Beethoven the Revolutionary: The Emperor and the King

We are sorry to announce that Sir Andrew Davis has had to withdraw from this performance due to illness. We are grateful to Hans Graf for stepping in to conduct at such short notice.

Travel Information

Rail workers are to strike for three days in late June, in a move that is likely to halt much of the national rail network across Britain for a week.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union has told members to prepare to “shut down the rail system” with strikes on 21, 23 and 25 June, after a ballot of 40,000 members last month resulted in staff at Network Rail and 13 train operating companies voting overwhelmingly for full-scale industrial action.

Join the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and John Suchet on a journey through the powerful and inspirational world of ‘Beethoven: The Revolutionary’. 

Composed in 1809 during the French invasion of Austria, it is a miracle that Beethoven’s 5th Piano Concerto was ever completed. Beethoven was lodging next to the city ramparts as Napoleon’s army bombarded Vienna and he was struggling with his increasing deafness. Unlike any concerto that came before it in scale and virtuosity, Pavel Kolesnikov joins the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra to perform this musical testament to the freedom of man.

Beethoven’s seventh symphony is filled with insistent rhythms which drive it relentlessly forward. Is it a work of joy? Or, as Wagner declared, ‘the apotheosis of dance’? Of glorious revelling in life despite adversity? Or of obsessive mania? Without doubt it is filled with music which at the time was revolutionary, so much so that some of the musicians at the first performances declared Beethoven must have been drunk when he wrote it! Whatever the inspiration, conductor Hans Graf will undoubtedly draw you in to this masterpiece and take you on a powerful journey through darkness to light.

This concert is kindly supported by 

There will be a pre-concert talk between 6.30 - 6.55pm by presenter John Suchet on Beethoven: The Revolutionary (admission free to 7.30pm concert ticket holders).

The safety of our audiences is of paramount importance. Government guidelines and safety measures are followed at all the venues in which the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performs to ensure that you are able to enjoy the performance in a safe, comfortable environment. Find out more about venue guidance and safety measures below.

Venue safety