L'Oiseau de feu de Stravinski

A festival of orchestral imagery awaits under the baton of Austrian conductor Christoph Koncz. The program opens with the overture to Wagner’s The Mastersingers of Nuremberg, which introduces all the opera’s themes. With its romantic sweep and majesty, it celebrates the artist’s freedom in the face of established rules. Wagner’s father-in-law, Liszt, follows with his Piano Concerto No. 1, offering American pianist Michelle Cann—winner of a Grammy Award in February 2025—the opportunity to dazzle with a brilliant display of virtuosity. The score’s evocative richness and emotional depth also lend a universal dimension to this cornerstone of the piano repertoire.

A shift in atmosphere comes with Elysium by Montreal composer Samy Moussa, where harmonic glides, carried by monumental orchestration, evoke a utopian vision of the Elysian Fields. The program concludes with Stravinsky and the suite he drew from The Firebird, a 1910 work that helped establish his reputation through the Ballets Russes. Inspired by traditional folk tales from his homeland, the score opens the door to a world in which dance is transcended by orchestral imagination.