cork orchestral society 71st...

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CORK

ORCHESTRAL

SOCIETY

71st Season

[email protected]

Programme

Spring / Summer 2009

http://www.corkorchestralsociety.ie


mailto:[email protected]

mailto:[email protected]


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Welcome to the second half of what has so far proved to be a very exciting 71st Cork Orchestral Society season. We are delighted especially to welcome new members who have taken the opportunity to avail of huge savings on concert tickets and would like to invite those of you who are not yet members to turn to page 19!

This spring we look forward to a wealth of music from the very old to the contemporary. Cork-based baroque ensemble Beyond the Pale combine historically-informed interpretation with energy and enthusiasm, while Elisabeth Goell's visit will not only feature music by Clara Schumann and a fascinating array of her Irish contemporaries but also Schumann's own piano under the expert hands of top Irish pianist Una Hunt.

John William's visit last year was a huge success and we are delighted to follow this up with a performance by Xue Fei Yang, one of the leaders of a new generation of guitar virtuosos!

Piano-lovers have two treats in store this April - leading British pianist Peter Donohoe returns to perform the second book of Bach's The Well-tempered Clavier, while Ireland’s Hugh Tinney comes to Cork with a jam-packed programme which includes favourites such as Chopin and Debussy.

The Irish Chamber Orchestra offers a hugely exciting season of concerts to their enthusiastic Cork following, their world-class performances under artistic director Anthony Marwood, along with the regular appearances by the RTE Vanbrugh Quartet, have become a staples of the Cork's enviable musical life.








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Thursday 15 January

Cassard Grimal Gastinel Piano Trio

Philippe Cassard (piano), David Grimal (violin), Anne Gastinel (cello)

8.00 p.m.Curtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Debussy! Sonata for Violin & Piano Mendelssohn ! Trio in d, Op. 49 Eric Tanguy ! Nocturne Ravel ! ! Trio

Phillippe Cassard

‘Ravel's Trio is one of our favourites ever: a masterpiece for piano trio, a world of extremes (contrasts, exuberance, rhythms, virtuosity and intimate colours). The bicentenary of Mendelssohn’s birth is celebrated with the high voltage D minor Trio, which combines bravura and beautiful melodic lines. Eric Tanguy is one of the most talented of young French composers and as Debussy is one of his gods, we will open the concert with the master’s delicate and mysterious sonata for violin and piano.’ (Phillippe Cassard)




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Thursday 29 January

RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartetwith Cian Ó Dúill (viola)

8.00 p.m.Aula Maxima, UCC

Haydn ! ! String Quartet in D, Op. 76 No. 5Beethoven ! String Quartet No. 10, Op. 74Mendelssohn ! String Quintet No. 2 in Bb

Mendelssohn's string quintet is glorious, full of contrasts, colour and light. Beethoven's popular “Harp” Quartet is genial and inviting, with themes of great beauty which sweep through the work. Haydn's Opus 76 “Erdödy” Quartets are amongst his most celebrated works. No. 5 is rich, sophisticated and deeply expressive and reveals Haydn as a great innovator of musical form.

Cia

n Ó

Dúi

ll




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Thursday 5 February

Elisabeth Goel (soprano)

& Una Hunt (piano)


When Clara Schumann, one of Germany's greatest 19th century pianists and child prodigies came to Ireland in 1856 to give two recitals with the Philarmonic Society in Dublin, a great variety of Irish composers, both men and women, were active as both performers and composers.

In this concert we bring to you the music of Clara Schumann and her Irish contemporaries such as Arthur O'Leary from Tralee, George Alexander Osborne from Limerick, Samuel Lover (both a poet and musician), Augusta Holmes and Lady Dufferin, also both poets and musicians, and Michele Esposito - to whom Ireland owes the establishment of a resident orchestra in Dublin, the Dublin Orchestral Society. Clara Schumann will be present during this evening in a most extraordinary way; by means of her piano (by kind permission of the current owner) which was made for her personally and bought by a Donegal family in 1850.

