Hrůša, Hakhnazaryan / Beethoven, Elgar, Shostakovich

The Czech conductor Jakub Hruša is always welcome at the podium of the Wiener Symphoniker. Once ranked by Grammophone magazine as one of ten conductors “on the verge of greatness”, his concerts are major events even in Viennese concert life, which is hardly lacking in highpoints. At this year’s concert he focuses on two composers who are particularly dear to him: Ludwig van Beethoven and Dmitri Shostakovich. At the heart of the programme, however, is Edward Elgar’s last great orchestral work, the brooding Cello Concerto. With the “cello phenomenon” (Der Standard) Narek Hakhnazaryan, virtuosity in a class of its own is guaranteed.