Hans Graf & Benjamin Schmid – Prokofiev and Paganini

Description

Singapore Symphony Conductor Laureate Hans Graf returns with a vivid programme spanning centuries of artistry. The journey begins with Hindemith’s Mathis der Maler (Matthias the Painter), the 1934 symphony inspired by Matthias Grünewald’s Isenheim Altarpiece. Hindemith brings to life three of the altarpiece’s dramatic panels, transforming Renaissance imagery into modern symphonic colour. Respighi’s Pini di Roma continues this thread of artistic re-imagination, painting the Eternal City in four luminous scenes. Likewise, one virtuoso pays homage to another. Benjamin Schmid, returning after his critically acclaimed 2024 appearance, performs Prokofiev’s evocative First Violin Concerto alongside Fritz Kreisler’s witty and ingenious concert paraphrase on Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 1 — a work that playfully honours and expands on the legendary showmanship of its original composer.