Una HuntElisabeth Goel




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Friday 6 February

Irish Chamber Orchestra

Jaime Martin (conductor) & Johnny Teyssier (clarinet)

8.00 p.m.Curtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music Stravinsky! Concerto in D

Copland Clarinet Concerto

Deirdre McKay Meltwater (world première)Dvorak Serenade for strings Op. 22

ICO Booking Office: 061 213130

Johnny Teyssier

The Irish Chamber Orchestra’s season gains momentum with an American classic. Copland’s clarinet concerto - playful, entertaining and fun - will showcase the phenomenal gifts of US prodigy Johnny Teyssier. Igor Stravinksy was already living in Hollywood when he wrote his Concerto in D, his jewel for string orchestra. The concerto is one of Stravinsky's most bright and accessible works and is not often performed. Its characteristic musical texture and rhythm exemplify his genius and has to be heard. The inspiration for Irish composer Deirdre McKay's world première takes us to “a distant world of glaciers….both solid and liquid…Meltwater”. The second half is dominated by Dvo!ák’s sensuous and relaxing Serenade for Strings. This exciting programme from the ICO will be conducted by Jaime Martin, a renowned flautist from Santander.




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Thursday 26 February

RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartet

8.00 p.m.Aula Maxima, UCC

Vanbrugh Quartet

Boccherini ! String Quartet in A, Op. 39, G. 213 Haydn ! ! String Quartet Op. 50 No. 6, ("The Frog") Arvo Pärt " Summa

Mendelssohn ! String Quartet in Eb, Op. 12

In this, the anniversary year of Mendelssohn and Haydn, the RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartet continues to celebrate the music of both these great composers. Mendelssohn's String Quartet in E flat major, Op.12, is perhaps more lyrical than some of his earlier quartets, but still the influence of Beethoven is evident. The two opening quartets date from 1787, the last of Haydn's “Prussian” quartets Op. 50 No 6 (“The Frog”) and Boccherini's String Quartet in A major Op. 39. This programme will also feature Arvo Pärt's austerely beautiful Summa – the Quartet's performance of which received critical acclaim from Arvo Pärt himself during the 2008 RTÉ Living Music Festival.




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Thursday 5 March


Beyond the Pale

The Cork-based baroque music ensemble Beyond the Pale will present an exciting programme of music from the 17th and 18th centuries. Composers wil l include Castello, Corelli, Telemann, O'Carolan, and Quantz. The members of Beyond the Pale are: Marja Gaynor (Baroque Violin), Conor O'Connell (Recorders), Ilse de Ziah (Baroque Cello), James Taylor (Harpsichord).

Beyond the Pale




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Thursday 12 March

Xue Fei Yang (guitar)


The first Chinese student ever to receive an international scholarship from the Associated Board of The Royal Schools of Music, Fei came to England in 2000 for her postgraduate study at The Royal Academy of Music with Michael Lewin.Her success has led her to be invited to many prestigious venues, including the Wigmore Hall (for two sell-out recitals), Royal Festival Hall and Queen Elizabeth Hall in London, as well as the Philharmonie Berlin, Musikhalle Hamburg, Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Konzerthaus Vienna, Auditorio Nacional de Espana, Lincoln Center New York and the Herbst Theatre San Francisco.During the 08/09 season, Fei performs with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Hamburg Symphony, Rotterdam Philharmonic and the Prague Philharmonia. She will also give recitals in Hong Kong, Istanbul, Los Angeles, Mexico and London’s Wigmore Hall.

Xue F

ei Yang (p

hoto

: Neil M

uir)




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Saturday 21 March

Fleischmann Choir& RTÉ Concert Orchestra

Mary Hegarty (soprano)Emmanuel Lawler (tenor)Nigel Williams (bass)Geoffrey Spratt (conductor)

8.00 p.m.City Hall

Later this year the Society will be celebrating the bicentenary of Haydn's death with a performance of some of his piano trios by the Austrian “Haydn Trio Eisenstadt”. But first it is the big one: the first complete performance in Cork of his last and greatest work for soloists, choir & orchestra: The Seasons. This amazing work embraces the drama of summer storms, the lust of country folk celebrating the autumn harvest, the excitement of hunting during the winter, and offers thanks to God for the coming of spring. The l ine-up of performers is amazing: the Fleischmann Choir is famous for its performances of works likes this, the RTÉ Concert Orchestra makes a very welcome return to Cork, the soloists couldn't be better - Mary Hegarty (soprano), Emmanuel Lawler (tenor) and Nigel Williams (bass) - and the conductor is Geoffrey Spratt who has specialized in directing performances of large-scale choral & orchestral works in Ireland for over thirty years.

