The Organ Symphony

Spring takes centre stage in this concert, as French conductor Lucie Leguay makes her debut at Konserthuset Stockholm with an all-French programme. The concert opens with Lili Boulanger’s bright and playful D’un matin de printemps – one of her very last works before her untimely death from Crohn’s disease at just 24 years old.

Inspired by Sandro Botticelli’s painting La Primavera (Spring) from the late 15th century, Debussy sought to compose a springtime piece filled with radiant tone colours. His music aimed to reflect “nature’s strenuous birth of animals and plants, followed by the growing light and the joy reborn into new life.”

A luminous romantic glow also surrounds Saint-Saëns’ Third Symphony – often referred to as the Organ Symphony, as two of its movements include organ. Graceful and atmospheric, it was also his final symphony. “I gave everything I had to this work. What I have done here I will never do again.” The organ part is performed by Ulf Norberg, who also serves as artistic director of the organ matinee series at Konserthuset.