Presented by the University of Sheffield Department of Music and Music in the Round.
Alfred Brendel has undoubtedly earned his place among the greatest musicians of the 20th and 21st centuries. The celebrated pianist is world renowned for his masterly interpretations of the piano literature, and is widely considered one of the indisputable authorities in musical life today.
In a fascinating concert-length talk Brendel discusses the art of performance, examining sound, articulation, notation, rhythm and character. He will look at performance habits and their relevance to the works, as well as to our present day ears and needs. The talk is bursting with musical examples, offering a rare opportunity to see one of the greatest pianists of all time back in action.
Tickets for this event are not available from the usual box offices.
Tickets available from: 0114 249 6000 Sheffield Theatres Box Office (The Crucible, Tudor Square)
*Please note that these box office details only apply to this concert.
"A perfectionist at the piano... master pianist Alfred Brendel" The Sunday Times
Since graduating from the Royal Academy of Music in Copenhagen with reviews that named her “the voice of possibilities”, “a natural interpreter”, and “an intimate vocal-seducer”, Danish soprano Signe Asmussen has worked as a soloist with most of the national orchestras and choirs. Now, she is one of the most sought-after, Danish recitalists, for this, she has recently been awarded the prestigious Aksel Schiøtz Prize 2009.
She has worked with international renowned conductors and pianists such as Michel Tabachnik, Lan Shui, Lars Ulrik Mortensen, Michael Seal, Alexander and Howard Shelley, and Rudolf Jansen, and international concert venues count Wigmore Hall in London, Symphonie Hall in Birmingham, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam along with all of the important concert halls in Denmark.
We welcome performers from the Ole Bull Academy at Voss, near Stavanger Norway, which was established to teach “slåttespel”, the traditional Norwegian “Hardanger” fiddle music and folk dance. Best known to British audiences for its cameo appearance in Grieg’s Peer Gynt, the uniquely individual character of Norway’s “Hardanger” folk music and dance promises to provide a rich and enjoyable evening to round up the festival of Nordic Music.
John Ole Morken (hardangerfiddle and ordinary fiddle) Leif Ingvar Ranøien (two rowed button accordion) Arne Anderdal (Hardangerfiddle) Vetle Springgard (dancer) Ingunn Lie(dancer)
This season marks sixty years to death of legendary Russian ballet dancer Vaslav Nijinsky- one of the most gifted dancers in history of ballet. Celebrated for his virtuosity and for the depth and intensity of his characterisations, Nijinsky rose to fame upon meeting Sergei Diaghilev, a highly innovative producer of Russian ballet and opera who went on to form the extraordinary touring company "The Ballets Russes." These sensational productions set trends in art, dance, music and fashion for the first half of the 20th Century, and included collaborations with its most influential artists such as Coco Chanel, Pablo Picasso, Claude Debussy, and Igor Stravinsky. In this concert spectacular, some of the most iconic music from these productions will be performed for piano duet by internationally acclaimed pianists, and faces well known to Sheffield audiences, Benjamin Frith and Peter Hill.
At this concert will also be an exhibition of photographs from the Ballets Russes.
Benjamin Frith (piano) Peter Hill (piano)
Stravinsky: The Rite of Spring Stravinsky: Petrushka Debussy: Prelude L'Apres-midi d'un Faune
"Beautifully phrased, Frith and Hill´s playing is magnetic in its concentration and sensitivity." The Daily Telegraph
This season marks the bicentenary of the birth of Robert Schumann, one of the best known romantic composers of the 19th century. This is a unique opportunity to hear one of Schumann's best known works, meticulously and beautifully arranged for guitar and voice.
Dichterliebe "The Poets Love" was composed in 1840 and marked the end of the composer's lengthy and troubled courtship with pianist Clara Wieck and the beginning of their married life. The song cycle tells of Schumann's own estrangement from Clara, the hurt incurred by this and their eventual reunion. Self-indulgent emotion, sharp self-criticism and deflating irony, Dichterliebe is a powerful unfolding of emotion, tension, conflict and resolution!
Kevin Kyle graduated from Huddersfield University and the Royal Academy of Music, London, where he studied on the renowned Opera Course, winning numerous awards and prizes. Upon graduating he was a finalist in the 2004 Handel Singing Competition and made his Proms debut in 2005. Incorporating performances around the UK and Europe, Kevin also performs regularly on BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM and has recorded for Sony BMG and BBC Television.
Carl Herring is the leading British guitarist of his generation. He graduated from the Royal Academy of Music, has since rapidly built up a flourishing international career, and his recordings have been received with great critical acclaim.
John Dowland: Come again If my complaints could passions move Flow my tears Weep You No More Awake, Sweet Love
Roger Quilter (arr. Herring): Come away, Death Now Sleeps the Crimson Petal Weep You No More
Richard Lannoy: I Looked Back: Three Songs The Capital The Comet at Yell'ham I Looked Back
Benjamin Britten: Songs from the Chinese, Op. 58 The Big Chariot The Old Lute The Autumn Wind The Herd Boy Depression Dance Song
Robert Schumann (arr. Herring): Dichterliebe, op 48
"Technically impressive music making of real style" Muso Magazine
A concert in memory of the Belgian composer Henri Pousseur (1929-2009). The programme will also feature new work by composers from the University of Sheffield.
