The Full Works Concert - Friday 27 June, 8pm

The crowning glory of tonight's Concert is a complete performance of The Armed Man by Karl Jenkins.

The journey of Candide from 1956 failed comic operetta to perpetual Classic FM Hall of Fame favourite is as intriguing as the hero's journey within the piece itself. In the operetta, Candide (sung by a tenor) experiences numerous fabulous disasters and tortuous plot twists. In real life, the operetta itself seems to have had just as many ups and downs. But one thing has endured - it's fizzing overture which we hear tonight.

Carl Czerny was a pupil of Beethoven and a teacher of Liszt. Born in the year that Mozart died, he is most remembered as the composer of more than a thousand studies and exercises but almost forgotten as a composer of more substantial works. His concerto for piano duet, which we hear tonight, is one of the very few that have been written for the ensemble. Its second movement has become a favourite of Classic FM listeners in recent years.

Karl Jenkins' The Armed Man - A Mass for Peace is the primary explanation of the composer's enduring popularity. It was given its premiere at a Classic FM live concert in the autumn of 2000 at London’s Royal Albert Hall. A year later, the work entered our Hall of Fame where it has stayed ever since. It’s the haunting Benedictus that captivates listeners to the greatest extent, leaving them wanting more. Jenkins’s writing for soulful cello is sublime and the heavenly choral accompaniment truly transports you to another place.

Leonard Bernstein: Candide – Overture
Leonard Bernstein conducts the New York Philharmonic Orchestra

Carl Czerny: Concerto for Piano Duet Opus 153
Cologne Piano Duet
Florian Merz conducts the Cologne Radio Symphony Orchestra

Karl Jenkins: The Armed Man
Cello: Guy Johnston
Solo voices: Tristan Hambleton, Mohammed Gad
Karl Jenkins conducts the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the National Youth Choir of Great Britain