Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich: Majesty and Tragedy

Rafael Payare, conductor
Daniil Trifonov, piano

TCHAIKOVSKY: Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23
SHOSTAKOVICH: Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93

Rafael Payare returns to Jacobs Music Center to lead two profound masterworks composed a century apart: Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No. 1, performed by Daniil Trifonov, and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 10. Both works unite the intensely personal with the powerfully public.

Shostakovich completed his Symphony No. 10 in the aftermath of Stalin’s death in 1953. The music bears witness to immense suffering under tyranny while reclaiming the voice of the individual. Through coded motifs of his own name, allusions to those he cared for, and echoes of Russian poetry, Mahler, and Jewish folk tradition, Shostakovich shaped a drama of fear, endurance, and defiance.

Please note: the repertoire of this concert has changed from previously published versions.