Faure and Beethoven dominate at BRSO

Pelléas et Mélisande, composed by Gabriel Faure, found its inspiration in Maurice Maeterlinck’s play of the same name. Its mellifluous harmonies tell a tale of forbidden, doomed love of the title characters. In a work for viola regarded as one of the most challenging in the genre, former BRSO principal violist Matthew Daline performs William Walton’s brilliant Viola Concerto. And originally titled the “Bonaparte Symphony” as a tribute to Napoleon, Ludwig van Beethoven renamed his dynamic Symphony No. 3 the “Eroica”—refusing to dedicate his work to a man he came to consider a tyrant. Never the less, the influence of Bonaparte and the French revolution played an influential role in the development of what is called the “Heroic” style that came to dominate Beethoven’s compositions of his middle period. Don’t miss this beautiful performance on Thursday night at the River Center Theatre. brso.org