International Classical Concert Series 2009/2010

Two cellists in a classical orchestra

Welcome to Derby LIVE’s 2009-10 International Classical Concerts series, and to a mix of familiar and less familiar pieces we hope you’ll enjoy.

We begin in Italy, as seen through Elgar’s eyes, and end the season in a blaze of Spanish colour. In between, there are concerts marking the bicentenary of Robert Schumann’s birth, and the 150th anniversary of Mahler’s. There’s baroque music from sinfonia Viva, popular favourites by Rachmaninov, Tchaikovsky, Bruch, Grieg and Rodrigo, and rarities by Schumann, Brahms and Tchaikovsky, while Viva continue their specially commissioned series of short orchestral works.

Overseas touring orchestras this season come from Russia (St Petersburg Symphony), Poland (Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra), and Norway (Bergen Philharmonic). Soloists include pianist Barry Douglas and violinists Priya Mitchell and Ilya Gringolts, all making their first visits to Derby, and we welcome back pianist Freddy Kempf, as well as conductors Vasily Petrenko and John Wilson.

 

Which concerts should I go for?

We hope you’ll want to come to them all! But if you identify with one of the following statements, try our concert suggestions below:

I’m new to classical music. Give me a taste of what’s on offer with a popular programme

Concerts to try:

I know my Beethoven from my Brahms and want to expand my mind

Concerts to try:

I want a new challenge and to hear something different

Concerts to try:

Season Theme - Robert Schumann (1810-1856); Gustav Mahler (1860-1911)

2010 sees the bicentenary of Schumann’s birth, and the 150th anniversary of Mahler’s. In many ways they represent the early and late peaks of German romantic music.

At first Schumann focused on writing for solo piano. His Symphony no 1 (22 February) was his first major orchestral work, written during the years following his marriage to Clara Wieck, when he was determined to spread his wings and explore other genres.

His final years were clouded by increasing introspection and mental instability, and he spent the last two years of his life in an asylum at Endenich, near Bonn. His Violin Concerto (27 January) is one of his very last works. Clara and Brahms, between them, decided it was not up to the level of his earlier works and would not allow it to be published. Recently it has begun to attract considerable interest, showing it to be a much stronger piece than was once thought.

The concert by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic links these two composers in a another way, since the Schumann works are to be performed in editions prepared by Mahler.

Mahler’s output centred almost exclusively on songs and symphonies, often with a fruitful interaction between the two. His first four symphonies, in particular, have strong links with his settings of German folk poetry.

Part of his continuing fascination for audiences today lies in the way he straddles 19th-century romanticism and the emerging modernism of the early 20th. With its mixture of serene nature music, terrifying anxiety, exalted spirituality and the deliberately banal, his work confronts the uncertainties and contradictions at the heart of the human condition. His 4th Symphony (24 March) turns some dark corners in order to reach the radiant, child-like vision of its last movement.

Talking Music

To enhance your concert experience, Derby LIVE continues to promote the ever-popular series of ‘Talking Music’. Chaired by Martyn Ford and free to all ticket holders, it allows the audience the opportunity to interact with conductors, soloists or members of the orchestra.

Talking Music can be enjoyed before each concert at 6.30pm.

The Encore

Free post-concert recitals with ensembles drawn from the orchestra accompany most performances. For an informal and entertaining end to the evening, stay and enjoy ‘The Encore’. Bars will remain open throughout.

Concert ListingsImage of Priya Mitchell, violinist

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