violin Concerto 26′
Mussorgsky orch. Ravel Pictures from an Exhibition 35′

Cristian Măcelaru conducts as Nicola Benedetti performs the critically acclaimed concerto Wynton Marsalis composed for her. Taking its ‘inspiration from her life as a travelling performer’ and incorporating diverse allusions to her Scottish and Marsalis’s African-American heritages, it’s in four picturesque movements, including a soulful ‘Blues’ and final ‘Hootenanny’, described by the composer as ‘a raucous, stomping and whimsical barn-yard throw-down.’ As an upbeat, Bernstein’s fizzing overture to his comic operetta Candide perfectly encapsulates the fantastical adventures of its ever-optimistic hero; and to end, Mussorgsky’s Pictures from an Exhibition, his remarkable feat of musical imagination in tribute to a deceased artist friend. Equally astounding is the added dimension Ravel conjures through the vibrant colours of his instrumental palette.