Lortie joue Mozart

Prepare for musical lyricism with a concert that opens with Poem for Orchestra by Quebec composer Violet Archer. The subtle influences of her mentors, Bartók and Hindemith, echo through this dreamlike piece, inviting us on a journey across space and time. We cross an ocean and travel back two centuries with Louis Lortie, the third of four Quebec pianists featured this year, for Mozart's rarely somber Piano Concerto No. 20, where poetic inspiration takes a central role in a rare minor key for the composer’s concertos.

The concert culminates with Bruckner's towering Symphony No. 4, which he subtitled “Romantic,” drawing from Wagner’s medieval-inspired operatic visions. Each movement brings a vivid scene to life: “Morning calls ring out from the towers of a medieval town – gallant knights charge into open terrain on proud horses – Nature’s magic envelopes them…”