f the four piano works that Rachmaninov wrote and which constitute the late heyday of the romantic concerto, the most famous is undoubtedly the Second, but this Third (premiered in 1909) is considered the best, for its expressive force that does not shy away from melancholy, for its original themes and for its brilliant instrumentation. Its pianistic demands make it one of the most difficult in the repertoire.

Stravinsky composed The Firebird in 1909 for the Ballets Russes, the creation of that magician Diaghilev, which marked an epoch in Europe. This initial ballet shows influences of Rimsky-Korsakov, but already demonstrates a decided musical personality, such as the marked sense of rhythm and its brilliant orchestral colouring. Based on Russian folk tales, the work presents a musical dissociation between the diatonism with which it presents the characters of the real world and the chromaticism reserved for the supernatural beings.

We will hear the suite that Stravinsky prepared in 1945. After the performance of The Rite of Spring and Petrushka in the previous season, the ROSS completes the cycle of Stravinsky's first and most famous ballets with The Firebird.

Juan Lamillar