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Centre Stage Elspeth Dutch (horn) and CBSO colleagues
Fri 24 Oct Book through our ticket office for CBSO Centre
Elspeth Dutch (horn) and CBSO colleagues Beethoven: Sextet for two horns and strings Ireland: Sextet for horn, clarinet and strings
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Puccini’s 150th: La Bohème
Sat 25 Oct Symphony Hall
Already acclaimed the world over for his opera performances, Music Director Andris Nelsons celebrates Puccini’s 150th birthday this autumn with concert performances of the passionate love story that has become the best-loved of all the composer’s operas. Set among the penniless students of Paris’s Bohemian Quarter, this tender tale of the seamstress Mimi and aspiring poet Rodolfo is one of the great operatic tearjerkers, and inspired, among other things, the musical Rent and the movie Moulin Rouge. A terrific young cast joins the CBSO and Choruses for what will surely be one of the must-see events in Birmingham this year.
Andris Nelsons - conductor Kristine Opolais - Mimì Erin Wall - Musetta Pavel Cernoch - Rodolfo Markus Brück - Marcello Kostas Smoriginas - Schaunard City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus
Puccini: La Bohème 105’
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CBSO - La Boheme
Sat 25 Oct Symphony Hall
Already acclaimed the world over for his opera performances, music director Andris Nelsons celebrates Puccini’s 150th birthday this autumn with the passionate Parisian love story that has become the best-loved of all the composer’s operas. A terrific young cast joins the CBSO and Choruses for what will surely be one of the must-see events in Birmingham this year. £9.50, £13.50, £17, £20.50, £23.50, £28, £32, £37, £39.50
*Distinguished Cast* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus* *Andris Nelsons* Conductor
*Puccini* La Bohème 105’
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Sunday Morning Coffee Concert - Di Xiao
Sun 26 Oct Town Hall
This brilliant Chinese pianist is already well known in Birmingham’s music circles as a result of being chosen to represent Town Hall and Symphony Hall in the ECHO Rising Stars series. Today’s concert launches a tour that will take her to play at eleven of Europe’s most prestigious concert halls during 2008/9. Come and hear her play sonatas by Mozart and Beethoven and a selection of miscellaneous pieces, and wish her bon voyage. £7.50 (unreserved), Under 16s £3.50 Ticket includes a cup of tea or coffee, a soft drink or a glass of sherry.
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Lunchtime Organ Concert - Darius Battiwalla
Mon 27 Oct Town Hall
Darius Battiwalla performs a glorious programme that includes Mendelssohn’sFirst Sonata, Vierne’s Claire de Lune and Rimsky-Korsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee. Admission from 12.30pm. Programme lasts approximately one hour.
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Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto
Wed 29 Oct Symphony Hall
Bruckner’s majestic, spiritually uplifting symphonies are perfectly suited to the grand open spaces of Symphony Hall’s world-famous acoustics, and there are few symphonies grander than Bruckner’s Sixth, premiered by none other than Gustav Mahler. Mendelssohn’s effervescent concerto is on a far more modest scale, but its soaring melodies have assured it a firm place in the repertoire for more than a century and a half. It’s played tonight by the 2002 BBC Young Musician of the Year. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Bruckner’s Sixth Stephen Johnson, broadcaster and author of Bruckner Remembered talks about this great late-Romantic symphony.
