2016/17 Season Brochure

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Vasily Petrenko Chief Conductor

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra september 2016 - June 2017 Box Office 0151 709 3789 | liverpoolphil.com

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10 years of Vasily Petrenko and the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra

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Petrenko presides over a golden age of musicmaking in Liverpool.

The Times

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Contents Liverpool Philharmonic Starter Collection

Page 6

Support Us

Page 8

Subscribe and Save

Page 11

Introducing Artist in Residence James Ehnes

Page 14

2016 – 2017 Season

Page 16

Family Concerts

Page 56

Chamber Music at St George’s Hall

Page 58

Ensemble 10/10: Contemporary Music Group

Page 66

This Season in the Music Room

Page 68

Lunchtime Concerts

Page 72

Talks, Tours and Taking Part

Page 74

Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Ensembles

Page 82

The A – Z of Information and Booking

Page 84

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is grateful to the following supporters PRINCIPAL FUNDERS

IN-KIND SPONSORS

Thanks to the City of Liverpool for its financial support

PRINCIPAL PARTNERS

SPONSORS

IN HARMONY LIVERPOOL

PREMIER SPONSOR

The rushworth Foundation

austin & hope Pilkington Trust | The eric and Margaret Kinder Charitable Trust | The ernest Cook Trust | everton nursery school and Family Centre | The Grodner Family | The hemby Trust | Liverpooljazz | Lord Leverhulme’s Charitable Trust | The Oglesby Charitable Trust In harmony Fund | The rushworth Foundation | West Lancashire Freemasons Charity | anonymous donors

MEDIA PARTNER

OTHER PUBLIC DONORS

!

TO U R M A N A G E M E N T

CORPORATE MEMBERS TRUSTS AND FOUNDATIONS

aFL Insurance Brokers | andrew Collinge | Kirwans solicitors MgMastudio/architecture | O2 | Pierhead housing association r s Clare & Co. Ltd | Tilney Bestinvest HOTEL PARTNER

DIGITAL PARTNER

HIGHER EDUCATION PARTNER

The KenneTh sTern TrusT

The Leslie Bibby Fund | The hilda Black Charitable Trust | solomon and Isabel Blankstone Charitable Trust | The Britten-Pears Foundation | The amelia Chadwick Trust | The earl of Derby’s Charitable Trust | John Fairclough Charitable Trust | J Paul Getty Jr Charitable Trust | The Granada Foundation | Paul hamlyn Foundation | hemby Charitable Trust | The eric and Margaret Kinder Charitable Trust award | Duchy of Lancaster Benevolent Fund | The eric and Dorothy Leach Charitable Trust | Lancashire sinfonietta Legacy Fund | The Linbury Trust | Lord Leverhulme’s Charitable Trust | The newstead Charity | The Louis nicholas residuary Charitable Trust | Cecil Pilkington Charitable Trust | sir alastair Pilkington’s Trust | Pilkington General Charity | The ravensdale Trust | The rayne Foundation | The rushworth Foundation | The J a shone Memorial Trust | The Claude Ballard southall Memorial Charity | The standfield Charitable Trust | The steel Charitable Trust | The Kenneth stern Trust | The Tavener Charitable Trust | The Tung Foundation | West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity | The Margaret Wethered Trust | sir Donald and Lady edna Wilson Charitable Trust Liverpool Philharmonic is particularly grateful for the support and friendship of Miss Mary riddoch. and thank you to everyone who supports the royal Liverpool Philharmonic through membership, patronage or donations, or by donating their time.

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Welcome from Vasily Petrenko The years have flown by since I took up the baton in Liverpool in 2006. It has been an honour for me to follow in the footsteps of the many great artists who have led and performed with our Orchestra and Choir over more than 175 years.

From the very beginning, I knew immediately that our musicians didn’t just want to play, to perform. They wanted to discover something new in the music, not as a group of individuals, but as a unit, they wanted to play as an orchestra and share their musical discoveries with our audiences. This enthusiasm to discover more has continued throughout the years we have been working together and exploring music. For me, my musical partnership with our Orchestra and Choir has been and continues to be a wonderful and fulfilling one.

In ten years with Liverpool Philharmonic, there have been many musical highlights, and I believe, many more to come. In the next chapter of Liverpool Philharmonic’s story, there is still so much more that the Orchestra and I want to discover and achieve together. I’m really looking forward to opening our season with all of Beethoven’s symphonies... nine symphonies in our first four

concerts. I hope as you look through our season, you will want to join us on our musical journey.

I treasure the love for our Orchestra and the commitment and passion for music that we are privileged to enjoy from our audiences. This has gone hand in hand with great support from our Principal Funders, arts Council england and Liverpool City Council, our Principal Partners, Investec Wealth & Investment and Liverpool John Moores university, trusts and foundations, sponsors and the magnificent generosity of many individuals. We really could not do what we do without such support.

On behalf of us all at Liverpool Philharmonic, I offer our thanks and gratitude and we look forward to welcoming you to enjoy great music from revolutionary composers this season.

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Liverpool Philharmonic

STARTER COLLECTION

a Playlist for Beginners

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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If you’re unfamiliar with classical music, it’s understandably hard to know where to start.

We’ve all heard of Beethoven, Bach, Mahler… but how is it possible to know which concert to attend when there’s so much to choose from?

Duh-duh-duh dummmmm!

Elgar’s Cello Concerto

The Dream Team Returns

Saturday 17 September (Page 20)

Thursday 24 November (Page 30)

Thursday 25 & Friday 26 May (Page 51)

You’ll instantly recognise one of the most famous themes in classical music, the opening of Beethoven’s revolutionary fifth symphony.

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a hugely popular, beautiful yet melancholic cello concerto that is the cornerstone of all cello repertoire.

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Ode to Joy

Thursday 1 December & Friday 2 December (Page 31)

Sunday 25 September (Page 21)

This is almost universally considered one of Beethoven's greatest works. This symphony was the first example of a major composer using a choir in a symphony. You’ll be blown away by the combined forces of the Orchestra and royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir.

New World

neil armstrong took a recording of Dvořák’s much-loved ‘new World’ symphony to the Moon during the apollo 11 mission, the first Moon landing, in 1969 – this music really is out of this world!

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Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko teams up with pianist simon Trpčeski, and this concert promises to be loud, colourful and buzzing with energy.

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It was 50 years ago today Wednesday 31 May & Saturday 3 June (Page 52)

What better way to introduce yourself to the sights and sounds of a full Orchestra… Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band as you’ve never heard it before.

Night at the Opera Saturday 18 February (Page 40)

never tried opera? Maybe you think you won’t like it… but this performance brings together some of the most beautiful and recognisable arias and duets.

Starter Collection

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Love Music?

Support Liverpool Philharmonic

‘We very much enjoyed last night’s Annual Patron’s Dinner. The food was lovely and the company even better.

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to sit by Vasily (what a thrill!).’

1840 Circle Supporter

Ticket sales and public funding alone does not cover the cost of maintaining a symphony orchestra and concert hall. We rely on the generous support of many individual donors, each of whom make an annual gift helping us to continue our music-making, attracting the very best musicians to Liverpool, maintaining the high quality of our ensembles, and inspiring lives through music with the work we do in schools and throughout the community.

Membership is the simplest way to make a gift in support of our work both on and off the stage. There are a number of memberships to choose from, with different levels of recognition, ranging from exclusive invitations to open rehearsals and receptions, priority booking, to an invitation to our annual Patron’s Dinner with our Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko and a personalised ticket booking service.

You can dedicate a seat in our auditorium which is a great gift for music lovers or a lasting dedication for a loved one, or you can adopt a musician from the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and enjoy a new insight into the life of the Orchestra.

For full details of how you can support Liverpool Philharmonic, please contact a member of our fundraising team on 0151 210 2921, email fundraising@liverpoolphil.com or visit our website for further information and to join us online www.liverpoolphil.com.

‘Open rehearsals are a fascinating insight into the Orchestra and its individual members. Vasily is the oracle, he always achieves what he wants and the good rapport with the Orchestra is clear every time.’

Supporter of ‘From the First Note’ campaign

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‘Access to high quality, varied live music and support for In Harmony Liverpool which we greatly admire.’

Patricia and John Britland Horne, 1840 Circle

‘Silver Membership gives me golden opportunities to support the best team on Merseyside.’

