About

Classical music IS for everyone. At least, that's what I try to believe when going out on stage. There are few so satisfying comments to receive after a concert than hearing how relevant the music felt, or that never before had it seemed possible to understand what it was all about! There does, for whatever reasons, seem to be an ongoing feeling with those who I talk to on the subject - taxi drivers, hairdressers or even in the BANK ! – that classical music is either far too cerebral to understand or that it is just some (rather boring) music to be relaxed to, ideally after work with a glass of sherry. Carrying a cello certainly seems to invite conversation, and I can't help then but to ask people's opinions about classical music. I have always wondered why classical music is so often viewed in this way and whether there is anything that can be done to try to change this.

I firmly believe that our appreciation of music is strengthened when we understand better what led the composers to write it. I love concerts where I leave uplifted and in a world of peaceful and solitary inspiration, but I also believe that there is a place for a more interactive concert.

As long as the music always takes centre stage, taking the audience on a journey which also includes readings from letters, narrative and visual images, can be extremely powerful. An audience member once said 'I didn't think that I would be able to relate to all that clever music and I didn't think that I had anything in common with it.' As much as I would wish to take credit for this comment, after an orchestral performance of Beneath the Score, I believe that it actually reveals a far more fundamental point. Classical music has the power to connect with far more people than it currently does.

Programmes

The Beethoven Effect

Ludwig van Beethoven was one of the most revolutionary and visionary composers ever to have lived. On November 27th we spend an evening exploring how he transformed classical music, inspired and daunted all those who came after him, and produced such great works of art, instilled with his visions and beliefs.

His fascinating letters give us a wonderful insight into his passionate character and we will hear excerpts from these letters alongside his symphonies, brought to life by a dynamic young actor. Orpheus will perform excerpts from each of his symphonies, which takes us on a very exciting and extraordinary musical journey. To bind this all together there will be a brief narrative coupled with some beautiful projected images.

His life was unique, both in terms of what he had to face through deafness and the resulting lonliness, and also in his place in musical history. He dramatically changed the path of music, creating some of the most exciting and dynamic music ever written.

The Eroica Symphony, which we will perform in its entirety in the second half of the concert, is regarded by most as the transformation into the romantic era. It caused quite a sensation at the time, his teacher Haydn remarking that his young pupil had “now surely gone too far...” From the opening two chords all the way through to the end, the world was thrust into a new era of expression. Beethoven knew his strength and was often quoted as saying that “music should strike fire from the heart of man, and bring tears from the eyes of woman...”

The People’s Politics

Politics have long had their influence on classical music, no matter how “un-musical” this may seem. Right from early on, classical music was at times dependant on the politics of the day, to fund it and promote it, with composers such as Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven working for particular courts and counts. Their patronage made it possible for these musicians to compose. Their were times when things went wrong and this evening is a celebration of some of the most famous music, both the positive fruits of this support and also the times when classical music was written as a direct or indirect comment on the political situation. From Haydn’s comic farewell symphony, where he was subtly asking his patron, Prince Nikolaus Esterhazy, to allow the musicians leave to return to their families after a longer than expected stay at his court, through to the powerful statements by Shostakovitch, we will explore many different famous works and the background in which they were written. As always narrative, readings of letters and imagery will accompany the evening.

The Love Triangle

Classical musics most famous Love Triangle - Robert and Clara Schumann and Joahannes Brahms. No other composers’s romantic lives have captivated the interest of the rest of the world so much and no other composers have had their works so greatly influenced by such strong feelings for each other. Both Brahms and Schumann portray their love for Clara so openly and strongly in their music which has given us some of the greatest and most heartfelt music ever written. To include the slow movement of Schumanns cello concerto, whose central motive has become known as the “Clara motive” - a falling 5th depicting her name, and a complete performance of Brahms’s Second symphony. As always, narrative, images and reading of letters will bind the evening together.