Orchestral Season 2017/18
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ORCHESTRAL SEASON 2017/18 Box Office01604 624811 www.royalandderngate.co.uk 2 Box Office 01604 624811 I www.royalandderngate.co.uk WELCOME FROM ROYAL & DERNGATE We are delighted to introduce the upcoming concert series from our Resident Orchestra and welcome James Williams in his first full season as Managing Director of the RPO. We are really encouraged by the support from our audiences and thank you for your continued loyalty. Beyond the concert series, we seek ways to ensure that our classical concerts reach as diverse an audience as possible and serve to inspire the next generation of musicians and audience members. See page 12 for details about the Community and Education programme that is engaging with new audiences across the region. We are pleased to be working in partnership with Orchestras Live and Arts Council England on Sound Around, engaging children with disabilities as producers and participants in RPO projects. Do see our website for further details, or you can visit www.facebook.com/OLsoundaround. Finally, we look forward to once again hosting the Malcolm Arnold Festival in October and are thrilled that the festival will feature the RPO. This provides a fabulous opportunity for us all to celebrate one of the town’s greatest alumni. We do hope you enjoy the season ahead. Martin Sutherland Chief Executive, Royal & Derngate WELCOME FROM THE ROYAL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is delighted to present its 2017/18 Season at Royal & Derngate. Join us to experience the blistering power of Shostakovich’s epic Symphony No. 5, the delicacy of Debussy’s elegiac ballet score to Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune, and the technical wizardry required for Bruch’s ever-popular Violin Concerto, all featuring an outstanding roster of world-class artists and members of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. New for 17/18, we present the Film Music Gala which brings alive your favourite film scores performed live using the full forces of the RPO. The RPO is proud of our Residency at Royal & Derngate; we look forward to welcoming you to our future concerts. James Williams Managing Director, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 3 CONTENTS CHRISTIAN KLUXEN CONDUCTS PAGE 4 TCHAIKOVSKY JAN MRÁČEK PERFORMS PAGE 5 MENDELSSOHN FILM MUSIC GALA PAGE 6 MALCOLM ARNOLD FESTIVAL PAGE 7 FRANCESCA DEGO PERFORMS PAGE 8 BRUCH MICHAEL PETROV PERFORMS PAGE 9 TCHAIKOVSKY BEHIND THE SCENES PAGE 10 CREATIVE LEARNING PAGE 12 COMING SOON PAGE 13 HOW TO BOOK PAGE 14 SEATING PLAN PAGE 15 SUBSCRIBE & SAVE Book three or more concerts in our new classical season and save up to 25% on your tickets. By subscribing, you can also enjoy: • Priority booking period • No transaction fees • Discounted programmes • No-fuss ticket exchange • Flexible payment scheme See page 14 for more details “The RPO do sensuousness uncommonly well... rich yet delicate, with wonderfully liquid woodwind solos and an exquisite sheen on the strings” The Guardian 4 Box Office 01604 624811 I www.royalandderngate.co.uk CHRISTIAN KLUXEN CONDUCTS TCHAIKOVSKY SUN 14 MAY 7.30PM Rossini William Tell Overture Mendelssohn Piano Concerto No.1 Tchaikovsky Symphony No.6, ‘Pathétique’ Conductor Christian Kluxen Piano Martin Roscoe Bursting brass at a galloping pace proclaims the opening of Rossini’s William Tell Overture and the beginning of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s spring concert, led by conductor Christian Kluxen. Joining the Orchestra for Mendelssohn’s virtuosic Piano Concerto No.1 is ‘a refined pianist with the wisdom of experience’ (Gramophone Magazine), Martin Roscoe. Opening with breathless urgency, Mendelssohn’s light and joyous Piano Concerto is almost improvisatory in its speed and excitement. Closing the programme is Tchaikovsky’s towering masterpiece, his Symphony No.6, ‘Pathétique’. Perhaps one of the most personal scores that the composer ever wrote, the piece is etched with heart-breaking intensity and was intended to be his own requiem. 5 JAN MRÁCEK PERFORMS MENDELSSOHN SUN 18 JUNE 7.30PM Debussy Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune Mendelssohn Violin Concerto Shostakovich Symphony No.5 Conductor Martyn Brabbins Violin Jan Mráček Opening this summer concert is Debussy’s sumptuous and dreamlike Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune conducted by Martyn Brabbins, depicting the tale of a mythical faun, playing his pipes alone in the woods. Jan Mráček follows with one of the foremost violin concertos of the Romantic era, full of warmth and vitality, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. Filled with wonderful melodies and stirring rhythms, Shostakovich’s imposing Symphony No.5 is bursting with tremendous power and rebellious beauty. Writing under Stalin’s constricting Soviet regime, Shostakovich created a blend of satire and submission that intrigues audiences to this day. 6 Box Office 01604 624811 I www.royalandderngate.co.uk FILM MUSIC GALA SUN 16 JULY 7.30PM Programme to include music from: Gladiator, The Lord Of The Rings, The Bodyguard, Titanic, Pirates