Paul Leach, concert-goer for over 40 years

‘The time the orchestra members devote to In Harmony Liverpool, Schools' concerts etc. has produced amazing results, not just in musical terms, but also with the impressive improvements shown academically by so many of the students involved. This is an area of Liverpool Philharmonic’s activities that is deserving of as much support as possible.’

1840 Circle Member

‘Having had my first concert experience with Dr Malcolm Sargent at a School Concert in 1943, I became a supporter primarily to give back to the youth music projects.’

1840 Circle Member

Support Liverpool Philharmonic

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Love Music: From the First Note

Subscribe to Liverpool Philharmonic

Over the years, thousands of donors have supported Liverpool Philharmonic’s work with children.

This vital work is a fundamental part of Liverpool Philharmonic’s mission, providing music-making opportunities to children of all ages, developing our musicians of the future through our youth ensembles and providing access to orchestral music to schools across the north West.

save money on your tickets!

With your help, we will grow our investment in young people’s musicmaking: all made possible through the ongoing financial support of people who believe as we do in the power of music to change lives.

To make a gift, please visit www.liverpoolphil.com or call 0151 210 2921.

Love Music: From the First Note

‘Learning the violin makes me feel amazing.’

Jessica, 9 years old, In harmony Liverpool.

If you purchase tickets for 5 or more concerts, you become a Liverpool Philharmonic subscriber… and there are lots of benefits too!

Better Seats

as a subscriber you can order tickets prior to them going on sale to the general public. The earlier you book, the wider selection of seats you’ll have.

If you book for a fixed series (henry e rensburg, Liverpool John Moores university, Classic FM or Marathon) or book for more than 30 concerts per season (new this year!) you can ‘roll over’ your seats for each concert each season.

Discounted Tickets

Depending on the number of concerts you book for you could save up to 30% off ticket prices.

Discounted Booking Fees

subscribers pay a flat charge of £5 per order compared with fees of up to 7.5% per ticket.

Exchange Privileges

Find you can’t make a concert? no problem – just return your tickets 24 hours in advance of the concert and we’ll give you a credit for another performance within the same season.

FREE tickets

When you book for 8 or more concerts you’ll receive a free ticket to a Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra concert (page 82), or a Discover the Classics session (page 77).

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Subscriptions Flexible Series

Make up your own package and save! You can include any concert in this brochure in your series (excluding It was 50 years ago today and the Close Up series).

Book 5 – 7 concerts Book 8 – 13 concerts Book 14 – 24 concerts Book 25 or more

save 10% save 15% save 20% save 25%

Book 8 or more concerts and get a free ticket to a Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra concert (see page 82), or a Discover the Classics session (see page 77). Please note these tickets are offered subject to availability.

new for this season! If you book 30 concerts or more this season, you can now ‘roll over’ your seats next season, meaning you can request the same seats for every performance.

Fixed Series

Fixed series (henry e rensburg, Classic FM, Liverpool John Moores university series) are a great way to enjoy regular concert-going. With a fixed series you can request the same seats for every performance and carry these over each year.

Don’t want to miss a single concert?

The Marathon series includes tickets for every orchestral concert at a whopping 30% discount (excluding It was 50 years ago today and the Close Up series).

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Subscription Pricing & Seating Plan Fixed Series Prices

Fixed Series A

B

C

D

E

Marathon Series 47 concerts (save 30%)

£539.70

£710.50

£923.30

£1106.70

£1399.30

Liverpool John Moores University Series 6 concerts (save 10%)

£97.20

£121.50

£152.10

£177.30

£216.90

Henry E Rensburg Series 15 concerts (save 20%)

£189.60

£252.00

£328.80

£398.40

£511.20

Classic FM Series 10 concerts (save 15%)

£130.90

£174.25

£226.95

£277.10

£359.55

£88.20

£117.00

£153.00

£183.60

£232.20

Chamber Music Concerts 12 concerts (save 15%)

£255.00

£255.00

£255.00

£255.00

£255.00

Discover the Classics 6 sessions

£75/£50 (students/claimants)

Sunday Afternoon Classics 6 concerts (save 10%)

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Liverpool John Moores University Series 17 september / 7 January / 18 February / 11 March 20 May / 10 June Henry E Rensburg Series 15, 22 september / 20 October / 3, 17, 24 november 19, 26 January / 2, 23, 30 March / 20 april / 4, 11 May 15 June Classic FM Series 13, 14 October / 10, 11 november / 1, 2 December 12, 13 January / 2, 3, 23, 24 February / 6, 7 april 27, 28 april / 25, 26 May / 22, 23 June Sunday Afternoon Classics 25 september / 23 October / 20 november / 22 January 5 March / 2 april Chamber Series 27 september / 4, 19 October / 1, 23 november 9 December / 8 January / 12 February / 8 March 25 april / 5 May / 6 June

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Booking Dates - Wheelchair spaces - Transfer seats - Armrest on aisle lifts for ease of transfer from wheelchair or walker

as an existing subscriber you can book your tickets in the following ways:

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Stalls P O N M L K J H G F E D C B A

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P O N M L K J H G F E D C B A

Wednesday 18 May Postal booking opens for renewing subscribers, members and groups.

F E D C B A

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O N M L K J H G

Monday 20 June – Friday 24 June In person booking (by appointment only). If you would like to book your subscription in person, you can schedule a time to meet with a member of our Box Office team at Liverpool Philharmonic hall.

To schedule, please phone 0151 709 3789

X W V U T S

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44 44

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44 44 42

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To get the best seats make sure you book your subscription before Monday 4 July as this is when all tickets go on sale to the public. – Please note you cannot book your subscription package online.

subscription tickets will be posted in July and direct debits will be processed on the date specified on your form.

saturday 25 June Telephone booking opens at 10am for renewing subscribers, members and groups.

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N M L K J H G Upper Circle

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Introducing Artist in Residence

JAMES EHNES ‘... an elusive balance of colour, glow, firmness and sweetness that falls on the ear like the finest white wine you could imagine would fall on the palate. One could easily become addicted.’ sydney Morning herald, 18 February 2016

Canadian violinist James Ehnes has played in Liverpool several times since 2007, mostly planned but famously once very last minute… in December 2014 he stepped in at the last minute, without any rehearsal, to play Brahms Violin Concerto with the Orchestra for a live BBC radio 3 concert!

Completely cool and stunning the audience as he did, it was inevitable that he would be invited back before the interval had even started… this season we are delighted to have him back, as our artist in residence.

as artist in residence James will be performing with the Orchestra, as part of our Chamber Music series in st George’s hall Concert room and in a rare uK concert with his quartet The Ehnes Quartet, with a repertoire that includes Mozart, Bartók and Tchaikovsky. he has also chosen our Orchestra to record Beethoven’s Violin Concerto and Romances which will be available in 2017.

‘In the beginning there was Bach, and James Ehnes ... Music lovers drank in Ehnes’ performance - the purity of his phrasing, the precision of his intonation and the power of his interpretation.’ seattle Times, 23 January 2016

a child prodigy, named as an honorary Member of the royal academy of Music in London (limited to a select group of 300 living distinguished musicians), a virtuoso performer, playing in over 30 countries across five continents, and appearing regularly in the world’s greatest concert halls, we are delighted to welcome James back to Liverpool. In addition to his performances James’ residency will see him getting involved with our youth ensembles and our community projects, including In Harmony Liverpool, working with children from schools across everton.

‘... playing of phenomenal control, allied to musicianship of the highest order.’

The Times, October 2009

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FACT FILE Name: James Ehnes

What to look out for…

Conductor andrew Manze and James will take to the stage on 30 september with what promises to be a highlight of the season, Beethoven’s Violin Concerto. (see page 22). James and andrew will be taking part in our post-concert Q&a so come and join us, with any questions you want to ask, or just to enjoy the debate and discussion (see page 76).

James is a leading chamber musician, and we’re excited that our Chamber Music Series in st George’s hall Concert room starts with two challenging recitals in which he will present all of Bach’s Partitas for Solo Violin. a real demonstration of virtuosity and the first of many performances in our Chamber Music series highlighting the works of revolutionary composers. (see page 59).

Nationality: Dual Canadian / USA. Born in Brandon, Manitoba, Canada and now lives in Bradenton, Florida with his wife and two children.

First (or favourite) musical memory: Music was always a part of my life, so I can’t identify an earliest memory, but I do have a very happy early memory of listening to Swan Lake with my mom (she was a ballet dancer).

