James Gaffigan and Mikhail Pletnev conduct and perform Mozart and Rachmaninov

First, Pletnev leads the exquisite Verbier Festival Chamber Orchestra in the celebrated overture from Mozart's Don Giovanni, an introduction that plunges us instantly into the dramatic universe of this classic opera, also called a dramma giocoso ("drama with jokes") for its blend of comic and tragic elements. Next up is another Mozart favorite, the Symphony No. 40, also known as the "Great" G Minor Symphony, one of the most recognizable and most poignant works by the Salzburg-born master.

After the break, Pletnev leaves the conductor's baton to the great James Gaffigan and takes a seat at the piano bench to perform Sergei Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 1, less known than the Second and Third but full of the same complex harmonies, virtuosic passages, and soul-stirring melodes that make the Russian composer so beloved all over the world.

Photo © Nicolas Brodard
medici.tv’s broadcasts of the Verbier Festival's 30th anniversary edition are produced with the support of Madame Aline Foriel-Destezet.