James Gaffigan - conductor Jennifer Pike - violin
Mozart: The Marriage of Figaro - Overture 4’ Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto 27’ Bruckner: Symphony No. 6 54’
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Celebrity Piano Recital: Paul Lewis
Thu 30 Oct Town Hall
Few other pianists have identified themselves so closely with the great Viennese classics as Paul Lewis. A protégé of the legendary Alfred Brendel, his award-winning recordings of the Schubert Sonatas have been highly acclaimed. Tonight he combines Schubert’s majestic G major Sonata with two of Mozart’s most profound piano works and Ligeti’s scintillating _Musica ricercata_, parts of which were used in Stanley Kubrick’s film _Eyes Wide Shut_. This is a chance to hear at first hand one of today’s most celebrated young pianists. 6.15pm pre-concert talk Tickets £5-£20
*Mozart* Fantasia in C minor, K475 12’ *Ligeti* Musica ricercata-11 Pieces for Piano 27’ *Mozart* Rondo in A minor, K511 9’ *Schubert* Sonata in G major, D894 30’
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CBSO Youth Orchestra
Fri 31 Oct Symphony Hall
Even by Mahler’s own standards, his Seventh Symphony is extraordinary. He called it a “song of the night”, though it ends in roof-raising jubilation. But first comes a fantastic journey through a world of dreams, nightmares, moonlit lovesongs and romance. It’s a whole new musical world - so who better to play it than our renowned Youth Orchestra, under the brilliant Dutch maestro Jac van Steen? If you heard the CBSO Youth Orchestra’s stunning performances of Nielsen and Bartók last season, you’ll know to expect an unforgettable evening as our superb young players tackle their most challenging programme yet. bq.These committed and gifted youngsters produced performances which would put many professional bodies to shame, with crisp articulation, impressively accurate intonation, but, above all, a depth of tone and confidence of phrasing which really denotes an ensemble of the highest class.bq. Musical Opinion
Jac van Steen - conductor
Mahler: Symphony No. 7 80’
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Evening Organ Concert: Halloween Movie Special Halloween Silent Movie Special: Nosferatu
Fri 31 Oct Town Hall
*Certificate 12* *Nigel Ogden* Spine-tingling improvised organ accompaniment One of the earliest film adaptations of Dracula, this 1922 creepy cult classic spawned a legion of horror movies. The flesh-crawling Count Orlok, played by Max Schreck, is the stuff of nightmares! Duration approximately 88 minutes with no interval.
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Midlands Festival of Rememberance
Sun 2 Nov Town Hall
The annual gathering to pay tribute to those who have given their lives in the service of their country. This year, the Festival marks the centenary of the Territorial Army. £5, £10, £15 Please send ticket applications to Frank Manning, 22 Lambeth Road, Birmingham, B44 9NS or francism@globalnet.co.uk; after 10 September. Tickets are also available from the Town Hall and Symphony Hall Box Office.
*Royal Artillery Band* *Alcester Male Voice Choir*
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Lunchtime Organ Concert - Thomas Trotter (3rd Nov)
Mon 3 Nov Symphony Hall
The City Organist plays Tomkins’ Worster Brawls, Susato’s Saltarelle and more before concluding with Rossini’s stirring William Tell Overture. Admission from 12.30pm. Programme lasts approximately one hour. Thomas Trotter is a Town Hall Associate Artist.
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Elgar’s Cello Concerto
Tue 4 Nov Symphony Hall
Composed during the blitz and premiered at the 1943 Proms, Vaughan Williams’ serene Fifth Symphony seems like a retreat from the real world to an imagined paradise. Elgar’s equally lyrical Cello Concerto, composed in 1919, also feels like a reaction against the horrors of wartime. Vernon Handley, such a tireless champion of English music, precedes these two masterpieces with a musical fairytale by Granville Bantock, who did so much for Birmingham’s musical life and was instrumental in the founding of the CBSO in 1920. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Vaughan Williams’ Fifth Baz Chapman - Programme Director of Sing Up - shares his enthusiasm for Vaughan Williams’ great wartime symphony.
Vernon Handley - conductor Anne Gastinel - cello
Bantock: The Witch of Atlas 15’ Elgar: Cello Concerto 26’ Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5 42’
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Elgar’s Cello Concerto
Wed 5 Nov Symphony Hall
Composed during the blitz and premiered at the 1943 Proms, Vaughan Williams’ serene Fifth Symphony seems like a retreat from the real world to an imagined paradise. Elgar’s equally lyrical Cello Concerto, composed in 1919, also feels like a reaction against the horrors of wartime. Vernon Handley, such a tireless champion of English music, precedes these two masterpieces with a musical fairytale by Granville Bantock, who did so much for Birmingham’s musical life and was instrumental in the founding of the CBSO in 1920. 1.15pm Pre-concert talk - Vaughan Williams’ Fifth Baz Chapman - Programme Director of Sing Up - shares his enthusiasm for Vaughan Williams’ great wartime symphony.
