Benjamin Britten began composing his Violin Concerto Op. 15 when he was just 25 years old, and as the Second World War was brewing

  “It is with great regret that chief conductor Kirill Petrenko has to cancel his participation in the New Year’s Eve (NYE) concerts of the Berliner

  Praised for his English operas, which were regarded as some of the finest since those of Henry Purcell in the 17th century, Britten was known

  Jean Sibelius' Violin Concerto in D Minor Op. 47 premiered on this day in 1905. Aspiring to be a virtuoso violinist, Sibelius' love of the