Greatest (or first) musical inspiration: My dad, who was a trumpet player and the trumpet professor at Brandon University.

Favourite city: Liverpool! But I have so many favourites. London, New York, Chicago, Montreal, Melbourne…

Repertoire you would never tire of playing: Mendelssohn Violin Concerto – I could play it every day.

Pick of the season and why: I’m very excited to do the Beethoven Concerto - perhaps the pinnacle of the violin repertoire - with the Orchestra and Andrew Manze, one of my favorite musicians. I have very fond memories of playing the Beethoven in Liverpool about a decade ago, and am thrilled to have the chance to revisit it with Andrew.

If you could perform or travel to somewhere you have yet to visit, where would it be?

I would love to go to India; I have a number of Indian friends and have been fascinated by the country my entire life.

Book online at www.liverpoolphil.com

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Welcome to the 2016-17 Season

R EVOLUTION This season you can enjoy a wide range of music, including the works of five composers that shook the music world…

Bach, Beethoven, Berlioz, Stravinsky and The Beatles! They are all music revolutionaries in their own right, who struck hard at their own musical era and dragged it into new and exciting places.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Bach

Bach seemed revolutionary in practically everything he wrote: his works for smaller forces went well beyond the conventions of the day. he took simple established dance structures and elevated them into high art forms which are most evident in his Solo Violin Partitas and Solo Cello Suites.

– See pages 50, 59, 63, 64, 66, 70, 71, 72 & 83.

Beethoven

Beethoven took the classical symphony and shook it violently. he challenged convention and set out to achieve what many of his contemporaries thought impossible – there had never been a symphony as long as his Symphony No.3, a symphony as explicitly programmatic as his no.6 or as ground-breaking and extensive as no.9. This season we are performing the entire symphonic series in the space of 10 days, so join us as we go from one to nine, revelling in all that is revolutionary.

– See pages 19, 20, 21, 22, 38, 49, 54, 60, 62, 64, 65, 73, 79 & 83.

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Berlioz

Berlioz used the orchestra as never before by extending the way the instrumentalists were asked to play and by composing for huge orchestral forces for many of his works. Moreover, he overlaid his music with stories and unabashed romanticism.

– See pages 20, 21, 23, 27, 43, 46, 49 & 82.

The Beatles

Stravinsky

Stravinsky is one of the most important and influential composers of the 20th century with his music mirroring the revolutionary undercurrent of his russian homeland. The kaleidoscopic colours of The Firebird and the dazzlingly virtuosic Petrushka, both encapsulated the ‘old’ and the ‘new’ with shifting and audacious rhythms and unresolved dissonances, contributing to stravinsky’s enduring reputation as a musical revolutionary who blasted through the boundaries of musical design.

– See pages 24, 25, 39, 41, 44, 50, 55, 69, 71, 73 & 83.

and what selection of revolutionary composers would be complete without reference to the home-grown Liverpool lads who astonished the world with their music? 2017 is the 50th anniversary of The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, their most experimental album. nothing had ever been heard like it before in the world of pop culture and when it was released in June 1967 it was an immediate commercial and critical success, spending 27 weeks at the top of the album charts in the uK. Time Magazine declared it “a historic departure in the progress of music”. as Liverpool celebrates the incredible contribution The Beatles have made to our city, we’ll celebrate their musical legacy and contribution to the musical world and recreate Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band with our full Orchestra and the ultimate tribute group The Bootleg Beatles.

– See page 52, 66 & 73.

“

You say you want a revolution Well, you know We all want to change the world You tell me that it’s evolution Well, you know We all want to change the world Lennon & McCartney

”

Throughout this season there will be lots of opportunities to learn more about these composers and their revolutionary approach to music, and to hear from world- class musicians in our pre- and post-concert talks, our ‘Discover the Classics’ and our Lunchtime Learning sessions.

– For more information see our ‘Talks, Tours and Taking Part’ on pages 74 to 81.

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royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra Concerts

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

“

... Beethoven, the composer who, more than any other, changed music, the sound of music and what it is composers do, wrote nine symphonies that jolted music out of itself. Life could never - would never - be the same again.

Gramophone

�

Join us at the start of our season, a Beethoven Marathon - nine symphonies in our first four concerts!

Henry E Rensburg Series

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Eroica Thursday 15 September 7.30pm

Beethoven Symphony No.1 Beethoven Symphony No.2 Beethoven Symphony No.3 ‘Eroica’ – Vasily Petrenko conductor Please note that this performance will include two intervals sponsored by

Classic Intro 6.15pm (Music Room) Stephen Johnson speaks about Beethoven’s symphonies as we embark upon the complete cycle in September. See page 75.

What a way to open a season – from the anarchic chords that open his First symphony to the heavenstorming song of brotherhood that ends his ninth, the symphonies of Ludwig van Beethoven are more than just music: they’re acts of revolution. Tonight, for the first time, Vasily Petrenko and the Orchestra begin the greatest adventure an orchestra and conductor can take together. The first two symphonies are the sound of a young genius stretching his wings and then, with the two mighty chords that open the Eroica, changing music forever. They’ll knock you backwards.

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Liverpool John Moores University Series

Henry E Rensburg Series

Duh-duh-duh dummmmm!

Pastoral Thursday 22 September 7.30pm

Saturday 17 September 7.30pm

Berlioz Overture, Roman Carnival Beethoven Symphony No.4 Berlioz Overture, Le Corsaire Beethoven Symphony No.5 – Vasily Petrenko conductor sponsored by

“Thus Fate knocks at the door!” everyone knows the first four notes of Beethoven’s Fifth symphony – but if that’s all you’ve heard, you’re in for a thrilling surprise, as Vasily Petrenko’s Beethoven cycle arrives at the most famous symphony of all time. Prepare to be electrified – and to be delighted, too, by the Fifth’s prettier, funnier little sister: the sparkling Fourth symphony. Two swashbuckling overtures from fellow-revolutionary hector Berlioz – Beethoven’s number one fan, who never wrote a single note without passion – will sweep you off your feet.

Beethoven Symphony No.6 ‘Pastoral’ Beethoven Symphony No.7 Beethoven Symphony No.8 – Vasily Petrenko conductor Please note that this performance will include two intervals sponsored by

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

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Vasily Petrenko © Mark McNulty

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With its birdsong, horn-calls and playful musical jokes, there’s no experience in music more lifeaffirming than Beethoven’s ever-fresh ‘Pastoral’ symphony. and there’s none more gloriously, exuberantly physical than his unstoppable seventh – the piece that made even Wagner jump up and dance. Vasily Petrenko’s journey through Beethoven’s symphonies reaches two of the most enduringly popular masterpieces in all music – and follows them with the irresistible eighth symphony. Machinemusic, high romance and knockabout comedy come together in one explosive little package: light the blue touchpaper, and stand well back!

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

Sunday Afternoon Classics

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Ode to Joy Sunday 25 September 2.30pm

Berlioz Les Nuits d’été Beethoven Symphony No.9 ‘Choral’ – Vasily Petrenko conductor Veronika Dzhioeva soprano Anna Stéphany mezzo-soprano Timothy Robinson tenor Konstantin Wolff bass-baritone Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir

Beethoven’s ninth symphony is the summit of any Beethoven cycle – and some might say of classical music itself. But there’s a lifetime of experience to live through before we get to its triumphant climax and tonight Vasily Petrenko, the Orchestra and the acclaimed royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir come together to plumb its depths, scale its heights, and celebrate together in that final, transcendent Ode to Joy. six ravishing songs for mezzosoprano of longing from fellow-radical hector Berlioz set the scene: as Beethoven once put it, music that comes from the heart and goes to the heart.

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45

Anna Stéphany

Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Special

Beethoven Finale Friday 30 September 7.30pm

Beethoven Violin Concerto Mendelssohn Incidental Music, Midsummer Night’s Dream – Andrew Manze conductor James Ehnes violin Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir (Ladies Voices)

Post-concert Question Time Starts 15 minutes after the concert (Music Room) Join Andrew Manze and our Artist in Residence James Ehnes as we reach the conclusion of Beethoven’s Symphonies. See page 76.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

revolutions don’t have to be noisy.

When Felix Mendelssohn transformed the words of shakespeare into music, he created sounds like no-one had ever heard.

