Have you ever wondered what it would be like if a major symphony orchestra took a page from the Q2 Music handbook? A program devised to follow traditional symphony concert format – an overture, a concerto and a symphony – but focused on living composers: now that would be exciting!

Perhaps it will come as no surprise that the Brothers Balliett have fantasized about this scenario, and devised one such program that satisfies the tenets of the Balliett manifesto. To kick off the program, an engaging and easy-going curtain-raiser: Purple by Michael Torke. To add a little bit of salt to this sweet appetizer, we follow with Harrison Birtwistle's Endless Parade, a trumpet concerto that delivers exactly what the title promises. And instead of Haydn or Mahler, we offer a late symphony by Finnish composer-conductor Leif Segerstam – his 106th, in fact. Grand, daring, and constantly surprising, this symphony lives up to the legacy of its dedicatee, Anton Bruckner.