Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Cadogan Hall October 2011- July 2012

ROYALPHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

Resident Orchestra at Cadogan HallMAY 2010 – NOVEMBER 2010

Orchestral excellence in London’s award-winning venuewww.rpo.co.uk

Resident Orchestra at Cadogan Hall OCTOBER 2011 – JULY 2012

Welcome to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s new season of concerts at Cadogan Hall, one of London’s most prestigious venues. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is renowned throughout the world for its exceptional interpretations of repertoire ranging from classic masterpieces to rare discoveries. During this season at Cadogan Hall, the Orchestra will be celebrating British film music, with two concerts devoted to some of the most exciting scores written for the big – and small – screens. Multiple award-winning composers Christopher Gunning and Nigel Hess will be featured in a programme brimming with colourful and evocative film music, while John Scott’s Robin Hood is bound to delight audiences of all ages with its thrilling sense of adventure.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra remains devoted to the finest classical repertoire and there is much to enjoy in this coming season. Joined by highly-acclaimed soloists, the Orchestra will perform an array of sublime concertos, including Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto, Elgar’s Cello Concerto and Rachmaninov’s Piano Concertos Nos.2 and 3. There is also the rare opportunity to hear the sparkling Concerto for Two Pianos by Poulenc. As always, there is a sumptuous selection of orchestral music on offer, too, including Elgar’s ‘Enigma’ Variations, two Brahms symphonies and the exhilarating Symphony No.5 by Sibelius. Lovers of Tchaikovsky’s music are spoilt for choice, with performances of his Violin Concerto, ‘Winter Daydreams’ Symphony and the powerful Symphony No.4. Following last season’s outstanding series of collaborations, pianist Freddy Kempf returns to join the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in an all-Beethoven programme.

Notes supplied by Joanna Wyld

Meet the artists:

Edward Seckerson (Chief Critic, Independent, and BBC presenter) chats informally to the artists in his free pre-concert talks.

From 6.30pm in the main auditorium, Edward can be heard enlightening audiences with interesting facts about the evening’s programme, and engaging in discussion with the artists themselves.

See individual concerts for details:

Tuesday 21st February 2012

Tuesday 17th April 2012

March-aprilGrzegorz NowakRoustem SaitkoulovYuki MiyagiKemal Gekic

December-FebruaryChristmas CrackerDirk Joeres, Julian BlissAlessandro FabriziYoon-Hee Kim

November-DecemberRichard BernasAnastasia KhitrukAlexandra HuttonThe Magic of Christmas

October-NovemberChristopher AustinJakob KullbergGiovanni GuzzoGrzegorz Nowak, Roustem Saitkoulov

Welcome

aprilAlexander ShelleyGuy JohnstonEnrique BátizHorus Piano Duo

May-JulyFreddy KempfA Celebration of British FilmJohn Scott

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is the only London orchestra to offer a 50% discount on tickets for every own-promotion concert for a year.

Become a member from only £25 per year and enjoy benefits including:

• 50% off all RPO own promotion concerts (two tickets per concert)

• Exclusive RPO friends’ bar

• Priority booking

• FREE rehearsal passes to selected concerts

• Discounted RPO CDs

• Regular newsletters and updates on the Orchestra’s activities and forthcoming events

To join the RPO friends, please telephone 020 7608 8855 or visit www.rpo.co.uk/friends

More music for less!riendsff

tuesday 25th October 20117.30pmPolish Contemporary Music across Europe with FriendsGórecki Three Pieces in Old StyleLutosławski Cello ConcertoMaxwell Davies Overture, ‘St. Francis of Assisi’ (London première)Szymanowski Violin Concerto No.2

Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings is among his most popular works, and was as much a pleasure to write as it is to hear. The usually self-critical composer declared that he loved this piece, and it is easy to understand why: the strings are treated with masterful understanding, whether independently or blended together as an instrumental ‘choir’. Tchaikovsky was, at first, less content with his Symphony No.2, despite its successful première, but the piece remains a joy, peppered with themes based on Ukrainian folk-songs. These works frame that of another Russian composer, Rachmaninov, whose deft exploration of Paganini’s musical idea includes a sweeping version of the theme and is one of Rachmaninov’s most irresistible melodies.

