With many global successes to his name, one dream still remains for Víkingur Ólafsson: to perform with the great conductor Herbert Blomstedt. That dream is now a reality.
Piano virtuoso Ólafsson won a Grammy Award for Bach’s Goldberg Variations in 2025 and is the world’s most-streamed classical artist. The Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra is a favourite partner, and he now returns to interpret Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24.
It was just before the premiere of The Marriage of Figaro in 1786 that Mozart completed his Piano Concerto No. 24. It was an immediate success and greats such as Beethoven, Brahms and Clara Schumann held it in high regard.
After the intermission, we get to enjoy Brahms’ Symphony No. 4. Highly esteemed, Brahms composed his final symphony in the 1880s, perhaps the most sorrowful of them all. Don’t miss the beautiful flute solo in the final movement.
98-year-old Blomstedt has a special ability to convey details. Together with the orchestra, he gives this centuries-old music the precise shimmer it deserves.
We are able to hear Víkingur Ólafsson and Herbert Blomstedt in this concert thanks to the generous support of the Sten A. Olsson Foundation.
