Los Angeles Philharmonic

Though initially thought to be unplayable, Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto has become a certified crowd-pleaser. Soloist Leonidas Kavakos, who’s been called “astoundingly virtuosic and blazingly insightful” by The Guardian, teams up with the “expressive, technically precise” (Bachtrack) Cristian Măcelaru. “The listener will go away singing several tunes from the concerto...you want to take this home with you,” says Kavakos, one of its great interpreters.

The buoyant Seventh Symphony was one of Beethoven’s greatest successes during his life. Decades later the cantankerous Wagner was unusually effusive in his praise for the work, calling it “the apotheosis of the dance itself: it is dance in its highest aspect, the loftiest deed of bodily motion, incorporated into an ideal mold of tone.” Its bacchanalian energy brings the evening to a euphoric end.