tuesday 22nd November 20117.30pmTchaikovsky Serenade for StringsRachmaninov Rhapsody on a Theme of PaganiniTchaikovsky Symphony No.2, ‘Little Russian’

Grzegorz Nowak Conductor

Roustem Saitkoulov Piano

RPO friends’ discounts apply


Christopher Austin Conductor Jakob Kullberg CelloGiovanni Guzzo Violin

Górecki, Lutosławski and Szymanowski were prominent Polish composers. Gorecki’s Three Pieces in Old Style of 1963 use ancient musical idioms; the contemplative outer movements sandwiching a dance which conjures up the Renaissance. Lutosławski’s Cello Concerto was written for Mstislav Rostropovich, the soloist’s music at once fiendishly demanding and emotionally powerful. Premièred in 2009, English composer Peter Maxwell Davies’ Overture, ‘St. Francis of Assisi’ delivers a heady cocktail of haunting plainsong and orchestral fireworks. We close with Szymanowski’s Violin Concerto No.2, a work characterised by Polish folk music and featuring an infinitely inventive solo violin line.

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“The RPO do sensuousness uncommonly well ” The Guardian

This programme brings together recent music from American composer Michael Colina with one of the most popular classical works of the twentieth century, Górecki’s ‘Symphony of Sorrowful Songs’. Colina’s The Unbearable Lightness of Being and his Violin Concerto, ‘Three Cabinets of Wonder’, were both written in 2010, and demonstrate a fascinating contrast between the infectious rhythms of Cuban jazz and contemplative silence.

The late Henryk Górecki’s ‘Symphony of Sorrowful Songs’ was composed as a memorial to victims of the Holocaust; its air of ethereal, mournful beauty has touched the hearts of millions. As Górecki put it: “Perhaps people find something they need in this piece of music... somehow I hit the right note”.

A magical Christmas concert for all the family, featuring melodious and magical Christmas favourites including The Nutcracker Suite, Sleigh Ride and White Christmas, alongside Debbie Wiseman’s own lyrical setting of Oscar Wilde’s fairy story The Selfish Giant. The concert will also feature the world première performance of The Fib – a delightful and touching Christmas story from the best-selling short story collection, with music by Debbie Wiseman, to be read by the author, George Layton.

Family ticket available: £50 (up to four people including one child under the age of 16. Please ask at the Box Office for more details)

See back page for further ticket prices

sunday 4th December 20113.30pmThe Magic of Christmas in aid of Breast Cancer Campaign

Debbie Wiseman Conductor Simon Bates Presenter

With special guests Cherie Lunghi, George Layton, James Loynes and Robert Powell. With an introduction by Gary Lineker and special guest of honour Sir Bobby Charlton.



tuesday 29th November 2011 7.30pmColina The Unbearable Lightness of BeingColina Three Cabinets of Wonder – Concerto for Violin and Orchestra (World première)Górecki Symphony No.3

Richard Bernas ConductorAnastasia Khitruk ViolinAlexandra Hutton Soprano

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Humperdinck Hansel and Gretel Overture

Tchaikovsky Waltz of the Flowers

Hairston Mary’s Boy Child

Head The Little Road to Bethlehem

Tormé The Christmas Song

Martin/Blane Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Anderson Sleigh Ride

Waldteufel The Skaters’ Waltz

Pola/Wyle It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

…and many more, not forgetting audience carols!

Nick Davies Conductor

Mary Carewe Vocalist

Michael Dore Vocalist

Back by popular demand, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s Christmas Cracker is a delightful evening of festive musical gems. This enchanting and melodious concert is sure to fill you with good cheer as the Orchestra and guest vocalists get the yuletide celebrations off to an entertaining start.