Mary Hegarty




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Friday 27 March


Stephen Hough(director / piano)



Stephen Hough

Stephen Hough - “the world’s greatest living pianist” (Daily Telegraph) – has been showered with ecstatic reviews and awards from across the globe. Tonight we welcome him as soloist, director, conductor and composer. He will perform two of the all time great piano concertos.

Mozart !! Piano Concerto No. 21 in C, KV 467Mendelssohn ! Piano Concerto No. 1 in g, Op. 25Stephen Hough The Loneliest Wilderness for Cello and Small Orchestra

Mendelssohn " Symphony No. 4 in A, Op. 90 (“Italian”)




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Sunday 29 March

Cork School of Music Symphony Orchestra

Brian O’Kane (cello)Geoffrey Spratt (conductor)

3.00 p.m.City Hall, Cork

Brian O’Kane

Last year nearly 2,000 people flocked to Cork’s City Hall to hear the Cork School of Music Symphony Orchestra accompany the Fleischmann Choir in Karl Jenkins’ The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace. They raved about the CSMSO’s performance in the same concerts of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5, so here they are again, under their conductor, Geoffrey Spratt, playing another of the great orchestral masterpieces: Elgar’s Enigma Variations. Their programme will also feature one of the most talented of young Irish cellists: Brian O’Kane. Later this year he will be making his début in London with the Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Ashkenazy, playing Elgar’s concerto. For this concert he has chosen a work by another English composer, John Tavener: his hauntingly beautiful The Protecting Veil. This is one of the pieces that has become familiar to everybody through countless broadcasts since it was first performed at the BBC Proms in 1989, but this will be another live performance “first” for Cork.




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J. S. Bach Well-Tempered Clavier Book 2

(Preludes & Fugues 25 - 48 of the “48”)

Peter Donohoe

One of the UK’s finest pianists returns to Cork to perform the second half of J.S. Bach’s monumental Well-Tempered Clavier. Society members will doubtless have vivid memories of Peter’s visit in November 2007 for the first part of this unique project. Nobody will want to miss this second instalment of one of the most influential compositions in classical music. These compositions are a masterclass in fugal techniques and demand the highest keyboard virtuosity.


Peter Donohoe (piano)

Thursday 2 April




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Friday 17 April


Anthony Marwood (director / violin)



Antho

ny Marw

oo

d

One of Mozart’s loveliest serenades will be followed by John Kinsella’s modern classic before the romance returns with the one of Mendelssohn’s effervescent String Symphonies. Schumann himself made a transcription of his cello concerto’s solo line for violin - an arrangement that offers new insights into this much-loved work.

Mozart !! Serenata Notturna, KV 239John Kinsella ! Prelude and Toccata

Mendelssohn ! String Symphony No. 12 in g

Schumann ! Cello Concerto in a, Op.129 ! ! (version for violin and chamber orchestra)




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Thursday 23 April

Hugh Tinney (piano)


Hugh Tinney's contribution to Irish concert life over the past 20 years has been significant. Highlights include his 1991 “Chopin Plus” recital series at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) in Dublin, later repeated in Cork. In 1998 he completed a three-year project to perform the complete 21 original Mozart solo piano concertos at Dublin's National Concert Hall with the Orchestra of St Cecilia and conductor, Geoffrey Spratt. All of these series received the highest plaudits from Irish critics and audiences. In January 2003 he gave a sell-out recital in Dublin's National Concert Hall as part of the NCH/Irish Times Celebrity Series. In October 2008 he took part in Opera Theatre Company’s production (using two pianos) of Debussy’s Pelleas and Melisande in Dublin’s City Hall and at the Belfast Festival, and last November he was invited by the RDS in Dublin to direct and perform in their Chamber Music Weekend to mark the occasion of his 50th birthday. This evening’s concert in wil l include music by Beethoven, Debussy, Chopin and Raymond Deane.

