The opening concerts of the Wrocław Baroque Orchestra season features two Romantic symphonies, justly ranked among the greatest masterpieces of this era. One – dark and dramatic, the other – joyful and luminous. Both works will be conducted by the acclaimed conductor Ivor Bolton.

In his letters to the family, Felix Mendelssohn mentioned that the inspiration to start work on Symphony No. 3 in A minor “Scottish” was visiting the ruins of Holyrood Abbey in 1829. To the description of this place, the composer also added a sketch of the theme opening this work. However, work did not go well for him and after two years he put the sketches down. He returned to them only a decade later, and the premiere of the symphony took place at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig in 1842. The audience liked the new composition, which has since been recognized as a perfect image of the northern hills – wild, desolate, windswept, hidden in the dark fog. However, not the entire symphony is as dramatic and gloomy as the first and third movements. The second and fourth are dynamic, and there is also a rhythm characteristic of Scottish folk dances, in which the first note is short, and the second note is longer. The work is crowned with a monumental apotheosis in which the composer unexpectedly shifts to a sunny major key.

Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 1 “Spring” in B flat major has a completely different character. It was written in January and February 1841, at the same time as the work of Mendelssohn, who, moreover, conducted the premiere of his colleague’s work in March of the same year, also at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig. It was the symphonic debut of Schumann, who was previously known as the author of songs and piano works. In a letter to his friend, the composer mentioned that the French horn and trumpet fanfare that started the piece reminded him of a wake-up call, and what happens later in the orchestra brings to mind the image of nature coming to life after a period of winter apathy. However, he also admitted that these associations came to his mind only after the completion of the work. Schumann planned to give each of the movements a title, but just before publication, he gave up on this idea. The first was to describe the awakening of nature, the second an evening, the third joyful dances, and the last spring in full bloom. The audience received this work with great enthusiasm, and its popularity has not diminished to this day.