Guest conductor andrew Manze weaves the spell tonight: here be fairies, lovers, and of course a man with the head of a donkey. They’re all there in Mendelssohn’s enchanted score; first though, we end our Beethoven cycle with our new Artist in Residence James ehnes, and the most serene masterpiece Beethoven ever wrote... music to refresh the spirit, played by one of the world’s finest living violinists.

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

James Ehnes © Benjamin Ealovega

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Pops

Series

A Kind of Magic

Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto

Saturday 8 October 7.30pm

Thursday 13 & Friday 14 October 7.30pm

Big, brash and fabulously larger than life, the music of Queen fuses glam rock, soul and huge lashings of grand opera. supercharged with entertainment value, it’s simply made for a symphony orchestra – and this sensational full orchestral spectacular unleashes Queen’s greatest hits like you’ve never heard them before. This year would have been Freddie Mercury’s 70th birthday so with Radio Ga Ga, Don’t Stop Me Now, Killer Queen, of course Bohemian Rhapsody, and many, many more what better way to celebrate the music of this great showman. Freddie would have loved it. Will we rock you….? You’d better believe it!

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

shostakovich’s Fifth symphony isn’t just a matter of life and death – it’s more important than that. Written as an answer to stalin at a time when one wrong note would have landed shostakovich in the Gulag, it’s one of 20th-century music’s true epics, told in music of raw feeling. It’ll make a powerful Liverpool debut for one of the uK’s most talked-about young conductors – and a striking contrast to Mozart’s beloved Clarinet Concerto, played by our own Principal Clarinet Benjamin Mellefont. Berlioz’s comedy overture kicks things off with a wink.

Berlioz Overture, Béatrice et Bénédict Mozart Clarinet Concerto Shostakovich Symphony No.5 – Nicholas Collon conductor Benjamin Mellefont clarinet

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Nicholas Collon © Jim Hinson

Programme includes: We Will Rock You Don’t Stop Me Now A Kind of Magic We are the Champions Bohemian Rhapsody – Nick Davies conductor Singers from the West End International Company: Rachael Wooding Jenna Lee-James Oliver Tompsett Ricardo Afonso

Post-concert Question Time Thursday 13 October Starts 15 minutes after the concert (Music Room) Join conductor Nicholas Collon and Principal Clarinet Benjamin Mellefont, in the Music Room after tonight’s concert. See page 76.

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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Henry E Rensburg Series

Romantic Rachmaninov Thursday 20 October 7.30pm

Ravel La Valse Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.2 Stravinsky Scherzo à la Russe Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances – Vasily Petrenko conductor Alexandre Tharaud piano sponsored by

Mists swirl, a ghostly waltz echoes in the distance – and ravel’s La Valse launches an evening-long voyage through a haunted century. You may already know rachmaninov’s most romantic piano concerto, often described as the best piano concerto ever written, and when you hear pianist alexandre Tharaud’s recent disc with the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, out in October, you’ll know to expect far more than just a brief encounter tonight! Then we join two russians in america: stravinsky jazzing it up, rachmaninov looking back over a long life in his sumptuous Symphonic Dances – joys, regrets, and melodies to die for. Vasily Petrenko feels this music in his soul.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Alexandre Tharaud © Marco Borggreve

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Sunday Afternoon Classics

Pops

Russian Revolution

Carl Davis’ 80th Birthday

Sunday 23 October 2.30pm

Friday 28 October 7.30pm

Rachmaninov The Rock Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.2 Stravinsky Scherzo à la Russe Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances – Vasily Petrenko conductor Alexandre Tharaud piano

rachmaninov’s sumptuous Symphonic Dances are the sound of a great artist in exile, drenched in joy, regret, and those wonderful rachmaninov melodies. Vasily Petrenko has matched it with rachmaninov’s youthful poem of love and loss, The Rock, plus an outrageously jazzy bit of fun from rachmaninov’s hollywood neighbour stravinsky. and when you hear pianist alexandre Tharaud’s recent recording of this concerto (released in October 2016) with the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, you’ll know to expect far more than just a brief encounter with rachmaninov’s world-famous second Piano Concerto!

Programme includes: Bernstein Overture, Candide Carl Davis Themes from Pride and Prejudice, The World at War, Chariot Race from Ben Hur, Ballade for Cello and Orchestra Walton Battle of Britain – Carl Davis CBE (Hon) conductor Aled Jones presenter Jonathan Aasgaard cello

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Carl Davis CBE (Hon)

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

Carl Davis has been a conductor and close friend of the Orchestra, and loved by our audiences for more than 50 years. You are invited to join Carl on the day of his 80th birthday for a night of music that celebrates his life, his love of music and his work, introduced by presenter and friend aled Jones. With a career that spans decades and with scores and scores of music for film and TV it was impossible to choose the favourites, so we asked Carl! starting with Bernstein’s buzzing Overture to Candide to Carl’s own music, including the exhausting and exhilarating Chariot race from Ben Hur, to his television music for Pride and Prejudice and The World at War, this evening will be filled with the soundtrack of one of the uK’s most prolific and best-loved composers.

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Pops

Psycho: Film with Live Orchestra!

Monday 31 October 7.30pm Anthony Gabriele conductor Classic Intro 6.15pm (Music Room) Dr Ruth Doughty, a member of the faculty of the Liverpool Screen School at Liverpool John Moores University, speaks about Psycho and its magnificent score by Bernard Herrmann. See page 75.

The sinister motel, that strange young man, the raw terror that lurks behind the shower-curtain – there’s never been a thriller quite as terrifying as alfred hitchcock’s Psycho… and there’s never been a film score quite like Bernard herrmann’s: those stabbing violins have been the soundtrack to all our nightmares. so this halloween, what better way to give yourself the fright of your life than with this big-screen showing at the art-deco Philharmonic hall, with herrmann’s score performed live by the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra?

Join us if you dare: it’s about to get real…

Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

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Patrycja Pieczara © Konrad Mika

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Ian Fountain

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Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / deb

Henry E Rensburg Series

Dvor˘ák Symphony No.7 Thursday 3 November 7.30pm

Henryk Górecki Two Tristan Postludes and Chorale (orchestrated by Mikołaj Górecki) UK Premiere

Berlioz Death of Cleopatra Dvor˘ák Symphony No.7 – Patrycja Pieczara conductor Madeleine Shaw mezzo-soprano sponsored by

You already know Dvořák’s symphony from the new world – now hear his symphonic homage to the old. stormy, passionate and filled with all those lovable, lilting Dvořák melodies, the seventh symphony is something of a speciality for the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra; so we’re thrilled to be discovering it anew with the debut of young Polish conductor Patrycja Pieczara.

Patrycja’s known for taking a fresh perspective, so she’s paired it with an atmospheric miniature from the world-famous Polish composer of the symphony of sorrowful songs, plus Berlioz’s hot-blooded historical melodrama Cleopatra – sung by Madeleine shaw with the voice of a queen!

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

bit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

L’APRÈS MIDI…

step out of the cold this winter to enjoy our Friday afternoon concerts with Debussy, Dvořák, stravinsky, Mozart and more.

L’Après Midi Friday 11 November 2.30pm

Christian Mandeal © Konrad Mika

Paul Lewis plays Mozart Friday 13 January 2.30pm

Paul Lewis © Molina Visuals

Firebird Friday 24 February 2.30pm

Ning Feng © Felix Broede

New World Friday 2 December 2.30pm

Seong-Jin Cho

Russian Superstars Friday 3 February 2.30pm

Daniil Trifonov © Dario Acosta

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Series

Henry E Rensburg Series

L’après-midi

Benedetti’s Brahms

Thursday 10 November 7.30pm Friday 11 November 2.30pm

Thursday 17 November 7.30pm

Debussy Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune Saint-Saёns Piano Concerto No.2 Brahms Symphony No.3 – Cristian Mandeal conductor Ian Fountain piano

“Free but happy” is the motto of Brahms’s Third symphony, and from sweeping opening to majestic sunset of a finish, he never wrote anything more personal or poetic.

It’s a long way from the silken sensuality of Debussy’s Prélude. But as romanian conductor Cristian Mandeal knows, music’s all about the journey – and it’s been said that saint-saëns’ second Piano Concerto begins in a nunnery and ends in revelry! We just know that it’s packed with catchy tunes, and with the renowned British pianist Ian Fountain at the keyboard, it’ll simply spring to life.

