Cambridge Philharmonic 2023-24 Season

A very warm welcome to the Cambridge Philharmonic’s 2023-4 season. This year promises to be a thrilling mixture of old and new, familiar favourites and lesser-known gems, featuring everything from symphonies to soundtracks.

I’m delighted that acclaimed composer and conductor Will Todd will lead our Choral Techniques Workshop to work on his Jazz Missa Brevis, with participants also devising a brand new piece. Do sign up via our website if you’d like to be part of this exciting creative opportunity. We’d love to have you with us.

Our West Road concert season contains sparkling showpieces for the orchestra and chorus including Mahler’s titanic 5th Symphony and Dvořák’s breathtaking Stabat Mater. We are thrilled to welcome some of the country’s leading soloists to once again join us this year. January and May promise fun for all the family with two unique concerts, Storybook LIVE with artist Angelina Dove and Magic of the Movies, a whistlestop tour through iconic Hollywood film scores through the ages.

March sees a new collaboration between the Cambridge Philharmonic and the University of East Anglia Choir, under the baton of our Chorus Master Tom Primrose. We are looking forward to working with the students at UEA on one of the cornerstones of the choral-orchestral repertoire, Mendelssohn’s Elijah.

Our season ends with Puccini’s epic unfinished masterpiece Turandot at Saffron Hall, following on from our opera double bill there in July 2023. Rachel Nicholls sings the title role alongside Hye-Youn Lee as Liù. It promises to be a night to remember.

We look forward to welcoming you to one of our memorable musical moments.

Harry Sever Music Director

Cambridge Critique

Season Summary

Saturday 30 September 2023

Choral Workshop with Will Todd

Church of the Good Shepherd, Mansel Way, Cambridge

Saturday 4 November 2023

Mahler 5

Gustav Mahler Symphony No. 5

Joseph Canteloube Chants d’Auvergne

West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge

Saturday 9 December 2023

Dvořák Stabat Mater

West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge

Saturday 13 January 2024

Family Concert: Storybook LIVE

West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge

Saturday 2 March 2024

Mendelssohn Elijah

Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden

Local Secrets

Saturday 18 May 2024

Magic of the Movies

Music from Star Wars, Jurassic Park, James Bond, Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, The Godfather and more West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge

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Saturday 13 July 2024

Puccini Turandot

Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden

All

“The everbrilliant Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra –our city’s very own LSO.”

“The Cambridge Philharmonic … one of Cambridge’s great city institutions.”

information is correct at the time of printing. The Cambridge Philharmonic reserves the right to make any changes to the published programme that prove necessary.

Saturday 30 September 2023 2pm–5pm

Choral Workshop

Your chance to have a go!

Led by composer and conductor Will Todd

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to sing with a large, ambitious choir like Cambridge Philharmonic? Perhaps you used to sing a few years ago, and would like to get back into it? This is your chance to have a go. Join renowned conductor and composer Will Todd and Cambridge Philharmonic Chorus for an enjoyable afternoon of singing – all voices welcome. We will be working on Will Todd’s Jazz Missa Brevis (music provided) as well as collaboratively devising a new choral piece!

Will Todd is a popular conductor with singers, with an innate understanding of many different genres. He conducts professional and amateur performances all over the world, including as Guest Conductor for St Martin’s Voices.

Tickets to participate: £20

Book online: www.cambridgephilharmonic.com

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Mahler 5

Joseph Canteloube

Chants d’Auvergne

Gustav Mahler Symphony No 5

Early in the 20th century there was a great revival of folk music across Europe. Chants d’Auvergne is a collection of French folk songs arranged for soprano and orchestra by Joseph Canteloube, in the local language of auvergnat.

These songs are a great way to explore the folk roots of Gustav Mahler’s music, although those roots may feel far removed in the context of the huge scale of his Fifth Symphony. More classical and conventional in its structure than his previous symphonies, it is still full of tragedy, triumph and love – as indeed his life had been in the months leading up to its composition. From the opening funeral march, through the wellknown Adagietto for harp and strings written as a love letter to his wife Alma, to the closing contrapuntal tour de force, this is Mahler exploring the full spectrum of emotions.

Tickets: from £15 (concessions and free carers’ tickets available)

Pre-bookable programme £2

Book online: www.cambridgephilharmonic.com

Phone: 0333 666 3366 (fee applies)

West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge CB3 9DP

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Rowan Pierce soprano

Harry Sever conductor Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra

Antonín Dvořák Stabat Mater

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Esther Mallett soprano

Hanna Hipp mezzo-soprano

Tom Smith tenor

Tristan Hambleton bass

Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra

Cambridge Philharmonic Chorus

Harry Sever conductor

A meeting of opera and oratorio, this theatrical setting of religious texts brought Dvořák’s devout Catholicism together with the unmistakable dramatic style of Czech repertoire of the time.

A masterpiece of the choral repertoire, this was Dvořák’s first major sacred work, sketched and completed soon after all three of his children died in infancy. The grand, symphonic scale of the work does nothing to diminish the heart-wrenching and deeply moving emotion conveyed through the virtuosic vocal writing for a quartet of soloists with chorus and orchestra.

Tickets: from £15 (concessions and free carers’ tickets available)

Pre-bookable programme £2

Book online:

www.cambridgephilharmonic.com

Phone: 0333 666 3366 (fee applies)

Saturday 13 January 2024 at 2pm & 4pm

FAMILY CONCERT

Storybook LIVE

Follow us on a magical journey into an enchanted winter forest where the storybook comes to life before your eyes!

