Lessons in love

When three of the most distinctive musical voices of our time – conductor and composer George Benjamin, pianist Bertrand Chamayou and soprano Barbara Hannigan – come together, a program full of intensity, imagination and refined drama emerges. Maurice Ravel opens the evening with rhythmic brilliance and Spanish glow in Alborada del Gracioso, before Jean Sibelius and his enigmatic Luonnotar lead us into a world of myth and creation. Unsuk Chin’s piano concerto follows with explosive energy and sparkling colours, and after the intermission we immerse ourselves in Benjamin’s own Lessons in Love and Violence – music that unites clarity and passion. Finally, we return to Ravel with Rapsodie espagnole, where the lessons of love conclude in dance, heat and seductive shadows.