Making his Proms debut as the BBC Philharmonic's Chief Conductor, Juanjo Mena explores Strauss the impatient visionary, whose Also sprach Zarathustra was famously used on the soundtrack of Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. Strauss's Four Last Songs exude a sense of calm resignation suffused with autumn light.
After the interval, a major UK premiere from Kaija Saariaho, whose own music is lit by atmosphere and mood. Inspired by the autobiography of Ingmar Bergman, the Swedish film director, Laterna magica includes sections in which players whisper extracts over an instrumental murmur. To conclude, the hard-won luminescence of Sibelius's (unintended) symphonic farewell.
