London Philharmonic Orchestra with James Ehnes (violin) and Kevin John Edusei

Described by Time Out New York as ‘Brooklyn’s post-millennial Mozart’, Missy Mazzoli is a restless game-changer who, in 2018, became one of the first women to be commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera. Her Sinfonia for Orbiting Spheres, is a spellbinding example of her art, playing on the double meaning of ‘sinfonia’ (a baroque piece for orchestra and an old Italian term for hurdy gurdy) and spinning loops of enchanting melodies within a larger orbit. It’s a fascinating counterpart to Beethoven’s contemplation of the natural world in his Sixth Symphony. Although it follows in a centuries-old pastoral tradition by evoking nature’s sights and sounds musically, it’s really the human feelings they arouse that are the focus of Beethoven’s Romantic vision.

‘It is a concerto for violin against the orchestra – and the violin wins!’ said the violinist Bronislaw Huberman, of Brahms’s 1878 masterpiece. Symphonically-scaled and passionately lyrical, it’s a piece that makes huge demands on the soloist, largely due to the technical input of Brahms’s virtuoso friend, Joseph Joachim. We’re in safe hands, though: the flawless artistry of Canadian violinist James Ehnes has made him the go-to soloist for the world’s leading conductors.

Free pre-concert talk, 6.20pm in the auditorium: Dr Jonathan James on Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony.