Details

The most recorded chamber orchestra in the world, English Chamber Orchestra play the penultimate concert of our 2014-15 season. British pianist and conductor Howard Shelley OBE leads the orchestra and performs Mozart's Piano Concerto No.21. The concert opens with Grieg's Holberg Suite, which was composed to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of playwright Ludvig Holberg who, like Grieg, was born in the city of Bergen in Norway. The Suite, which consists of five movements based on eighteenth century dance forms, was originally composed for the piano but later adapted for a string orchestra. Handel's Water Music Suite no.2 was written for an outdoor performance on the River Thames in honour of King George I in 1717. The Suite opens with a French-style Overture, continues through a jaunty 'Bouree', a stately 'Minuet' and finishes with the grand 'Alla Hornpipe'. The concert is brought to a close with a performance of Schubert's Symphony No.5. Written when the composer was aged just 19, the piece exudes a youthful exuberance which resembles Mozart, whom Schubert greatly admired. English Chamber Orchestra website.

Creatives/Company

Director: Howard Shelley (piano)