Labadie Conducts Mendelssohn’s “Italian” Symphony

Calling Mendelssohn “gifted” hardly does him justice. At just 24, he composed his radiant “Italian” Symphony—bursting with joy and inspired by ancient ruins, sun‑drenched landscapes, and the lively spirit of nature. Everything in it dances and breathes: a vibrant celebration of travel and youth, and the great symphonic masterpiece Europe had been waiting for after Beethoven’s death six years earlier. Alongside it, a young Beethoven—then considered the finest pianist of his generation—reveals, in his Piano Concerto No. 1, a musical language still close to Haydn’s classicism, brought to life here by rising star Alexandra Dovgan. Bernard Labadie leads this program filled with joy, sunshine, and youthful brilliance.