Every day from 9am over Easter, ABC Classic FM will take audiences on a total immersion tour of the beautiful music of Russia.
From the pre-1917 sounds of the Romantic tradition, to the music emerging from the uproar and transformation that accompanied the creation of the Soviet state, ABC Classic FM will explore some of the most exciting, passionate, and beautiful music in the Russian repertoire.
Several special guests will co-host alongside regular presenters over the long weekend. Respected stage and screen actor and broadcaster Alex Menglet will join Mairi Nicolson on Afternoons on Friday, while renowned composer Elena Kats-Chernin will be in the chair with Tamara-Anna Cislowska on Easter Sunday from 4-7pm. On Monday, acclaimed pianist Sonya Lifschitz will join Alice Keath on Classic Drive.
Musical highlights over the long weekend include:
1200 Saturday: SSO Young Russians
Young pianist Daniil Trifonov is soloist in the Rachmaninov Piano Concerto no. 1, plus Prokofiev’s Classical Symphony and the Symphony no. 1 by Shostakovich.
1400 Sunday: MSO Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet
Mussorgsky Night on Bald Mountain; Rachmaninov Piano Concerto no. 2; Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet.
Sunday Opera: Boris Godunov by Mussorgsky.
“From the glories of sacred music to the composers who responded to the turbulence and discord of the post-Revolutionary era, you’ll discover and enjoy Russian music from before and after one of the pivotal events of the twentieth century,” said Richard Buckham, Manager, ABC Classic FM.
Russia: Romance & Revolution runs from Friday 14 April to Monday 17 April on ABC Classic FM.
A box set CD of Russia: Romance & Revolution is available now from ABC Classics.