Sometimes the story behind a musical work begins long before its first notes are heard. This is how Stefan Lano’s Concerto for piano and orchestra No. 2, dedicated to pianist Mūza Rubackytė, came to be. This story began more than two decades ago in Chile, where a chance encounter between the two turned into a long-standing creative partnership and friendship.

The idea to compose a concerto first arose during Lano’s initial visits to Lithuania, following encouragement from Maestro Juozas Domarkas and Egidijus Mikšys, then director of the Lithuanian National Philharmonic Society. The opus was nearly complete, but during a trip to Argentina, the only manuscript was stolen along with the composer’s luggage. It seemed that the Concerto was lost forever, but Rubackytė never stopped persuading the composer to return to this idea. Many years later, during the pandemic, the work was reconstructed and completed, becoming not only a musical creation but also a tribute to the pianist and the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra.

This three-movement Concerto combines dramatic tension, lyrical episodes, and a modern musical language. The motif from the medieval sequence Dies irae, presented in the finale, serves as not only a musical quotation for the composer but also a sensitive reflection on today’s turbulent world, where the longing for peace rings truer than ever.

The world premiere of the work features pianist Mūza Rubackytė at the piano, and the composer himself, Stefan Lano, on the podium.