François-Xavier Roth returns to focus on the music of Debussy and Bartók, two composers who radicalized the musical language of their predecessors to produce a brilliant and inventive style of their own. Debussy’s Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune is an evocative and poetic opener that oozes the rich imagery of its source, a symbolist poem by Stéphane Mallarmé. Bartók’s Viola Concerto brings this oft-overlooked string instrument to centre-stage, showcasing the instrument and its capabilities in full, before the programme concludes with a bedrock piece of the 19th century: Bruckner’s Symphony No 4, the 'Romantic', filled to the brim with evocative images of love, nature and a simpler time.