Barber First Essay for Orchestra Brahms Violin Concerto Strauss Don Juan Strauss suite from Der Rosenkavalier – Robert Trevino conductor Nicola Benedetti violin sponsored by

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Nicola Benedetti © Simon Fowler

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

Ian Fountain

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There’s only one nicola Benedetti – and there’s only one Brahms Violin Concerto. Combine Britain’s favourite violinist with one of the world’s most romantic violin concertos, add the young american powerhouse maestro robert Trevino (for the first time in Liverpool), and – well, enough said, really! except this concert also features richard strauss at his most shamelessly seductive, retelling the legend of history’s greatest lothario before slipping between the silken sheets of his gorgeous Der Rosenkavalier suite. and if you love Barber’s Adagio for Strings, you really need to hear his atmospheric First Essay.

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

Sunday Afternoon Classics

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Benedetti’s Brahms Sunday 20 November 2.30pm

a flurry of strings, a blast of trumpets: as richard strauss’s Don Juan – a real Casanova of a character – rockets into action.

There’s a no-holds-barred opening to a whole afternoon of musical adventure at its swashbuckling best. sibelius’s First symphony is the sound of a nation awakening to freedom: its epic tunes and thundering powerchords will be perfect for the “breathtaking” young american maestro robert Trevino. First though, nicola Benedetti plays Brahms: the nation’s favourite violinist in one of the most romantic violin concertos of all time. hold on to your seats…

Strauss Don Juan Brahms Violin Concerto Sibelius Symphony No.1 – Robert Trevino conductor Nicola Benedetti violin

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45

Robert Trevino

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Henry E Rensburg Series

30

Elgar’s Cello Concerto Thursday 24 November 7.30pm

Debussy Printemps Elgar Cello Concerto Rachmaninov Spring Cantata Borodin Symphony No.2 – Vasily Petrenko conductor Kian Soltani cello Rodion Pogossov baritone Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir sponsored by

In russia, the return of spring feels like falling in love. In France, it’s a bit more subtle – but just as beautiful. True, it’s still november in Liverpool, but tonight Vasily Petrenko has it both ways, whether in rachmaninov’s impassioned forgotten choral masterpiece, or Debussy’s blossoming celebration of new life. add the wood smoke and memories of elgar’s nostalgic, hugely popular Cello Concerto, played by the charismatic Kian Soltani, and the sheer drama of Borodin’s rollicking mini-epic of a russian symphony, and this is a concert for all seasons.

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Kian Soltani © Juventino Mateo

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

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Booking fees may apply*

Series

Pops

New World

Big Band Wonderland

Thursday 1 December 7.30pm Friday 2 December 2.30pm

Saturday 10 December & Tuesday 13 December 7.30pm “unequivocally brilliant” says one critic of the young Korean pianist seong-Jin Cho. “seemed to summon the spirit of Chopin from the air” declared another of this winner of the 2015 International Chopin Competition in Warsaw. so there probably isn’t a pianist on earth right now better-equipped to bring out all the poetry of the teenage Chopin’s ardent First Concerto!

Vasily Petrenko frames it with hindemith’s Concert Music for Brass and Strings, and Dvořák’s much-loved ‘new World’ symphony for a whole concert of music that’s all about emotion.

Hindemith Concert Music for Brass and Strings Chopin Piano Concerto No.1 Dvor˘ák Symphony No.9 ‘From the New World’ – Vasily Petrenko conductor Seong-Jin Cho piano sponsored by

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Well, ring-a-ding-ding! There’s a reason why they call this the most wonderful time of the year, and tonight vocalist Gary Williams – back by public demand after his knockout performance at new Year 2015 – hosts the most stylish Christmas party Liverpool’s ever seen. so this is your invitation to join Gary for a whole evening of the seasonal standards made famous by Bing Crosby, Johnny Mathis, andy Williams and of course Ol’ Blue eyes – the smoothest of music, delivered with a swing by the biggest band in town: the full Orchestra. It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…

Booking fees may apply*

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

Programme includes: Let It Snow It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas Mary’s Boy Child Winter Wonderland White Christmas It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year – Roderick Dunk conductor Gary Williams singer sponsored by

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Gary Williams

Seong-Jin Cho

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

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Special

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Spirit of Christmas Saturday 17, Sunday 18, Tuesday 20, Thursday 22 & Friday 23 December 7.30pm John Suchet presenter Ian Tracey conductor Ksenija Sidorova accordion Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Choir

Simon Emery Artistic Director, Youth Ensembles

sponsored by

Liverpool Philharmonic’s longestablished Carol Concerts, led by Ian Tracey, are an unmissable part of Christmas on hope street. The full Orchestra and our terrific choruses serve up a mouth-watering spread of Yuletide music for the whole family: all your favourite and traditional carols – Silent Night, O Holy Night, Come all ye Faithful – mingled with seasonal readings from our host, Classic FM’s John suchet. and this year, there’s a very special surprise in the stocking – the show-stopping accordion playing of guest star Ksenija sidorova, bringing some lovely Christmas treats. Trust us, hearing is believing! entertainment guaranteed – plus, of course, a good old festive singalong!

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Ksenija Sidorova

Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

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Pops

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Bring in the New Year Saturday 31 December 7.30pm Tom Richards conductor Joe Stilgoe singer

Joe Stilgoe © Matt Humprey

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ET - TM & © Universal Studios

– Bring in the new Year with a real bang as singer, songwriter and allround performer Joe stilgoe pays tribute to the music that brought hollywood to life with all-time classics from and inspired by the greatest films over the last century.

Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head, It Had to Be You, Stuck in the Middle, Ain’t that a Kick in the Head, Great Balls of Fire, Surrey with the Fringe on Top, Goodnight Sweetheart, Live and Let Die and many more… so come and join us for a musical romp down memory lane.

Pops

Liverpool John Moores University Series

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial: Film with Live Orchestra!

U

Messiah Saturday 7 January 7pm (please note start time)

Monday 2 January 2pm & 7pm (please note start time) Dirk Brossé conductor

A Steven Spielberg Film

A Universal Picture TM & © Universal Studios (Running time approximately 2 hours 45 minutes)

an ordinary street, an ordinary little boy… and an extraordinary visitor, lost a long way from home. steven spielberg’s E.T. The ExtraTerrestrial is a modern-day fairy-tale. and with John Williams’s glorious soundtrack performed live by the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, it’s never felt more magical – because there isn’t a cinema in the world that can match the sound of a full orchestra taking flight. Bring the little ones and share your sense of wonder with a whole new generation: this is a new Year treat for all ages.

hallelujah! Two centuries before The Beatles, handel’s Messiah was already the biggest hit in the history of British music – and with tunes like Ev’ry Valley, For Unto Us A Child is Born and The Trumpet Shall Sound, it’s easy to hear why!

Messiah is less a classical masterpiece, more a national institution, so this annual performance is always a highlight of our calendar – and a magnificent showcase for our terrific royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir.

Conductor Frank Markowitsch is renowned for his fresh approach to 18th-century music: there’s no more inspiring way to begin a new year.

Handel Messiah – Frank Markowitsch conductor Ruby Hughes soprano Claudia Huckle alto Thomas Walker tenor Neal Davies bass Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir sponsored by

Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Children £15 Booking fees may apply*

Frank Markowitsch © Neda Navaee

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Series

Paul Lewis plays Mozart Thursday 12 January 7.30pm Friday 13 January 2.30pm

Liszt Les Préludes Mozart Piano Concerto No.27 in B flat, K595 Dukas The Sorcerer’s Apprentice Ravel Piano Trio (orchestrated by Yan Pascal Tortelier) – Yan Pascal Tortelier conductor Paul Lewis piano

It’s amazing what you can do with a small stick. If you’ve seen Disney’s Fantasia, you’ll already know the story of Dukas’s The Sorcerer’s Apprentice – but just wait until you hear the fabulously French orchestral magic that guest conductor Yan Pascal Tortelier has worked on ravel’s sensuous Piano Trio. First, though, we’ve got Merseyside’s very own keyboard magician Paul Lewis in Mozart’s poignant final piano concerto, and a true classic from times past: Liszt’s barnstorming Les Préludes – a marvellously noisy musical celebration of life itself. retro doesn’t get any more entertaining!

