On Friday, May 22, at the Kolarac Concert Hall, the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra will perform with the piano superstar Jan Lisiecki under the baton of Daniel Raiskin, starting at 8 PM. 

The program features work by Gustav Mahler, Ludwig van Beethoven, and Robert Schumann.

This marks Lisiecki’s first appearance with the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra. A former child prodigy, he is now widely regarded as one of the world’s leading and the most sought-after pianists, performing over 100 concerts each year with top orchestras and conductors worldwide. At just 15, Lisiecki signed an exclusive contract with Deutsche Grammophon, and at 18 he became the youngest-ever recipient of Gramophone magazine’s Young Artist of the Year award. A UNICEF Canada Goodwill Ambassador as well, he will perform Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 for the Belgrade audience.

Principal Guest Conductor Daniel Raiskin leads the program infused with a spring-like spirit. The exquisite Blumine, originally the Andante from Mahler’s First Symphony, was once dismissed by the composer as a youthful indiscretion and removed from the score. Thanks to Benjamin Britten, who rediscovered and revived it some 70 years later, this delicate piece has since regained its rightful place, both as part of the symphony and as a standalone concert work.

The romantic atmosphere continues with Schumann’s Spring Symphony. Composed during the first honeymoon year of his marriage to Clara Schumann, this period saw an outpouring of inspiration alongside love. Among nearly 150 songs written at the time, his first symphony emerged as a subtle – yet heartfelt – tribute to the blossoming of their shared life.

A limited number of tickets for Friday’s concert are still available at the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra’s box office as well as online.