Cheltenham Concert Series 2017-2018 Concert Series brochure_2017-2018_DPS FOR WEB | Page 4

2017
ENGLISH SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
ORCHESTRA OF THE SWAN
Tuesday 24 October 2017, 7.30pm, Cheltenham Town Hall Tuesday 21 November 2017, 7.30pm, Cheltenham Town Hall
Rossini was a hugely prolific composer, rattling
off 39 operas in 19 years, retiring at 39 and
writing almost nothing for the next 40 years –
yet this didn’t seem to affect the quality of his
output, as tonight’s much-loved opener testifies.
Following that, what finer interpreter of Chopin’s
melodic, sensual concertos can there be than
Montreal-born Fialkowska, who brings her
exquisite touch to the sumptuous textures of
the F minor Concerto? One of the most talked about newer orchestras
on the UK classical scene – first visiting
Cheltenham in 2016 – is back again with the
first of two concerts in this Series. Ground-
breaking premieres like Joubert’s Jane Eyre
(Classical Music Magazine’s Premiere of the
Year 2016) have seen them achieve huge critical
acclaim.
Beethoven called his 8th: ‘my little symphony
in F’, distinguishing it from its larger cousin, The
Pastoral, written in the same key. It is said he
also felt it was impossible not to write lyrically,
and peacefully in the key of F, and whether
this is true or not, the symphony certainly
bears out that theory. Written when he was
41 and extremely unhappy, it is surprisingly
4
September 2017 - June 2018
light-hearted, and remains cheerful even in its
loudest, later stages.
Pre-Concert Talk (6.30pm to 7pm):
Presented by conductor, David Curtis.
Free entry using your ticket for tonight’s
concert.
CONDUCTOR
David Curtis
PIANO
Janina Fialkowska
ROSSINI
Barber of Seville
Overture
CHOPIN
Piano Concerto No.2
BEETHOVEN
Symphony No.8
This concert sees the world premiere of
Kenneth Woods’ new orchestration of Brahms’
A Major Piano Quartet, a work of symphonic
scope and great lyrical beauty. Appropriately,
for an ensemble that dubs itself ‘The Orchestra
of Elgar Country’, ESO also offers Elgar’s
extraordinary Violin Concerto, with one of
today’s most talented and admired violinists,
Alexander Sitkovetsky, a student of Elgar’s own
protégé, the violinist and former ESO Principal
Guest Conductor, Yehudi Menuhin.
Pre-Concert Talk (6.30pm to 7pm):
Presented by conductor, Kenneth Woods.
Free entry using your ticket for tonight’s
concert.
CONDUCTOR
Kenneth Woods
VIOLIN
Alexander
Sitkovetsky
ELGAR
Violin Concerto
BRAHMS
Piano Quartet in
A, Op.26 (arranged
for orchestra by
Kenneth Woods) –
World Premiere
September 2017 - June 2018
5