Sakari Oramo conducts Debussy and Shostakovich

Debussy’s La mer crowns a concert that surges with elemental power; whether Britten’s East Anglian seascapes or Shostakovich at his punchiest. “I have slandered the sea” said Debussy, after finishing La mer, but posterity has disagreed, and Debussy’s vibrant energy and ravishing colours surge find powerful echoes in Britain’s wave-lashed portraits of the North Sea. And what better complement for Britten than the First Cello Concerto by his great friend Shostakovich? It’s the sort of music that finds the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s Chief Conductor Sakari Oramo in his element, and in this opening concert of the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s new season, he’s joined by Senja Rummukainen – a cellist praised for her “unbelievable power and intensity”. In her hands, Shostakovich’s concerto will make a powerful counterpart to Britten’s British classic and the rolling, rapturous seascape of La mer - inspired by the art of Hokusai, and written (at least in part) on the Sussex coast. Programme Benjamin Britten Four Sea Interludes, from ‘Peter Grimes’ Dmitri Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1 Francisco Coll Elysian Claude Debussy La mer Performers Sakari Oramo conductor Senja Rummukainen cello BBC Symphony Orchestra