Vernon Handley - conductor Anne Gastinel - cello
Bantock: The Witch of Atlas 15’ Elgar: Cello Concerto 26’ Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 5 42’
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Centre Stage CBSO Players
Thu 6 Nov Book through our ticket office for CBSO Centre
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Celebrity Recital: John Williams
Thu 6 Nov Symphony Hall
One of today’s greatest guitarists, John Williams’s restless questing spirit has led him to work in virtually every genre, from classical to cross-over, jazz to rock, Bach to Beatles. A legend in his own lifetime, he has attracted admiration and controversy but never indifference. His recital at Symphony hall is keenly anticipated - book now. Tickets £5-£20
PROGRAMME: ANTONIO VIVALDI Concerto Op.3, No.9 DOMENICO SCARLATTI Two Sonatas ENRIQUE GRANADOS Valses Poeticos ISAAC ALBENIZ Torre Bermeja JOHN WILLIAMS Notes in the Margin INTERVAL AGUSTIN BARRIOS MANGORE La Catedral JOHN WILLIAMS Prelude to a Song/ Open End/ Song without Words/ Hello Francis ENNIO MORRICONE Cinema Paradiso (theme) STANLEY MYERS The Deer Hunter (Cavatina) JOHN T. WILLIAMS Schindler's List (theme) PETER SCULTHORPE Djilile TURLOUGH O'CAROLAN Carolan's Concerto and traditional Irish tunes
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Family Concert: Steps in Time
Sun 9 Nov Symphony Hall
Time travelling across the musical universe is the theme for today’s family concert! Our own real-life Doctor Who, in the form of popular presenter Alasdair Malloy, will keep the CBSO stepping in time with a selection of dances from across the ages. So forget about two left feet and get with the beat in an afternoon packed with numbers conjuring up twinkling toes for waltzes, courtly dances, marches and sambas, including music by Walton, Mozart, Arnold, Dvorák and Piazzolla. Why not come along dressed as your favourite kind of dancer? FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS AND MUSIC in the foyers from 1.30pm
David Danzmayr - conductor Alasdair Malloy - presenter
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BBC Radio 3 Lunchtime Concert - 12th Nov
Wed 12 Nov Town Hall
Two of the finest of Radio 3's recent crop of New Generation Artists perform delightful sonatas by Beethoven and, between them, a tiny work by Webern, the master miniaturist of the 20th-century Viennese School.
*Alina Ibragimova* Violin *Cedric Tiberghien* Piano *Beethoven* Violin Sonata in A minor 19' *Webern* Four Pieces Op 7 6' *Beethoven* Violin Sonata No. 3 19'
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Romeo and Juliet
Thu 13 Nov Symphony Hall
Popular CBSO guest Andrew Litton returns with a colourful programme featuring two brilliant musical responses to Shakespeare: Walton’s score for Laurence Olivier’s 1944 film of Henry V, together with highlights from Prokofiev’s ever-popular ballet (currently featured as the music for the BBC series _The Apprentice_) premiered six years earlier. Barber’s gloriously lyrical Violin Concerto, composed between these two works, receives its first-ever CBSO performance, played by a dazzling American soloist.
Andrew Litton - conductor Anne Akiko Meyers - violin
Walton: Henry V - Suite 15’ Barber: Violin Concerto 25’ Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet (highlights) 50’
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CBSO Romeo and Juliet
Thu 13 Nov Symphony Hall
*Walton* Henry V • Suite 15’ *Barber* Violin Concerto 25’ *Prokofiev* Romeo and Juliet (highlights) 50’ Popular CBSO guest Andrew Litton returns with a colourful programme featuring two brilliant musical responses to Shakespeare: Walton’s score for Laurence Olivier’s 1944 film of Henry V, together with highlights from Prokofiev’s ever-popular ballet. Barber’s gloriously lyrical violin concerto receives its first ever CBSO performance, played by a dazzling American soloist. £9.50, £13.50, £17, £20.50, £23.50, £28, £32, £37, £39.50
City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra *Andrew Litton* Conductor *Anne Akiko Meyers* Violin
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Hayley Westenra with Special Guest
Thu 13 Nov Town Hall
The five years since the release of Hayley Westenra's debut international album _Pure_ have been a whirlwind. Along with her second album _Odyssey_ and her third, _Treasure_, she has achieved combined sales of well over three million albums around the world making her a household name in many countries and breaking many records along the way. Pure is still one of the fastestselling classical albums in the history of the UK charts and in December 2007 it was announced Hayley Westenra was the biggest selling Classical artist of the 21st Century to date. £27.50
