The trumpet concerto Aerial was composed by Austrian Heinz Karl Gruber for the BBC Proms in London in the summer of 1999 and is dedicated to tonight’s soloist, Swedish trumpeter Håkan Hardenberger. Gruber received an excellent musical education in Vienna—first as a member of the venerable Vienna Boys’ Choir, then under distinguished composition teachers, and finally as a double bassist in several of the city’s orchestras. In the 1960s, he grew increasingly frustrated with what he perceived as an ever more inaccessible avant-garde scene, and felt a need to compose in a simpler, fresher style.

The trumpet concerto consists of two movements—two perspectives from above. In the first, we float above the Earth and observe the northern lights, accompanied by the words of Emily Dickinson’s poem Wild Nights: Rowing in Eden! Ah – the Sea! / Might I but moor – Tonight – / In Thee!. The trumpet sings, the piccolo trumpet of the Baroque era enjoys a brief renaissance, and a certain instrument familiar to Norwegian ears makes an appearance. In the second movement, we once again hover above the Earth—now devoid of human life. Only a small sign remains: Gone dancing. A nearly soundless sonic backdrop sets the scene before the trumpet begins to stir. And indeed, dance permeates this movement—distorted American ballroom styles and crooked Balkan rhythms intertwine.

Belgian composer César Franck is among the rare few who can be considered late bloomers—he came into full musical flower as he approached sixty. A modest man, Franck preferred life behind the organ bench at the Church of Saint-Clotilde in Paris and devoted himself to a small circle of students to whom he gave his all. Regardless of the instrumentation, it was always the organ’s dense, rich sonorities that inspired him—from the distant and velvety to the explosively grand.

Note the first three notes of the piece. They recur throughout the entire movement—from the pale opening to the full-throated roar that introduces the faster section. This creates a concentrated expression that binds together the nearly twenty-minute-long movement. The middle section is gentle and retrospective, featuring a wonderful English horn solo—perhaps inspired by a simple folk tune. In the finale, Franck pulls out all the stops on his imaginary organ, offering cheerful glimpses back at the previous movements.