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Paul Lewis © Molina Visuals

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Henry E Rensburg Series

Sunday Afternoon Classics

100 Years of Revolution

Petrenko’s Shostakovich

Thursday 19 January 7.30pm

Sunday 22 January 2.30pm

BBC Proms and Liverpool Philharmonic 175th Anniversary Commission

Liszt / Schubert Wanderer Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra Shostakovich Symphony No.12: The Year 1917 – Vasily Petrenko conductor Teo Gheorghiu piano sponsored by

Petrograd, 1917: angry crowds fill the streets, the guns of a warship thunder in the distance, and the air buzzes with the songs of revolution. shostakovich’s 12th symphony is all about history on a blockbuster scale – and when Vasily Petrenko and the Orchestra recorded it, critics hailed the result as “superb”. now, they play it together for the first time live in Liverpool: essential listening.

First, though, the remarkable swiss pianist Teo Gheorghiu makes his Liverpool debut with a journey through romantic music’s dark underbelly - and the Wirral-born emily howard lights up the sky with her piece which was given its world premiere at the BBC Proms 2016.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Britten Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes Liszt / Schubert Wanderer Fantasy for Piano and Orchestra Shostakovich Symphony No.12: The Year 1917 – Vasily Petrenko conductor Teo Gheorghiu piano

Teo Gheorghiu © Roshan Adhihetty

Emily Howard Torus: Concerto for Orchestra

“shame on you tyrants!” We couldn’t have a year of musical revolution without shostakovich’s shattering symphonic retelling of the Bolshevik rising of October 1917.

This is musical history on a blockbuster scale – and when Vasily Petrenko and the Orchestra recorded it, critics hailed the result as “superb”. First, though, the remarkable swiss virtuoso Teo Gheorghiu makes his Liverpool debut with a journey through romantic music’s dark underbelly, and shostakovich’s friend Benjamin Britten puts to sea in four windswept extracts from Peter Grimes – the opera that revolutionised British music.

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37

Henry E Rensburg Series

Pops

Finnish Skies

Musicals Rock

Thursday 26 January 7.30pm

Saturday 28 January 7.30pm

Beethoven Leonore Overture No.3 Albert Schnelzer Oboe Concerto: The Enchanter Hummel Theme and variations for Oboe and Orchestra Sibelius Symphony No.5 – Jaime Martín conductor François Leleux oboe sponsored by

“One of the greatest experiences of my life. God, what beauty!” Few composers were as close to nature as Jean sibelius, and when he saw a flight of swans high in the Finnish sky, he heard unforgettable music. his Fifth symphony begins with a radiant sunrise and ends with that noble vision – and a tune that’ll stay with you forever. It’s a majestic finish to a concert that begins with the stirring call to freedom of Beethoven’s Leonore Overture, and features the Liverpool debut of oboist extraordinaire Franҫois Leleux in two tongue-twisting, eartickling musical extravaganzas!

Programme includes: Music from Mamma Mia, Evita, Chess, Grease, Fame and many more.

– Michael England conductor Jenna Lee-James singer Rachael Wooding singer Oliver Tompsett singer

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Jenna Lee James

Booking fees may apply*

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Let us take you on a journey through the highlights of some of the bestknown and much loved musicals. all the tunes you’ll recognise put together in one concert – the result is a feast of thrilling music together with exceptional performances from a young and vibrant cast, backed by the power and energy of the Orchestra.

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

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François Leleux © Uwe Arens

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Daniil Trifonov © Dario Acosta / Deutsche Grammophon

Series

Russian Superstars Thursday 2 February 7.30pm Friday 3 February 2.30pm

Stravinsky Jeu de Cartes Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No.4 Prokofiev Symphony No.5 – Vasily Petrenko conductor Daniil Trifonov piano sponsored by

Thursday 2 February Join us for a free pre-concert performance of New Works in the Music Room from Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Ensembles.

See page 83.

Post-concert Question Time Starts 15 minutes after the concert (Music Room) Pianist Daniil Trifonov and Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko.

See page 76.

Forged in the crucible of war and premiered to the sound of gunfire, Prokofiev’s massive Fifth symphony is dedicated to “the greatness of the human spirit”. sounds ambitious?

Vasily Petrenko and the full Orchestra will make it catch fire. and if you only know rachmaninov’s second and third piano concertos, just wait until you hear the Tchaikovsky Competitionwinning Daniil Trifonov in the Fourth: the closest rachmaninov ever came to jazz. stravinsky’s brilliant card-trick of a ballet launches an evening of high stakes and glittering prizes. Make sure you catch this rare opportunity to witness this russian superstar in his only uK appearance outside London this season.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

“

He is a phenomenon ... he leaves you struggling for superlatives.

The Guardian

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39

Liverpool John Moores University Series

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Night at the Opera Saturday 18 February 7.30pm

Puccini arias and Duets from Tosca and La Bohème Verdi arias from La Traviata Saint-Saëns Bacchanale from Samson and Delilah Gounod Duet from Romeo and Juliet Respighi Fountains of Rome – Aleksandar Markovi´ c conductor Iwona Sobotka soprano David Butt Philip tenor

Iwona Sobotka

sponsored by

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Love, glamour, and tunes to make your heart race. In Italy, opera is as popular as football – and they follow it every bit as passionately. and nothing beats the thrill of hearing a world-class voice take flight in a great aria by Puccini or Verdi. We’ve got two real opera stars tonight, plus Opera north’s sparkling new conductor and a whole evening of the melodies you love – from the tragedy of Tosca and La Traviata and the romance of La Bohème to the smouldering sensual excess of Samson and Delilah. Join us, and surrender to the emotion…

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Series

41

Firebird Thursday 23 February 7.30pm Friday 24 February 2.30pm

Elgar Violin Concerto Stravinsky Firebird Suite (1945) – Carlos Miguel Prieto conductor Ning Feng violin Thursday 23 February Post-concert Question Time Starts 15 minutes after the concert (Music Room) Violinist Ning Feng and conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto answer your questions about tonight’s performance. See page 76.

everyone loves elgar’s nostalgic Cello Concerto. But if you haven’t heard his Violin Concerto, you only know half the story. elgar poured all his hopes, memories and dreams into this one heartbreakingly beautiful masterpiece and to play it today we’ve re-invited the Chinese virtuoso ning Feng. Our Orchestra players think he’s a bit of a legend – and when you hear him, we think you will too! Then guest conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto dives headlong into a very different kind of fantasy: the eerie darkness and dazzling light of stravinsky’s Firebird Suite.

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Booking fees may apply*

Carlos Miguel Prieto © Benjamin Ealovega

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

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Henry E Rensburg Series

Rhapsody Thursday 2 March 7.30pm

Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 Ravel Piano Concerto in G Ravel Suite, Mother Goose Bartók Suite, The Miraculous Mandarin – Gilbert Varga conductor Louis Schwizgebel piano sponsored by

In hungary, they like their music spicy. Bartók’s The Miraculous Mandarin was considered so racy that it was actually banned in the 1920s – but returning guestconductor Gilbert Varga has hungarian blood, and tonight he conducts the suite, live and uncensored. Liszt’s Hungarian Rhapsody sets things fizzing, before Leeds International Piano Competition prize-winner Louis schwizgebel brings all his poetry and panache to ravel’s dreamy Piano Concerto – music born under the Basque sun. Before things overheat, we’ll take a trip to Mother Goose’s enchanted garden: musical fairy tales for boys and girls of all ages.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

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Louis Schwizgebel © Marco Borggreve

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Sunday Afternoon Classics

Liverpool John Moores University Series

Grieg Piano Concerto

The Damnation of Faust

Sunday 5 March 2.30pm

Saturday 11 March 7.30pm

Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody No.2 Grieg Piano Concerto in G Grieg Peer Gynt Suite Bartók Suite, The Miraculous Mandarin – Gilbert Varga conductor Louis Schwizgebel piano

If Grieg’s Piano Concerto is the world’s most popular, there’s a reason why – and we’re not just talking about Morecambe and Wise!

Like Grieg’s famous Peer Gynt suite, this is music with a huge, glowing heart, simply packed with tunes – and with the young swiss star (and Leeds International Piano Competition prize winner) Louis schwizgebel at the keyboard, you’re guaranteed a lot more than just all right notes in the right order! Back by popular demand, conductor Gilbert Varga adds a dash of paprika with two showpieces from his ancestral hungary.

