Finnish star conductor Osmo Vänskä conducts the Royal Danish Orchestra

This fourth gala concert offers an extravaganza of music for the theatre stage and pays tribute to the score of classic dramas performed by the Royal Danish Orchestra. Also experience Sibelius’ dark violin concerto, a drama in itself.

On his first visit to the Royal Danish Orchestra, Finnish star conductor Osmo Vänskä will bring with him evocative and emotional orchestral music by his compatriot, Jean Sibelius. The play King Christian II, about the Danish king who massacred the Swedish nobility during the Stockholm Bloodbath, relates the king’s love for Dyveke, a girl from the common people. The love story is painted in moving notes, just as the carnage itself is musically painted with Sibelius’ sanguine hues. 

“The violin entirely overwhelmed me,” said Sibelius, who composed one of the most passionate solo concertos in music history for the violin. The performing soloist is the talented rising star violinist Daniel Lozakovich, who in 2022 made his debut at the Proms at the Royal Albert Hall in London.

Henrik Ibsen’s play Peer Gynt would perhaps not be so world famous had it not been for Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg’s illustrative orchestral music that includes such sensational hits as In the Hall of the Mountain King and Morning Mood. 

Osmo Vänskä acted as Music Director of the Minnesota Symphony Orchestra for almost 20 years, a tenure during which Sibelius’ music became part of his signature repertoire. 

Carl Nielsen: Helios Overture, opus 17
Jean Sibelius: Violin Concerto, D minor, opus 47
Jean Sibelius: King Christian II, suite, opus 27
Edvard Grieg: Excerpts from Peer Gynt, Suite I and II