Iván Fischer founded the Budapest Festival Orchestra 29 years ago and today it is one of central Europe’s most prestigious ensembles, its unmistakable sound combining Magyar fire with thrilling spontaneity. It is just the orchestra to bring a spellbinding authenticity to its compatriot Béla Bartók’s folk-inspired Hungarian Peasant Songs, and to his youthful First Violin Concerto, a tender musical love letter that went unanswered. Soloist József Lendvay, too, is steeped in Magyar culture: the son of a Hungarian folk musician, he brings a virile virtuosity to the music of his homeland.

The famous Adagietto used in Visconti’s 1971 film Death in Venice forms the slow movement of Mahler’s Symphony No 5. It is a beautiful love song without words. Hearing the whole symphony is a triumphant journey from tragedy to jubilation.