Scripted from his letters and diaries, this concert and narrative chronicles the romantic life of one the greatest and most treasured composers for solo piano – Frédéric Chopin. The story follows his turbulent relationship with the renowned literary figure George Sand, their time together in Majorca, his fragile health and his ultimate demise in poverty in Paris. This is interspersed with some of his most loved and poignant compositions. Nocturne will receive its premiere at the University of Sheffield
Acknowledged as one of Britain's finest pianists, Lucy Parham first came to public attention on winning the 1984 BBC TV Young Musician of the Year Piano Class. Since then she has performed extensively throughout the UK and Europe, South Africa, USA, Canada and Russia. Lucy Parham made her Wigmore Hall debut in 1989, and has since appeared regularly at all the major London venues. Lucy Parham has been a frequent guest presenter for several BBC Radio 3 programmes, as well as a contributor to BBC Music Magazine and Pianist Magazine.
Michael Maloney has been a member of both the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Royal National Theatre, playing Prince Hal in Henry IV parts I and II, Romeo, Edgar in King Lear, and Lewis Carroll and Benjamin Britten respectively.
His films include Truly Madly Deeply, Henry V, Hamlet (Mel Gibson's and Kenneth Branagh's), In The Bleak Midwinter, Othello (played by Laurence Fishburne), and most recently the headmaster in Notes on a Scandal and Sir Robert Peel in Young Victoria.
His most recent television includes playing John Major in Margaret, as well as playing in Waking the Dead, Lewis, Wired, and Wire in the Blood. He has also performed in over 250 radio plays and recently co-produced a short film, Soliloquy in the Dust, on the site of The Tower Theatre, reputed to be where a version of Hamlet was first performed in the 1590s.
Emily Bruni's film and television credits include Catherine the Great in the BBC adaptation of the same name, and major roles in Personal Affairs, Passer By, Auf Wiedersehen Pet, Scarlet Pimpernell, (BBC); Believe Nothing, Metropolis, Miss Marple, Serious and Organised (ITV); Peep Show, Remember Me (C4) and Investigating Sex. Theatre credits include: Ring Round the Moon (Playhouse), Someone Else's Shoes (Soho), The Rubenstein Kiss (Hampstead), After Mrs Rochester (Shared Experience), The Winter's Tale, Much Ado About Nothing, Camino Real, The Spanish Tragedy (RSC). Emily can be heard regularly on BBC Radio 4, recent credits include Kate in Passion Play, Sarah in The French Lieutenants’ Woman, Laura in The Woman in White and Abigail in Learning to Swim.
The daughter of the Prime Minister, Wang Baochuan is to be married, and her father has arranged a contest in order to choose a suitable husband. One day she meets a pauper in the gardens, Xue Pinggui, and falls desperately in love with him. She instructs him to mingle amongst the rich suitors at the contest, in hope that they can be together. By chance, Xue catches the matrimonial silk ball thrown by her, and against her father's wishes they run away and the pair are married. Xue soon gains the attention of the Tang Emperor, is promoted to Commander of the Armies, but the furious Prime Minster has him demoted to the ranks.
This scene shows Xue hurrying back to the kiln to bid Wang good-bye before his departure for the battle-front. This episode is well-known for its moving arias and choreographic movements, displaying both military crispness and tender lyricism.
'In Pursuit of a Dream' (‘Xunmeng’) from ‘The Peony Pavilion’
Du Liniang, a high-born and much secluded young lady, has made her first venture into the vast garden of her father’s official home. Stepping beyond her parents’ prescribed world has awakened many mixed feelings of womanhood in her. Weary from her new experience, she falls asleep and dreams of meeting a young scholar, Liu Mengmei, in her garden and falling in love. When she wakes up, she finds herself in the solitude of her room again. The next day, while her maid is absent, Du Liniang goes back into the garden to re-trace the steps in her dream.
The London Jing Kun Opera Association is the only organisation in the UK that promotes Beijing and Kunqu Opera. This is a rare opportunity to witness the sheer spectacle of this vibrant and colourful yet endangered art form.
Nostalgia and Reality Classic twentieth century Symphonic Band music of Milhaud and Ellerby provide a French strand to the programme, contrasting with a Jazz thread. Bringing us right into the 21st century and up to the present day, a new concerto for Euphonium will be performed that sings of the issues of our (the UK's) involvement in the current conflicts in the Middle East.
The Café Band players are mainly based with the Orchestra of Opera North and is a unique group inspired by the tradition of live music in Viennese coffee houses at the turn of the nineteenth century. The unusual septet of accordion, strings, clarinet and piano is an exciting new venture bringing a rich variety of sound and texture to popular waltzes, operetta and light classical music; at times a delicate blend, at others more of a double espresso, but always harmonious and engaging.
David Greed (violin) Elizabeth Wyly (viola) Judith Burgin (cello) Claire Sadler (double bass) Martin Pickard (piano) Ray Jones (accordion) Colin Honour (clarinet)
"One of the finest new ensembles to come from the North of England in many years" Yorkshire Post
This event is kindly sponsored by the Anglo-Austrian Society
