If a conductor is granted the title of ‘Sir’ then this is generally an eloquent seal of approval. Sir Simon Rattle and Sir Antonio Pappano were previously guests at DE SINGEL in the series Symphonic Gold. Another figure that belongs in this list is Sir András Schiff. This audience favourite is already 69 years old, but at an age when most mortals are enjoying retirement, this maestro is still in full flow. In this concert, Schiff not only conducts the famous Staatskapelle from Dresden, but also takes his place behind the keyboard for Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 27. With this milestone of classicism, Schiff catapults himself into the role of personal bridge between the baroque sound world of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 5 and the early Romanticism of Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 - which the composer himself described as his ‘most cheerful and sunny work’. So a programme full of icons, both onstage and on the music stand, which heralds the coming of spring.