Christmas CrackerWednesday 21st December 2011 and Friday 23rd December 2011

extra concerts added for 2011 due to popular demand

3pm & 7.30pm


tuesday 21st February 20127.30pmMendelssohn A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Overture, Nocturne and ScherzoMozart Clarinet Concerto in A major Dvorák Symphony No.8

Dirk Joeres ConductorJulian Bliss Clarinet

Glinka was one of the most celebrated Russian composers of his time, influencing younger figures such as Rimsky-Korsakov and Borodin. The story goes that the plot to Glinka’s opera Ruslan and Lyudmila was concocted in minutes by a drunken poet, but Glinka’s music, in the Overture especially, shines through, full of infectious energy. Despite winning Glinka’s composition prize, Tchaikovsky’s music was not always appreciated during his lifetime. His ravishing Violin Concerto was criticised at first, yet has since become one of his most popular works. Overwhelmed by the example of Beethoven, Brahms took years to complete his First Symphony – but it was worth the wait. With its noble themes and rhythmic subtleties, Brahms proved himself a master of the genre.

tuesday 28th February 20127.30pmGlinka Ruslan and Lyudmila OvertureTchaikovsky Violin Concerto in D major Brahms Symphony No.1

Alessandro Fabrizi ConductorYoon-Hee Kim Violin



Mendelssohn’s charming score to Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream is as magical as the play itself, with its gleaming sonorities, fairytale delicacy and a dancing, skittish Scherzo. The Clarinet Concerto by Mozart is one of the last works he wrote and one of the finest. His instinct for the clarinet’s mellow tone and sinuous flexibility is unsurpassed and the slow movement is justly famous for its exquisite lyricism. Then bask in the musical sunshine of Dvorák’s Eighth Symphony, which evokes bird-song and the undulating Czech landscape. Full of Bohemian folk-tunes and exhilarating, spacious orchestral sounds, this is one of Dvorák’s most delightful, carefree works.

Meet the artists: Free pre-concert talk from 6.30pm presented by Edward Seckerson.

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“The opening shimmered with mysterious delights: slithering harmonics from the strings; the bubbling mud of winds and brass” The Times

tuesday 13th March 20127.30pmBrahms Academic Festival OvertureRachmaninov Piano Concerto No.3 Tchaikovsky Symphony No.1, ‘Winter Daydreams’

Grzegorz Nowak Conductor

Roustem Saitkoulov Piano

Weber’s opera Der Freischütz was a breakthrough in the history of music. Considered by many to be the first German Romantic opera, it influenced composers including Richard Wagner. The work’s Overture contrasts lilting pastoral serenity with moments of drama and suspense. Few can resist Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2, a work which overflows with aching emotion, communicated through a piano part ranging from gentle poignancy to glittering display. Brahms was unsure of his Second Symphony, writing to a friend expressing ‘I don’t know whether I have a pretty symphony.’ Its lyrical beauty however makes it one of his most popular works, with soaring melody, pastoral imagery and a blazing brass fanfare to close.

Wednesday 4th april 20127.30pmWeber Der Freischütz OvertureRachmaninov Piano Concerto No.2 Brahms Symphony No.2

Yuki Miyagi Conductor

Kemal Gekic Piano



For his Academic Festival Overture, Brahms emphasised the festive rather than the scholarly. Written to contrast with the more sober Tragic Overture, the work is full of ebullient high spirits, using student drinking songs as lively inspiration. At the heart of this programme is the glorious Piano Concerto No.3 by Rachmaninov. Like Rachmaninov’s Concerto No.2, this work brims with yearning passion, as well as showcasing the soloist’s dazzling dexterity. Tchaikovsky’s First Symphony rounds off the concert with one of the composer’s most vividly descriptive scores. He called the work ‘Winter Daydreams’, and the music charts a wintry journey through bare landscapes and cold mists, with folk-tunes raising the temperature in the finale.