“I shall enchant your eyes and ears…”

What would you trade for your wildest dreams? Young Faust makes the deadliest possible bargain – but he has one hell of a time finding out the price. half grand opera, half roofraising choral-orchestral spectacular, Berlioz’s ground-breaking The Damnation of Faust caused a scandal in 1846, and with its supernatural story and thumping good melodies, it’s one of romantic music’s most thrillingly sinful treats. Join John nelson, the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir and an all-star cast for a night when the Devil really does have all the best tunes.

Berlioz The Damnation of Faust – John Nelson conductor Toby Spence Faust Michèle Losier Marguerite Adam Lau Mephistopheles Boz˘idar Smiljani´ c Brandner Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir sponsored by

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

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Michèle Losier

Gilbert Varga © Felix Broede

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Anderson and Roe

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Henry E Rensburg Series

The Power of Two Thursday 23 March 7.30pm

Stravinsky Pulcinella Suite Poulenc Concerto for Two Pianos Sibelius Lemminkäinen Suite (Four Legends) – Christian Lindberg conductor Anderson and Roe piano duo sponsored by

Post-concert Question Time Starts 15 minutes after the concert (Music Room) Join conductor Christian Lindberg with piano duo Anderson and Roe in the Music Room after tonight’s concert and ask any question about tonight’s performance. See page 76.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

“a mighty hero, in his veins the blood of ages… but alas, he had his failings.” Lemminkaïnen is a hero like no other: loving, fighting, seducing and tasked with hunting the sacred swan, the famous Swan of Tuonela. sibelius retold his exploits in music that’s as colourful as a film score and as gripping as Game of Thrones! Conductor Christian Lindberg is one of music’s supreme entertainers, and he’ll bring just as much energy and flair to stravinsky’s cheeky mockbaroque ballet and Poulenc’s barnstorming Double Piano Concerto – with, for the first time in Liverpool, chart-topping american duo Anderson and Roe.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Henry E Rensburg Series

Sunday Afternoon Classics

Petrenko’s Mahler

Petrenko’s Mahler

Thursday 30 March 7.30pm

Sunday 2 April 2.30pm

Wolf Scherzo and Finale Mahler Symphony No.5 – Vasily Petrenko conductor sponsored by

Classic Intro 6.15pm (Music Room) Norman Lebrecht, one of the most widely-read commentators on music, culture and politics, regular presenter on BBC Radio 3 and author of Why Mahler?, returns to Liverpool to discuss Mahler’s Symphony No.5.

See page 75.

a lone trumpet sounds in the darkness and Gustav Mahler begins his great struggle from tragedy to triumph – by way of midnight storms, joyous horn-calls, and the most tender love-letter ever written without words: the rapturous Adagietto. “The symphony should be like the world” said Mahler; and with Vasily Petrenko conducting, 70 minutes of music becomes the emotional experience of a lifetime.

To start, rarities from a close friend of Mahler’s youth – the doomed genius hugo Wolf. Played together, they’re a revelation.

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a lone trumpet sounds in the darkness and Gustav Mahler begins his great struggle from tragedy to triumph – by way of midnight storms, joyous horn-calls, and the most tender love-letter ever written without words: the rapturous Adagietto. “The symphony should be like the world” said Mahler; and with Vasily Petrenko conducting, 70 minutes of music becomes the emotional experience of a lifetime.

Mendelssohn’s evergreen concerto sets the mood. his last large orchestral work, regarded as one the greatest violin concertos of all time, it is as memorable as it is beautiful.

Booking fees may apply*

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

Mendelssohn Violin Concerto Mahler Symphony No.5 – Vasily Petrenko conductor Tamsin Waley-Cohen violin

Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Tamsin Waley-Cohen © Patrick-Allen

Wolf Prelude from Der Corregidor (arranged by Mahler)

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Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Series

Symphonie Fantastique!

Thursday 6 & Friday 7 April 7.30pm

Kodály Dances of Galánta Szymanowski Violin Concerto No.1 Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique – Vasily Petrenko conductor Baiba Skride violin sponsored by

all you need is love! hector Berlioz couldn’t get the girl of his dreams. so – as you do – he wrote her a symphony: a huge, opium-fuelled riot of passions, nightmares and guillotines (well, you can’t have a good revolution without one).

Fantastique by name, fantastic by nature, it’s one of those pieces that you’ve simply got to hear live – and that goes double for szymanowski’s shimmering dreamscape of the First Violin Concerto, especially when performed by the incomparable Baiba skride. Vasily Petrenko gets the party started hungarian-style: in a blaze of fiddles.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Baiba Skride

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Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Special

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Hope and Passion Wednesday 12 April 7.30pm

Barber Adagio for Strings Rutter Requiem Rutter The Gift of Life – John Rutter conductor Elin Manahan Thomas soprano Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Choir

John rutter might just be the world’s best-loved living classical composer. Millions have sung his music, millions more have been touched by it: fresh, sincere, written with genuine love and passion.

Tonight we’re honoured to welcome the man himself to conduct both his deeply-moving Requiem, and the first Liverpool performance of The Gift of Life – a joyous new choral masterpiece celebrating “the living earth, creation and life itself”. an evening of beauty with a true living master.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

Elin Manahan Thomas

Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Henry E Rensburg Series

Symphonic Landscapes Thursday 20 April 7.30pm

Vaughan Williams Symphony No.5 Sibelius Valse Triste Vaughan Williams Symphony No.6

– Andrew Manze conductor sponsored by

Classic Intro 6.15pm (Music Room) Symphony No.5 or Symphony No.6… Which is your favourite?

Join conductor Andrew Manze in the Music Room for a conversation about tonight’s concert. See page 75.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Dedicated to sibelius, Vaughan Williams’s Fifth symphony is the english symphony of your dreams: a vision of rural peace, hauntingly beautiful and aglow with the spirit of folk song. so the one thing no-one expected was his sixth: a shattering vision of a world laid waste by World War II, told in music of devastating intensity and power. Two different faces of one very British genius, both utterly unforgettable – and conductor andrew Manze loves them both. These two masterpieces are paired together with atmospheric miniatures by Vaughan Williams’s musical hero, Jean sibelius.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Andrew Manze © Benjamin Ealovega

Sibelius Intermezzo and Alla Marcia from Karelia Suite

xxxxxxx © xxxxxxxx

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Series

Henry E Rensburg Series

Journey through Italy

Sounds like Shakespeare

Thursday 27 & Friday 28 April 7.30pm

Thursday 4 May 7.30pm

Berlioz Harold in Italy Mendelssohn Symphony No.4 ‘Italian’ Rossini Overture, William Tell – Andrew Manze conductor Lawrence Power viola

Lord Byron’s narrative poem Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage is about a maverick, an outcast, a revolutionary. But bring him together with hector Berlioz, and the result is the world’s craziest viola concerto. The wonderful British viola player Lawrence Power is harold on tonight’s Italian adventure, one that takes us from the sunlit fiesta of Mendelssohn’s Fourth symphony to the headlong gallop of rossini’s William Tell overture: the one piece everyone in the world knows! Beethoven’s overture to the play about the roman soldier Coriolan makes a suitably dramatic start to an evening of sunshine, celebration and shameless excess, conducted with verve by andrew Manze.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Otto Nicolai Overture, The Merry Wives of Windsor Elgar Falstaff Brahms Piano Concerto No.2 – Sir Andrew Davis CBE conductor Garrick Ohlsson piano sponsored by

a horn sounds quietly in the distance, and with a gentle answer from the piano, Brahms launches his second Piano Concerto: 45 minutes of majesty, mellow humour, and a slow movement that’ll melt your heart. To play it we’re proud to welcome back – for the first time this century – the american keyboard legend Garrick Ohlsson. he’s perfectly paired with our Conductor emeritus sir andrew Davis, who starts the evening with two musical tributes to an unlikely hero who simply gets better with age – shakespeare’s Falstaff.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Sir Andrew Davis CBE © Dario Costa

Beethoven Overture, Coriolan

Booking fees may apply*

If you enjoy this concert, you can catch Garrick Ohlsson in our Chamber Music Series. See page 65.

