French conductor and five-time Grammy winner Ludovic ‎Morlot will be returning to lead the Barcelona Symphony ‎Orchestra, , after last season’s success alongside Javier Perianes. He will ‎be conducting an ambitious programme headed by Suite No. 2 from Daphnis ‎and Chloé by Maurice Ravel, D’un matin ‎de printemps by composer Lili Boulanger, ‎and Bacchus et Ariane by Albert ‎Roussel. All three are leading 20th century French symphonic works. ‎
The programme will be rounded off by the magnificent Viola Concerto ‎‎ by Béla Bartók, a work premiered posthumously that ‎reflects the Hungarian composer’s ideas during the final stages of his life. It will be ‎performed by Amihai Grosz, one of the world’s most prestigious viola players and ‎the Berlin Philharmonic’s principal violist . ‎

The classic world is an endless source of major themes relating to the human condition, and ‎love is a favourite one. In Ancient Greek mythology, the legend of Bacchus and Ariadne ‎recounts the tale of Ariadne’s abandonment by Theseus in the Minotaur’s labyrinth on the ‎island of Naxos, and her capture and betrothal to Bacchus or Dionysus, accompanied by his ‎retinue of satyrs. Based on this story, Albert Roussel composed the ballet ‎‎Bacchus et Ariane (Bacchus and ‎Ariadne), one of the most remarkable French orchestral works of the 1930s. ‎

‎Daphnis and Chloe, written in the late 2nd century AD and considered to be the ‎first pastoral novel, is the only work by Greek novelist Longus. In an idealised reflection of ‎peasant life, a goatherd and a shepherdess from Lesbos manage to satisfy their passion for ‎one another. Revisited musically on numerous occasions since the 18th century, the most ‎accomplished portrait of this romance is Daphnis et ‎Chloé, a “choreographic symphony” by Maurice ‎Ravel, commissioned by Sergei Diaghilev and the Ballets Russes.‎

‎Lili Boulanger, Nadia Boulanger’s younger sister and the first woman to win the Prix ‎de Rome, composed D’un matin de printemps (Of a Spring Morning) ‎shortly before her premature death at the age of twenty-four. It is a short symphonic poem ‎with an Impressionist hallmark, suffused with joy, serenity and luminous vibrancy. ‎

‎Ludovic Morlot, piano‎
An elegant, innovative conductor, Ludovic Morlot was the music director of the ‎Seattle Symphony Orchestra for nine years, during which time it won ‎several Grammys for its recordings. He is currently an associate artist and ‎the artistic director of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra and the ‎National Youth Orchestra of China.‎

‎Amihai Grosz, viola‎
The principal violist of the Berlin Philharmonic, Amihai Grosz has had a ‎two-fold career as a solo artist, accompanying major orchestras worldwide, and performing ‎as a chamber musician. He is the founder of the Jerusalem Quartet and ‎the artistic director of the International Chamber Music Festival Utrecht.‎