Franck (arr. Bauer): Prélude, Fugue and Variations, Op. 18
Dilorom Saidaminova: The Walls of Ancient Bukhara
Ravel: Gaspard de la Nuit
Interval
Price: Fantasie nègre No. 1 in E Minor
Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet: Ten Pieces for Piano, Op. 75

Uzbek pianist Behzod Abduraimov won first prize at the 2009 London International Piano Competition. Trained initially in Tashkent and then in the USA, he now performs with renowned orchestras worldwide and is a sought-after recitalist.

His programme is one of scene painting and fantasy. Dilorom Saidaminova is a fellow Uzbek and her composition a series of eight pieces inspired by the sites and sounds of the ancient Silk Road city of Bukhara. The exquisite suite that Prokofiev distilled from his ballet Romeo and Juliet is also scene painting. In between these comes Ravel's fiendishly tricky Gaspard de la Nuit, inspired by the sinister ‘fantaisies’ of Aloysius Bertrand, and the first of African/American composer Florence Price’s four Fantasies nègres, this one based on the spiritual ‘Sinner, please don’t let this harvest pass’.