War & Peace | KCB Symphony Orchestra

War & Peace - Introduction What does music do when the world is shaking on its foundations? War & Peace brings together three works that search for freedom, resilience, and a lust for life. Under the direction of Bart Bouckaert, the Symphony Orchestra takes you from the endless freedom of an eagle in Péter Eötvös’ The Gliding or the Eagle in the Skies to Richard Strauss’ Second Horn Concerto. Strauss wrote this work during the dark years of the Tweede Wereldoorlog. The soloist is Alexander Bosch Berth, a student at the KCB and simultaneously solo horn player at Opera Ballet Vlaanderen. Met Carl Nielsens Vierde Symphony, "The Inextinguishable", gives the program a powerful finale. Nielsen wrote the symphony during the Eerste Wereldoorlog. Yet you primarily hear an indestructible will to keep going. The music builds up to a grand finale that doesn't just let you go. Three composers, two world wars, one question: what keeps us standing when everything is shaking?