Kodály’s enchanting Dances of Galánta is a musical tour of the composer’s native Hungary, featuring the folk melodies that helped form its musical identity.

RPO Artist-in-Residence Isata Kanneh-Mason performs a work by Kodály’s compatriot Ernő Dohnányi, whose Variations on a Nursery Song expands the well-known ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’ tune with orchestral power, plenty of humour and infinite musical imagination.

Closing tonight’s concert is one of the most instantly recognisable pieces of symphonic music: Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5. Opening with four imposing notes, this is a work that changed the landscape of classical music and remains an audience favourite to this day.