Storgårds & Hewitt: With the NAC Orchestra

Explore the romance and passion of Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto, one of the composer’s many musical love letters to his wife, Clara. Superstar pianist Angela Hewitt returns home to Ottawa to deliver an intimate, heartfelt performance of Schumann’s concerto. Don’t miss a rare chance to hear Canadian composer Jean Coulthard’s First Symphony, a work of gripping drama that hasn’t been performed in full in 75 years!

When Robert Schumann married the celebrated pianist-composer Clara Wieck, he had only composed piano music and intimate songs. But at Clara’s urging, Schumann set out to compose his first work for solo piano and orchestra. Trading dazzling virtuosity for soulful lyricism, Schumann’s Piano Concerto journeys from quiet melancholy to a celebratory finale, with plenty of pianistic flourishes along the way. Ottawa’s own Angela Hewitt returns to Southam Hall to bring her “beauty of tone” (BBC Music Magazine) to Schumann’s passionate concerto.

Music Director John Storgårds and the NAC Orchestra perform two captivating scores from Canadian composer Jean Coulthard, whose powerful music didn’t receive its rightful recognition during her lifetime. Endymion evokes the mythological tale of the moon goddess Selene’s love for the beautiful Endymion, while her First Symphony— teeming with vivid harmonies and vigorous rhythms—receives its first performance in full since 1952.