Controversy or conundrum? Or both? The centrepiece of this concert is Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony. This music walks a tightrope between artistic integrity and political acceptance from Stalin. The piece wavers between despair and parody – heart-rending strings, bleak emotional landscapes, triumphant brass. Compliance or defiance? It’s up to you to decide. National pride bursts out of Smetana’s tone poem, Vltava. Bohemia’s great river gets a cinematic makeover as we travel from its source to the city of Prague, by way of his beloved Czech countryside (passing mermaids bathed in moonlight, a wedding party, and the St John Rapids on the way). Later, we visit the sound of pastoral America with the distinctive voice of Julia Perry, a cosmopolitan composer who fuses the classical style with the sounds of her African American heritage. Contralto Jess Dandy returns to perform one of Perry’s most cherished scores, her Stabat Mater.
Ticket Information
Tickets £14.50 to £29.00
(All ticket prices include £3.00 booking fee)
Disabled patrons 50% off
Senior & Claimants 20% off
U26s & Students £6
To book wheelchair seats or other access requirements please email supervisors@bridgewater-hall.co.uk or call the Box Office on 0161 907 9000
Pre-concert entertainment
Ahead of the concert, the Cedar String Quartet featuring students from the Royal Northern College of Music will be performing in the Stalls Café Bar.
Jack Callaghan violin
Archie Freeman violin
Xavier Williams viola
Maya Tucker cello
Pre-concert programme
Smetana: String Quartet No. 1 in E minor, ‘From my Life’
Borodin: String Quartet No. 2 in D major (iii. Notturno: Andante)
Tchaikovsky: String Quartet No. 1 in D major Op. 11 (iii. Scherzo: Allegro non tanto e con fuoco)
The Cedar String Quartet appears by kind permission of the RNCM.