This is an exciting way to enjoy a classical music concert as a family, with iconic pieces of orchestral music including ‘Winter’ from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and Humperdinck’s Overture to Hansel & Gretel. Cambridge

Philharmonic Orchestra and conductor Harry Sever will be joined on stage by presenter Lucy Hollins, with live illustrations from artist Angelina Dove projected onto a screen above the musicians.

Ideal for families with children aged five to eleven.

Tickets: from £12 (no concessions, free carers’ tickets available).

Pre-bookable programme £2.

Book online: www.cambridgephilharmonic.com

Phone: 0333 666 3366 (fee applies)

West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge CB3 9DP

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Lucy Hollins presenter

Angelina Dove artist

Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra Harry Sever conductor

Image © Angelina Dove

Saturday 2 March 2024 at 7.30pm

Felix Mendelssohn

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Francesca Chiejina soprano

Catherine Carby mezzo-soprano

Ben Johnson tenor

Cambridge Philharmonic Chorus

University of East Anglia Choir

Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra

Tom Primrose conductor

Mendelssohn’s glorious oratorio, Elijah, has been hugely popular from its first performance, leading some to call it the Messiah of its day and cementing his position as one of the greatest composers of sacred music.

Written in the spirit of his Baroque predecessors Bach and Handel – whose music he greatly admired – but clearly reflecting his own more Romantic style, Mendelssohn ended up also writing most of the text for the work.

We’re delighted to be joined for this concert by the University of East Anglia Choir, conducted by Chorus Master of both ensembles Tom Primrose.

Tickets: from £15 via Saffron Hall Box Office

(some concessions & free carers’ tickets available)

Pre-bookable programme £2

Book online: www.saffronhall.com

Phone: 0845 548 7650

Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden CB11 4UH

Saturday 18 May 2024 at 4pm & 8pm

Magic of the Movies

Including music from Star Wars, Jurassic Park, James Bond, Lord of the Rings, Gladiator, The Godfather and a special tribute to composer John Williams

Tom Primrose conductor

Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra

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A whirlwind tour of Hollywood’s greatest heroes, this concert includes famous pieces from iconic movies including The Godfather, Star Wars, James Bond, The Lord of the Rings, Jurassic Park and many more. The orchestra of Cambridge Philharmonic and conductor Tom Primrose welcome you into the world of film scores old and new.

Come as a family to our 4pm performance (ideal for families with children aged ten to sixteen) or head to our late evening performance at 8pm.

Tickets: from £15 (concessions and free carers’ tickets available)

Pre-bookable programme £2

Book online: www.cambridgephilharmonic.com

Phone: 0333 666 3366 (fee applies)

West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge CB3 9DP

Saturday 13 July 2023 at 4pm

Giacomo Puccini

Turandot

Rachel Nicholls Turandot

Hye-Youn Lee Liù

Jihoon Kim Timur

Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra

Cambridge Philharmonic Chorus

Harry Sever conductor

A princess with a heart of ice, a prince with passion in his soul and a servant overwhelmed with love for him. What could possibly go wrong? Add to that one of the most famous tenor arias ever, Nessum dorma, and the stage is set for Turandot, Puccini’s last opera. Turandot (the princess) challenges men to win her with three riddles. Failure to answer them leads to execution (many have died). The prince does not fail and sets a riddle of his own. The servant Liù withstands cruel torture to protect his secret. Who or what will triumph? “None shall sleep..” (Nessum dorma) but the ravishing voices and music of this concert performance will delight and entrance.

Tickets: from £15 via Saffron Hall Box Office (some concessions and free carers’ tickets available), pre-bookable programme £2

Book online: www.saffronhall.com

Phone: 0845 548 7650

BOOK NOW:

Join us!

Are you a singer or orchestral musician looking for a new creative challenge? We are keen to welcome new members to the Chorus and Orchestra.

We rehearse weekly during term time (Orchestra on Mondays, Chorus on Tuesdays) and perform in the best concert venues in and around Cambridge. Once you’ve sung or played with us for a few weeks, you’ll be asked to audition. Members pay an annual subscription.

As well as pushing ourselves to perform at the highest standard, we enjoy the social side of making music together too – and we’d love to meet you!

Please visit cambridgephilharmonic.com/join-us to find out more.

Thank you

We are very grateful to the following for their generous support this season:

The Pye Foundation, Nash Matthews, The Garfield Weston Foundation, Churchill College, Emmanuel College, Pembroke College and Trinity College.

We would also like to warmly thank the growing number of individual supporters and friends who have made donations, helping us to reach ever higher standards of performance.

Could you or your organisation invest in the future of Cambridge Philharmonic, whether as a regular contributor or by sponsoring a particular concert? For details please visit cambridgephilharmonic.com/support-us

BECOME A CAMBRIDGE PHILHARMONIC FRIEND AND JOIN A WORLD OF MUSICAL MAGIC!

As a Philharmonic Friend you will support our cherished ambition of keeping top quality music at the heart of our wonderful and vibrant community. You will hear all the ‘behind the scenes’ news of current and future projects, enjoy priority booking and discounts, and have opportunities to meet our conductors, principal players and guest artists at pre-concert and social events.

Most of all, as a Philharmonic Friend, you will be joining our musical family, comprising a range of instrumentalists and singers of all ages and walks of life.

For an investment of just £50 per season you will receive the following benefits...

• Priority booking

• A 10% ticket discount on advance bookings throughout the season

• Acknowledgement as a Friend in programmes and on the website

• A regular newsletter about the Phil and upcoming concerts

• Invitation to season’s launch reception

• Opportunities to meet conductors, soloists, players and singers from the Phil and fellow Friends

• Pre-concert talks

https://cambridgephilharmonic.com/support-us/