Introduction

Brahms at his most powerful and Sibelius at his most beautiful. ‘What beauty!’ declared Jean Sibelius, as a flight of swans soared above his home in the Finnish forests. That shining vision grew into his Fifth Symphony, heard here in its original 1915 version, and from opening sunrise to unforgettable finish, few living conductors understand it better than our guest Thomas Dausgaard. First, though, pianist Benjamin Grosvenor – another great friend of the CBSO – hurls himself into Brahms’ tempestuous First Piano Concerto.

Programme notes

Piano Concerto No.1

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897)

Brahms’ Piano Concerto No.1 is frequently described as ‘stormy,’ or ‘intense’ or even ‘ferocious’. It is, certainly, a work which both was and sounds like a struggle (another word which crops up a lot). Brahms began what eventually became his first Piano Concerto in 1854. He originally conceived it as a two-piano sonata, then a symphony, most of which he discarded, before shaping the material into the Piano Concerto and finally completing it in 1858. The intensity of the work mainly belongs to the first movement; the second was intended as a ‘gentle portrait’ of Clara Schumann, while the third is a relatively jaunty rondo. But despite the trajectory from turbulence to optimism the critics were brutal after the 1859 premiere. Edward Bernsdorf wrote ‘The work…has nothing to offer but waste… a dessert of the shrillest dissonances and most unpleasant sounds.’ There’s no need to return your ticket, however, as this is one of those responses that makes one wonder whether the critics were listening to the same piece.

The opening movement begins with a series of noisy statements: timpani rolls, loud trills in the strings, and a pounding theme. For the first four minutes or so you would be forgiven for thinking Brahms has forgotten this is a piano concerto: we hear an abundance of orchestral themes but no sign of the soloist. When the piano does enter, it is with an unobtrusive melody of its own. It gets gradually sucked into the orbit of the opening gestures, yet segues into a stately major key passage which ushers in a gentler mood. Rippling arpeggios underpin a hunting-style solo from the horn, considerably more rhapsodic in tone, before abruptly returning to the turbulent mood of the start. Piano and orchestra take turns in the spotlight, or combine in ecstasy or argument, until the close of this powerful movement.

Clara Schumann, the subject of the Adagio, discerned in it a spiritual quality. Indeed Brahms wrote ‘Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord’ above the first theme, and despite some agitation at its centre, the movement has a long-breathed serenity throughout. An improvisatory-sounding solo passage drifts into a short cadenza (there is another one in the finale), but it is thoughtful rather than a frenzied gallop up and down the keyboard. The third movement leaps into action with an energetic piano solo and the atmosphere initially feels like a return to the first movement, with its trills, horn fanfares, and stern key of D minor. A portentous timpani roll introduces the cadenza about halfway through. But gradually, a brighter major key intervenes and becomes dominant, leading to a joyful, dance-like theme in the final moments, the timpani roll now triumphant rather than ominous.

Symphony No.5 (1915 version)

Jean Sibelius (1865-1957)

Sibelius’ Fifth Symphony was premiered, conducted by the composer himself, on the evening of his 50th birthday on 8 December 1915. While the symphony opens in a curiously disjointed manner, it gradually warms up, becoming almost joyful by the final movement (possibly a response to the considerably bleaker Symphony No.4 which preceded it). But it also has a restless, occasionally jittery quality, perhaps reflecting the erratic nature of its composer. Sibelius was a mass of contradictions: a hard-worker, yet frequently given to extravagant drinking and dining; a family man (fathering six daughters with his wife Aino), yet the marriage was stormy due to Sibelius’s frequent absences, hard-living, and over-spending. Not long after completing Symphony No.5 he was on the brink of having his grand piano confiscated by bailiffs (he was fortunately bailed out by a wealthy fan).

Sibelius revised the symphony several times after the premiere, most drastically by compressing the original first and second movements into one and amplifying the drama of the finale’s final bars. The revised version is the one most commonly performed today, so it is fascinating to hear the work in its original, four-movement form. While some of the ‘jittery’ abruptness survives through the revisions, it is more exposed in the original, lending it an experimental and thrillingly raw atmosphere; the opening two movements in particular are very different in mood and style.

The symphony opens gently, with an extended passage of woodwind, each instrument conversing amiably over soft chords in the horns. A flurry of dissonances introduces a much darker mood, followed by several contrasting sequences; agitated rustling in the strings contribute to this air of unease, as does a slightly sinister bassoon solo. This is followed by a soaring theme in the strings; yet they soon transition to pizzicato (plucked strings) and then the movement then comes to a halt, seemingly in the middle of a phrase. The Scherzo bustles into view, initially displaying the same tendency to flit from one musical idea to another. It then settles into a more sustained passage of ‘build’, and a brief foretaste of the finale’s famous theme.

The Andante is in a theme and variation form and is wistful and lyrical throughout; its slightly Viennese waltz-like character is emphasised by gently pulsing pizzicato strings. The rustling strings are back for the start of the finale, bringing a great sense of anticipation. When it finally appears, the famous, swinging theme – inspired by the sight of swans – feels like the sunrise. Sibelius had written in his diary, ‘Today at ten to eleven I saw sixteen swans. One of my greatest experiences! Lord God, what beauty! They circled over me for a long time. Disappeared into the solar haze like a gleaming silver ribbon.’ The swans generously allow a beautiful counter-theme to share their musical space at the first appearance, yet also find themselves blasted at dissonantly by the trumpet. After an exploratory central section – largely strings, with occasional mutterings from the woodwind – the strings soar into the most full-bloodedly ‘Romantic’ moment of the symphony thus far. The ‘swans’ return, at first as if from far away, then growing in power and, eventually, into a gloriously burnished tutti – and two final, emphatic chords.