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“The RPO in full bloom of sonority and thoroughly in control of the music” The Telegraph

An irresistible programme boasting three gems of the repertoire. Don Juan is one of the most technically demanding works written for the orchestra, requiring huge skill from every single musician. Marvel at the virtuosity of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra as it tells the story of the unfortunate philanderer, portrayed by Strauss with great wit and energy. Then cellist Guy Johnston takes centre stage for Elgar’s Cello Concerto, a work of intense beauty and searing emotion. Sibelius made numerous wonderful contributions to the symphonic repertoire, none more glorious than the Fifth Symphony, culminating in a breathtaking finale with its sweeping French horn theme.

tuesday 17th april 2012 7.30pm

Strauss Don Juan

Elgar Cello Concerto

Sibelius Symphony No.5

Alexander Shelley Conductor

Guy Johnston Cello

Finlandia was written by Sibelius not simply as a celebration of Finland but as a sort of extended protest song against Russian rule. It was an instant hit with his fellow countrymen and features the famous hymn tune of the composer’s own creation. Tchaikovsky’s Fourth Symphony is one of his most powerful works, charting a journey that begins with intense struggle against the caprices of Fate but ends with an electrifying finale in which the battle seems to have been won. Sandwiched between these great works is Poulenc’s Concerto for Two Pianos: a rare treat. A work of sparkling colours and seductive harmonies, Poulenc’s work is a revelation – not to be missed.



Meet the artists: Free pre-concert talk from 6.30pm presented by Edward Seckerson.

thursday 26th april 20127.30pm

Sibelius Finlandia

Poulenc Concerto for Two Pianos

Tchaikovsky Symphony No.4

Enrique Bátiz Conductor

Horus Piano Duo Nóra Emödy & Ahmed Abou-Zahra

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Freddy Kempf’s Complete Beethoven Piano Concerto series Part 2 When it comes to interpreting Beethoven, Freddy Kempf and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra have shown themselves to be a musical match made in heaven. Following the success of their collaborations last season, Kempf and the RPO present two of Beethoven’s most majestic piano concertos: No.4 and No.5, the ‘Emperor’. To set the scene, the Orchestra performs Beethoven’s Egmont Overture. Written to accompany Goethe’s play, the writer himself acknowledged Beethoven’s ‘remarkable genius’.

sunday 13th May 2012 7.00pm

Beethoven Egmont Overture

Beethoven Piano Concerto No.4

Beethoven Piano Concerto No.5

Freddy Kempf Piano / Director

a Celebration of British Film Celebrate British cinema with a gala concert of sparkling film scores by some of our best home-grown composers. This glorious programme will include the music of Richard Rodney Bennett, William Walton and Eric Coates alongside award-winning scores by tonight’s composer / conductors. Nigel Hess composed the timeless soundtrack to Ladies in Lavender and has won two Ivor Novello Awards for his many memorable television scores, while Christopher Gunning, known for his music for Agatha Christie’s Poirot, has won three Ivor Novello Awards and four BAFTAs, including one for the Edith Piaf biopic, La Vie en Rose.

thursday 14th June 20127.30pm

Christopher Gunning Conductor / Composer

Nigel Hess Conductor / Composer



CaDOGaN haLL BOOKiNG iNFOrMatiON

Ticket prices £37.50, £30, £22, £12.50 (Booking fees apply, RPO friends’ and Encore discounts apply)

Telephone bookings 020 7730 4500 Online bookings www.cadoganhall.comSubscription discounts Generous discounts are available for booking multiple concerts from the RPO’s Resident Season. Please ask at the Box Office when booking. 2 or 3 concerts – 15% discount 4 or 5 concerts – 25% discount 6 or more concerts – 30% discountCadogan Hall 5 Sloane Terrace, London SW1X 9DQ 2 minutes’ walk from Sloane Square Underground

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robin hood: Music to the filmThe story of Robin Hood has fascinated and inspired generations of artists. Legend of the silent film Douglas Fairbanks was no exception, his classic 1922 film featuring a most impressive display of pageantry in which the hero defeats Sir Guy of Gisbourne to win the heart of Maid Marian. For one night only, Cadogan Hall is transformed with a screening of the film accompanied by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performing John Scott’s colourful score. In the composer’s own words ‘the film calls for an action packed score. There is romance, intrigue, terror, spectacle, suspense, and as the story progresses it demands more and more, culminating in the spectacle of a Royal wedding.’

thursday 12th July 20127.30pm

John Scott Conductor / Composer


www.rpo.co.uk

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The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra gratefully acknowledges the generous support of Arts Council England

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Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Cadogan Hall October 2011- July 2012

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Transcript of Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Cadogan Hall October 2011- July 2012