Ferenc Liszt’s 210th birthday coincides with two other notable anniversaries. Dante, one of Liszt’s most important sources of inspiration, died 700 years ago and the programme honours him with the Dante Sonata. Saint-Saëns, the ingenious composer, pianist and organist, a friend of Liszt’s, died 100 years ago. His small, light-handed dances are bookended by two more extensive works, which connect the two composers, who held each other in high regard: one is Liszt’s piano arrangement of the Danse Macabre Saint-Saëns wrote for violin and orchestra, and the other is Liszt’s Mephisto Waltz No. 2, which is dedicated to Saint-Saëns. The programme ends with the Two Legends by Liszt. When Saint-Saëns listened to the Legend No. 2, played by Liszt himself, he said: “We will not hear anything like this, ever!” (Fülöp Ránki)