Hugh Tinney




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Friday 29 May


Richard Tognetti(director / violin / arranger)



Shostakovich (arr. Tognetti) String Quartet No. 7 in f#, ! ! ! ! Op. 108Haydn ! ! ! Symphony No. 64 in A " " " " (“Tempora mutantur”)Pink Floyd (arr. Tognetti) ! Shine on you crazy Diamond Beethoven (arr. Tognetti) ! Violin Sonata No. 9 in A, " " " " Op. 47 (“Kreutzer”)

Richard

Tog

netti

The international reputation of charismatic virtuoso Richard Tognetti has shot into the stratosphere over seventeen years at the helm of the Australian Chamber Orchestra, during which he has brought a whole new dimension to the repertoire through his thrilling arrangements of classic works.




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The Venues

Curtis Auditorium The magnificent Curtis Auditorium lies at the heart of the state-of-the-art CIT Cork School of Music on Union Quay. The Auditorium is fully equipped with a moveable ceiling and adjustable walls to cater for different acoustical needs. Enhance your evening by arriving early and enjoying the fine cuisine offered by the school’s offquay bistro.

City Hall The City Hall is situated on the waterfront overlooking the South channel of the River Lee and is a fine venue for large-scale concerts, comfortably seating a large audience.






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The Venues

Aula Maxima, UCC

Described in 1949 by The Cork Examiner as 'one of the

most magnificent rooms in Ireland', the Aula Maxima is in the

heart of the University and is a truly superb setting for

concerts. A 10-minute walk up Washington Street from the

Grand Parade, followed by a leafy stroll up the picturesque

path from the main gates to the Aula in the old stone Main

Quadrangle. Leave plenty of time for parking if you're

arriving by car (see map) and take a leisurely wander

through the picturesque campus.




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Membership

September 2008 - August 2009

Ordinary Membership #25Concessionary Membership #15

Admission Prices for the 71st Season

Cork Orchestral Society Curtis Auditorium 8.00 p.m. recitals / concerts Raked seats: #25 (#15 & #10)Flat-floor seats: #20 (#12 & #8)Lunchtime recitals / concerts Raked seats: #12 (No concessions) Flat-floor seats: #10 (#8 & #5) City HallBalcony: #25 (No concessions)Downstairs: #20 & #15 (#15 & #10)Family (Downstairs): (#30 & #25)

Irish Chamber Orchestra Curtis AuditoriumRaked seats: #30 (#25)Flat-floor seats: #20 (#15)City HallBalcony: #40 (No concessions)Downstairs: #27 & #15 (#22 & #10)ICO Booking Office: 081 8719300 www.ticketmaster.ie

RTÉAula Maxima#16 (#14 & #10)City HallBalcony: #23 (No concessions)Downstairs: #20 & #15 (#18 & #13)Student (Downstairs, back only): #10




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RTÉ Vanbrugh Quartet with Cian Ó Dúill (viola)Thursday 29 JanuaryAula Maxima, UCC

Elisabeth Goel (soprano) & Una Hunt (piano)Thursday 5 FebruaryCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Irish Chamber Orchestra with Jaime Martin (conductor) & Johnny Teyssier (clarinet)Friday 6 FebruaryCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

RTÉ Vanbrugh QuartetThursday 26 FebruaryAula Maxima, UCC

Beyond the Pale (Baroque ensemble)Thursday 5 MarchCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Xue Fei Yang (guitar)Thursday 12 MarchCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Fleischmann Choir & RTÉ Concert OrchestraSaturday 21 MarchCity Hall

Irish Chamber Orchestra with Stephen Hough (director/piano)Friday 27 MarchCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Cork School of Music Symphony Orchestrawith Brian O’Kane (cello)Sunday 29 MarchCity Hall - 3.00 p.m.

Peter Donohoe (piano) Thursday 2 AprilCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Irish Chamber Orchestra with Anthony Marwood (director/violin)Friday 17 AprilCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Hugh Tinney (piano)Thursday 23 AprilCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

Irish Chamber Orchestrawith Richard Tognetti (director/violin/arranger) Friday 29 MayCurtis Auditorium, CIT Cork School of Music

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