David Afkham & Petri Aarnio

Lili Boulanger was already causing a stir with her progressive music by her untimely death. Her music tends to be labelled impressionistic, but her last orchestral work, D’un soir triste, comes closer in style to expressionism. Says Oliver Knussen of his violin concerto, “At times the violinist resembles a tightrope walker progressing along a (decidedly unstable) high wire strung across the span that separates the opening and closing sounds of the piece.” The trapeze artist in tonight’s performance is the FRSO’s own leader, Petri Aarnio.