Birmingham Mahler Cycle
Sunday 31 October 2010 at 7.00pm
Symphony Hall, Birmingham +44 (0)121-780 3333
Alan Buribayev conductor
Katarina Karnéus mezzo-soprano
CBSO Youth Orchestra
Wagner: Tannhäuser – Overture 14′ Listen
requires Real Player
Mahler: Rückert Lieder 18′
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 11 (The Year 1905) 65′
History lessons were never meant to be this exciting. Shostakovich’s
11th Symphony isn’t just a musical re-telling of the failed Revolution of
1905; it’s an epic drama – a vast, teeming panorama of a great nation
on the brink of chaos. It’s been compared to a film score, but, this
being Shostakovich, it’s also a powerful and emotionally-charged
musical tragedy, shot through with coded messages. It’ll be a thrilling
challenge for our world-class Youth Orchestra – and who better to
harness all that youthful energy than veteran Russian maestro Vassily
Sinaisky? First, though, comes Mahler’s ravishing Rückert Lieder –
part of this season’s Birmingham Mahler Cycle – and Wagner’s
barnstorming overture, a heady mix of solemn grandeur and raw,
untamed passion. Sounds perfect for our young players! www.cbso.uk
Blog post by KidsMusicCorner.co.uk:
http://kidsmusiccorner.co.uk/2010/11/01/scary-music-on-halloween/
…”The members of this orchestra are all aged between 14 and 21, so many will still be at school. But this was no school orchestra. The quality of their playing was far better than that of many adult orchestras. Not only that, they were extremely energetic, enthusiastic and exciting as well. It was truly amazing to see so many young people working together in this way…
….”Well done CBSO Youth Orchestra! You played with real fire—especially Rachel Starmer on the timpani who was truly demon-possessed!”
Review by Christopher Morley, Birmingham Post:
… “for after the interval we heard a performance of Shostakovich’s epic Symphony no. 11 as searing as you would hope to hear from any professional outfit.
Taut, generously phrased, vibrantly coloured, and with an amazing delivery of the continually taxing timpani part from Rachel Starmer, this account was stamped with quality from every department.”
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