Of The Caribbean, Star Wars® and many more Conductor Gareth Hudson Vocalist Alison Jiear From swashbuckling pirate ships to Gladiator battles, audiences will be transported to the exciting world of the silver screen in the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s Film Music Gala. Perfect for newcomers to classical music, families and film fans, this concert brings the action straight from Hollywood to Northampton. The world of film has produced hundreds of fantastic scores and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is offering you the chance to hear some of the best; from the classic sweeping strings of Out Of Africa, to the epic fantasy soundscape of The Lord Of The Rings Trilogy and many more of your all-time film favourites. Joining the Orchestra for a special tribute to the composer John Barry will be the sensational singer Alison Jiear, who dazzled audiences on Britain’s Got Talent and starred in Cinderella at Royal & Derngate in 2015. She and the Orchestra will perform some of Barry’s best-known works, including the iconic themes from the Bond films Goldfinger and Diamonds Are Forever. 7 FEATURING THE RPO MALCOLM ARNOLD MALCOLM ARNOLD AS GUEST FESTIVAL GALA FESTIVAL WEEKEND ORCHESTRA CONCERT SAT 14 & SUN 15 OCTOBER SUN 15 OCTOBER 7.30PM Join us for the 12th annual Malcolm Arnold Festival Weekend, a weekend Arnold Heroes Of Telemark packed with orchestral concerts, recitals, Arnold The Bridge On The interviews and other exciting events. River Kwai Highlights this year will include a Grieg Piano Concerto performance of Arnold’s rarely played Arnold Symphony No.5 Harmonica Concerto by the brilliant Conductor John Gibbons young soloist Philip Achille and a major Piano Arta Arnicane choral and orchestral work, The Return Of Odysseus, which will be played at the Join us for the chance to hear the sensational launch concert. young Latvian pianist and multiple competition winner, Arta Arnicane, perform The weekend will also feature a recital Grieg’s hugely popular Piano Concerto. of Arnold’s evocative songs by the ever popular Scottish soprano Claire Malcolm Arnold composed the music for over Thompson and an interview with Dame 100 films and perhaps the two most famous Monica Mason, former Director of the are Bridge On The River Kwai and Heroes Of Royal Ballet, on Arnold’s work as a ballet Telemark – the scores to both will be featured composer. The Festival will be launched and this will be the first ever performance of by former MP and Classic FM presenter the latter in a concert hall. David Mellor, who has championed The concert concludes with Arnold’s great Sir Malcolm’s music for many years on his Fifth Symphony. We are very excited that the various radio programmes. concert will feature the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Arnold specialist John Gibbons. 8 Box Office 01604 624811 I www.royalandderngate.co.uk FRANCESCA DEGO PERFORMS BRUCH SUN 26 NOVEMBER 7.30PM Beethoven Coriolan Overture Brahms Hungarian Dance No.6 Bruch Violin Concerto No.1 Brahms Symphony No.4 Conductor Mathieu Herzog Violin Francesca Dego The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra welcomes Winter with this enchanting programme of orchestral favourites. Beethoven’s fiery and dramatic Coriolan Overture is followed by Brahms’ Hungarian Dance No.6, which bursts with energy, imitating the lively nature of Hungarian folk music. Bruch’s stunning Violin Concerto is performed by BBC Music Magazine Rising Star Francesca Dego. A favourite in the classical repertoire, the Concerto showcases Francesca Dego’s extraordinary talent through long, sumptuous melodies and sparkling fast passages. The concert concludes with Brahms’ spectacular Symphony No.4. The lush orchestration shows off every instrument, combining lyrical melodies with short bursts of exhilaration to create an intense and thrilling piece, culminating in a majestic finale. 9 MICHAEL PETROV PERFORMS TCHAIKOVSKY SUN 18 FEBRUARY 2018 3PM Beethoven Egmont Overture Grieg Two Elegiac Melodies for String Orchestra Tchaikovsky Variations on a Rococo Theme Mendelssohn Symphony No.4, ‘Italian’ Conductor Rory Macdonald Cello Michael Petrov Beginning the concert is Beethoven’s potent and weighty Egmont Overture, opening with strong, grand chords set against soothing, plaintive cries from the woodwind. Grieg’s rich and glowing Two Elegiac Melodies for String Orchestra follows, expressing the wounds of life and the hope of faith. Tchaikovsky’s love for Mozart inspired his charming Variations on a Rococo Theme, performed here by captivating young cellist Michael Petrov. The Russian master also greatly appreciated Mendelssohn’s music, with the ‘Italian’ Symphony being one of his favourites. Although not particularly Italian in style, Mendelssohn’s Symphony opens in a blaze of Mediterranean light with a sunny theme that has become one of the composer’s best known and most-loved melodies. 10 Box Office 01604 624811 I www.royalandderngate.co.uk PLAYER PROFILE: BENJAMIN CUNNINGHAM DOUBLE BASS How did you become involved with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra? I was studying at the Royal Academy of Music when I did my RPO audition.