Saint-Saëns’ piano concerto is an ingenious tour de force of virtuosic technique, its movements portraying a sea voyage to exotic ports of call. Paired with the colorful and raucous revelry of the Italian equivalent of Mardi Gras, the two works preface Mendelssohn’s delightful recollections of a sojourn through Italy in his youth.

Two premiere chroniclers of the American experience bookend a program presenting the world premiere of Adolphus Hailstork’s Concerto for Alto Saxophone, written for the BPO and performed by the superb Timothy McAllister.