A concert live from the Royal Festival Hall in London. The Israel Philharmonic
Orchestra was founded 65 years ago by the outstanding Jewish-Polish violinist Bronislaw Huberman. Huberman had spent almost three years persuading musicians from eastern European and German orchestras, who had lost their jobs as a result of the rise of Nazism, to emigrate to Palestine. The orchestra performed its inaugural concert on 26 December 1936 under the baton of Arturo Toscanini. With Israeli's independence in 1948, it was renamed the Israel
Philharmonic Orchestra. Tonight, as part of the Royal Festival Hall's Classic
International series, they perform works by Russian composers - Tchaikovsky's romantic overture and the Serenade for strings, followed by Shostakovich's first symphony, completed in 1924. Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, conductor Kurt Masur
Tchaikovsky Fantasy Overture: Romeo and Juliet: Serenade in C for string orchestra
8.20 Twenty Minutes
Linda Grant explores the life and writing of the Israeli poet Yehuda Amichai , widely regarded as one of the truly significant writers of the 20th century. A former member of the Jewish Unit of the British Army, Amichai began writing in 1948 and became closely involved in peace negotiations with the Palestinians before his death last year.
8.40 Shostakovich Symphony No 1