Proms 2013 Prom 55: Lutosławski, Shostakovich & Panufnik

Antoni Wit and the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra make their Proms debuts as the festival continues its focus on Polish music during Lutosławski’s centenary year. Written for the Warsaw Philharmonic in 1954, Lutosławski’s virtuosic folk-inflected Concerto for Orchestra creates a unique sound-world.

Lauded for his recording of Shostakovich’s Preludes and Fugues, pianist Alexander Melnikov is the soloist in the composer’s buoyant Piano Concerto No. 2. Andrzej Panufnik’s Tragic Overture and Lullaby and Shostakovich’s Sixth Symphony paint a vivid picture of two nations in parallel periods of anxiety.

Watch and listen to more piano concertos at the Proms.

Watch and listen to more Polish music at the Proms.