Symphonic concert with great German composers

A symphonic concert conducted by HIsham Gabr on Saturday at the Cairo Opera House will feature the classic works of German composers. The first half of the concert will include Felix Mendelssohn's Hebrides Overture (Fingal's Cave), Op. 26 and Richard Strauss' Horn Concerto No.1 in Eb major, Op.11. Amr Abul-Naga will be the soloist of the evening on French horn. In the second half of the concert, the orchestra will perform Johannes Brahms' Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98. The last symphony composed by Brahms, this work is considered to be the culmination of the German composer's genius. It reflects all the compositional essence that had been built over the decades of Brahms' musical development. Eduard Hanslick, a renowned 19th century German music critic described the piece as "terribly clever." Another critic, Siegfried Kross, praises the symphony's finale writing, "by taking a passacaglia or chaconne of Bach, and varying it at least 30 times, Brahms thumbed his nose at audiences and provided an initially unwilling audience the conclusion of the Classical and Romantic symphony." Programme: Cairo Opera House, Main Hall Saturday 14 April at 8pm