The Moscow Easter Festival is held annually, starting on Easter Sunday (according to the historical Julian calendar). The 2012 festival was dedicated to the music of Sergei Prokofiev. The Mariinsky Orchestra, which has been led by Gergiev for over 20-years, has a unparalleled reputation in Russian repertoire, performing the composer’s symphonies, concertos and operas regularly around the world.

Four of Prokofiev’s piano concertos were performed at the festival in Moscow, but the most popular of the composer’s concertos, the third, was performed in the home of the Mariinsky, St Petersburg. Tchaikovsky Competition-winning pianist Denis Matsuev gives a bravura performance of the concerto in a spectacular concert, also featuring Prokofiev’s first violin concerto, played by Leonidas Kavakos.