Proms 2015 Prom 53: Bartók – The Miraculous Mandarin; Shostakovich – Orango

Shostakovich’s Orango – an incomplete opera whose manuscript came to light only in 2004 – is a glossy fusion of wit and political venom. The ‘Orango’ of the title is half man, half ape – a symbol of the decadent West. It’s a work matched for vivid colouring by Bartók’s violent and sexually charged ballet-pantomime The Miraculous Mandarin. French pianist David Fray returns following his Proms debut in 2011 to play Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24 – written at the height of the composer’s fame in Vienna as a performer of his own works.