Programme notes by Lucy Walker.

A note from conductor Thomas Dausgaard:

Sibelius was a great revisor of his works, including of the Fifth Symphony. The final and well-known version is shorter, tauter, more striking, though - knowing the original version - musically more like a torso of the original; some musical ideas appear only like fragments suddenly introduced, while in the original you can see where the ideas are coming from and how they transform during the work. Thus the original version is a work on a grander scale completely on its own, and for me it gives some inspiring clues to how Sibelius got from the more austere Fourth Symphony to the final version of the often jubilant Fifth. Here the first version of the Fifth seems still to share some austerity, elusiveness, repetition, expanse, harshness and mysticism of the Fourth - and in this way it becomes the missing link, the bridge, in Sibelius’ musical journey.

The most striking difference between the two versions is that the first version has four movements, the later just three; the first two movements were later revised and combined into one grand arc, the third retained its character but was musically exchanged, and the fourth cut much shorter. Where the revision has its weight on the first movement, the original is a real “finale”-symphony.

Meet the CBSO

Violin I
Eugene Tzikindelean*#
Jonathan Martindale*
Djumash Poulsen
Jane Wright*#
Colette Overdijk*#
Mark Robinson#
Richard Thomas*
Victoria Farrell-Reed*
Bethan Allmand*
Bogi Gyorgy
Vera Beumer
Wendy Quirk
Cathy Chambers
Henry Salmon

Violin II
Lowri Porter*
Moritz Pfister#
Amy Jones#
Bryony Morrison*#
Gabriel Dyker*#
Georgia Hannant*#
Tim Birchall*#
Eleanor Hill
Tam Mott
Yuriko Matsuda*
Amy Littlewood
Adam Hill

Viola
Chris Yates*#
Michael Jenkinson#
Jessica Tickle*#
Amy Thomas*#
Sarah Malcolm*
Isobel Doncaster*
Matt Johnstone
Joanna Claire
Catherine Howe
Hannah Roberts

Cello
Balazs Renczes
Arthur Boutillier
Kate Setterfield*#
Miguel Fernandes*#
Catherine
Ardagh-Walter*#
Jacqueline Tyler*#
Helen Edgar*#
Philippa Schofield

Double Bass
Anthony Alcock*#
Julian Atkinson*#
Jeremy Watt*#
Daniel Vassallo*
Julian Walters*#
Maitiú Gaffney

Flute
Marie-Christine
Zupancic*#

Piccolo
Helen Benson

Oboe
Hyun Jung Song*
Emmet Byrne*#

Clarinets
Oliver Janes*#
Joanna Patton*#

Bass Clarinet
Mark O’Brien#

Bassoon
Nikolaj Henriques*#
Tony Liu

Horn
Elspeth Dutch*#
Neil Shewan
Dan Curzon
Jeremy Bushell*#
Martin Wright#

Trumpet
Matt Williams
Gideon Brooks
Tim Barber

Trombone
Richard Watkin#
Robb Tooley

Bass Trombone
David Vines*#

Timpani
Toby Kearney*#

# Recipient of the CBSO Long Service Award / * Supported player

Biographies

Thomas Dausgaard, Conductor

Danish conductor Thomas Dausgaard is internationally acclaimed for his deeply individual and inquisitive musicianship, the intensity of his performances, imaginative programming, and extensive discography. His repertoire spans the core Classical and Romantic canon, Nordic music, 20th- and 21st-century works, rarely heard scores, and his own orchestrations and editions.

In the 2026-27 season, Dausgaard continues his relationship with the Copenhagen Philharmonic as Honorary Guest Conductor. A major highlight sees him conduct the Orquesta Sinfónica de Madrid, Titular Orchestra of the Teatro Real, at Madrid’s Auditorio Nacional. He also returns to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Warsaw Philharmonic, and Zürich Chamber Orchestra.

Former positions include Chief Conductor of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Swedish Chamber Orchestra, Chief Conductor of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, and Music Director of the Seattle Symphony.

Dausgaard has made more than 100 recordings, including major symphonic cycles and pioneering projects with the Swedish Chamber Orchestra, a Bruckner cycle with the Bergen Philharmonic, and a survey of Bartók’s orchestral works with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra.

Benjamin Grosvenor, Piano

Acclaimed and multi-award-winning British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor is renowned for his ‘indisputable virtuosity’ and understated elegance at the keyboard and appears on the world’s most prestigious stages.

His 2026-27 season includes concerto performances at Chicago Symphony, London Philharmonic (both in London as part of their 2027 Beethoven celebrations and on tour in Belgium and the Netherlands), Gurzenich Orchestra, National Symphony Ireland, Osaka Philharmonic, Tokyo Metropolitan and Atlanta, San Diego and Seattle Symphony Orchestras. In the Autumn, he tours the UK with the Sinfonia of London and John Wilson. He tours with Sheku Kanneh-Mason across Europe and North America, including at Carnegie Hall where they are joined by Hilary Hahn. He is also joined once more by Hyeyoon Park, Timothy Ridout and Kian Soltani for Piano Quartets and gives solo recitals including at Wigmore Hall, Theatre des Champs Elysees and makes his debut at Louisiana, Denmark.

Benjamin’s impressive discography on Decca Classics stretches back to 2011, with his most recent release of solo repertoire by Chopin described by International Piano Magazine Critic’s Choice as ‘an altogether revelatory experience’.