Our Czech programme opens with the fourth of Smetana’s cycle of patriotic tone poems, Má Vlast. From Bohemia’s Forests and Meadows conjures up the feelings inspired by the Czech landscape, from the grandeur of great forests to the exuberance of village festivals.

Viola player Laura Sinnerton joins the orchestra for Martinů’s melodic Rhapsody Concerto. Martinůe migrated to the USA in 1941 and the many Moravian folk tunes he employs express his longing for his native Czechoslovakia.

Dvořák’s carefree Eighth Symphony is steeped in the atmosphere of the Czech countryside and features hunting horns, bird calls and lively folk tunes. Along with his New World Symphony, it has become one of Dvořák’s most popular works.