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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Henry E Rensburg Series

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Bach Concerti Thursday 11 May 7.30pm

Stravinsky Concerto in D Bach Harpsichord Concerto in F minor BWV 1056 Bach Brandenburg Concerto No.5 Bach Harpsichord Concerto in D minor BWV 1052 Stravinsky Danses Concertantes – James Clark director/violin Mahan Esfahani harpsichord sponsored by

When stravinsky turned to the music of the 18th century for inspiration, critics joked that he’d gone “Back to Bach”. In fact, he could hardly have done much better – because from the bustling celebration of Js Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos to the limitless energy and invention of his harpsichord concertos, music simply doesn’t get any more satisfying – or timeless – than this. and we’ve got one of the world’s most charismatic harpsichordists to play it: the one and only Mahan esfahani. Joint Leader of the Orchestra James Clark directs with two of stravinsky’s salutes to the Baroque era.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Liverpool John Moores University Series

Series

Guitar Concerto

The Dream Team Returns

Saturday 20 May 7.30pm

Thursday 25 & Friday 26 May 7.30pm

When the young William Walton unleashed his First symphony on an unsuspecting public, it was like a volcano had suddenly erupted amidst the peaceful countryside of english music. Fiery, furious and driven by emotions, it’s an electrifying experience: just imagine what Vasily Petrenko will do with it!

Two altogether gentler inter-war gems set the scene: respighi’s magical toybox of a ballet, and the Italian Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s dreamy Guitar Concerto – inspired by the sunlit hills of Tuscany, played tonight by one of the world’s leading classical guitarists.

Respighi, after Rossini La Boutique Fantasque Castelnuovo-Tedesco Guitar Concerto Walton Symphony No.1 – Vasily Petrenko conductor Craig Ogden guitar sponsored by

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42

Craig Ogden

Booking fees may apply*

Tchaikovsky The Seasons: April, May, June, July, August (orchestrated by sergei abir) Prokofiev Piano Concerto No.3 Smetana Má Vlast: Vltava, Šárka, Blaník – Vasily Petrenko conductor Simon Trpc˘eski piano sponsored by

The rushworth Foundation

They’ve been called the “dream team” and when Vasily Petrenko and the Orchestra come together with Macedonian firebrand simon Trpčeski, they generate enough electricity to light up a city. Mind you, Prokofiev’s explosive Third Piano Concerto is pretty high-voltage to begin with: believe us, this is going to get hot. But first Petrenko begins with Tchaikovsky’s lovely little watercolours of the russian seasons – and ends with a true orchestral party-piece: smetana’s stirring tribute to his Czech homeland, including his gloriously scenic musical trip down the river Vltava.

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

The new ‘Dream Team’ recording of Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No.3 is due out in May 2017… Keep an eye out for it on sale in the foyer!

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“

SPECIAL

The most important and influential rock and roll album ever recorded.

The Oxford encyclopedia of British Literature

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A historic departure in the progress of music ... any music.

Time Magazine

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Wednesday 31 May & Saturday 3 June 7.30pm

It was 50 years ago today…

A Celebration of The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (arranged by nigel Osborne) – The Bootleg Beatles Roger McGough presenter Post-concert Question Time Starts 15 minutes after the concert (Music Room) Born in Liverpool, Roger McGough is President of the Poetry Society and one of Britain's best loved poets. He rose to fame in the sixties with the publication of the ground-breaking collection The Mersey Sound in 1967. Tonight as we celebrate 50 years of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, he is joined by Mike Jones, Lecturer of Music Industries at University of Liverpool and Beatles expert… ready for your questions. See page 76.

Join us as we celebrate the ‘summer of Love’ – flowers and flares allowed!

Please note this concert is not part of the subscription package and goes on general sale on 1 June 2016.

It was 50 years ago today is being performed in Liverpool, London and Birmingham.

It was fifty years ago today – no, we can’t believe it either! as Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band hits its half century, this eveninglong symphonic re-creation of the Beatles’ most famous album arranged by nigel Osborne for full orchestra is our salute to the summer of Love when four lads from Liverpool revolutionised the world of pop music. With more than a little help from our good friends The Bootleg Beatles (“You probably know the chords better than I do”: George harrison) the full Orchestra will perform this iconic album live in its entirety, along with all the hits you’ll remember from the heady days of 1967 including… Strawberry Fields, All You Need is Love, Penny Lane.

There’ll never be another Fab Four – but this comes pretty close and we hope you’ll join us for this rare opportunity to hear the music of The Beatles as you’ve never heard it before.

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Tickets £35, £49, £55, £65 Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Liverpool John Moores University Series

Henry E Rensburg Series

Gloria!

Concerto for Orchestra

Saturday 10 June 7.30pm Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral

Thursday 15 June 7.30pm

undoubtedly the most high-profile composer of religious music in the country today, James MacMillan James MacMillan originally wrote Gloria to Gloria commemorate the 50th anniversary Messiaen of the consecration of the new Les Offrandes oubliées cathedral in Coventry. Written Poulenc specifically for a leading tenor soloist, Gloria Ian Bostridge performed in that first – performance, and both Ian and James Sir James MacMillan CBE conductor join us in Liverpool as we celebrate Ian Bostridge CBE tenor the 50th anniversary of Liverpool’s Royal Liverpool second cathedral on hope street. The Philharmonic Choir royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir, with choirs of Liverpool joined by the choirs of Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral Metropolitan Cathedral will surely raise the roof with an evening that promises to be glorious.

– Tickets £25

Gabrieli Canzonas

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Once upon a time… a practical joker causes mayhem in medieval Germany: you’ll hear every bang, crash and giggle in strauss’s outrageous Till Eulenspiegel. exiled and ill, Béla Bartók looks into his soul and finds a roof-raising shout of joy in his irresistibly colourful Concerto for Orchestra. and the 25-year-old Beethoven is a man in a hurry, out to make a serious splash.

With Juraj Valc˘uha and evgeni Bozhanov, two of the hottest properties on the european concert scene, both making their Liverpool debuts, you are in for a treat.

Strauss Till Eulenspiegel Beethoven Piano Concerto No.3 Bartók Concerto for Orchestra – Juraj Valc˘uha conductor Evgeni Bozhanov piano sponsored by

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Tickets £15, £20, £26, £32, £42 Booking fees may apply*

Booking fees may apply* Please note that this concert takes place at Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral where seating is unreserved. sponsored by

Goldberg Variations See page 72 for an additional performance this evening, starting at 10pm.

Juraj Valcuha

Sir James MacMillan CBE

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Series

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White Nights Thursday 22 & Friday 23 June 7.30pm

Stravinsky Circus Polka Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto Stravinsky Petrushka (1911 original) – Vasily Petrenko conductor Ray Chen violin

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Tickets £19, £25, £33, £38, £45 Booking fees may apply*

Ray Chen © Sophie Zhai

Thursday 22 June Post concert Question Time Starts 15 minutes after the end of the concert (Music Room) This is your last opportunity this season to join us in our postconcert question time, so come and ask Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko and violinist Ray Chen your questions. See page 76.

The White nights are here, and in russia, the sun shines all night long.

We can’t promise that in Liverpool, exactly – but we can light up the sky with fireworks for the ears! stravinsky’s Petrushka crackles with all the colours and noises of a russian funfair, and Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto begins as a love song and ends in an all-night danceoff. Violinist ray Chen stormed the Liverpool stage in 2014 and returns to get the party started, after Vasily Petrenko and the Orchestra don’t so much ignore the elephant in the room as boogie right on down with it in stravinsky’s utterly daft and immensely enjoyable Circus Polka.

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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Y L I M FA S T R E C N O C

“

Fab afternoon @liverpoolphil. Such an awesome way to get kids involved in orchestral music.

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Liverpool Philharmonic Family Concerts are a great way for children and adults to experience the sights and sounds of a full symphony orchestra. The concerts are approximately an hour long, and are designed with children in mind with lots of tunes that you’ll be familiar with. So come along and join in with the fun.

Fidgeting and wriggling are allowed!

IntergalactIc SING-ALONG Journey WITH SANTA

Sunday 6 November 2.30pm

Saturday 17 & Sunday 18 December 11.30am & 2.30pm Thursday 22 December 2.30pm

Jean-Claude Picard conductor Alasdair Malloy presenter – Programme includes: Music from Superman, Star Wars: The Force Awakens, E.T. and Doctor Who. –

Michael Seal conductor Alasdair Malloy presenter Melody Makers Liverpool Philharmonic Children’s Choir –

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra is ready to take off and go on a journey out of this world! With all the tunes you’ll recognise from Star Trek, Superman, the mighty and menacing Mars from holst’s The Planets, the latest Star Wars film, The Force Awakens and many more, make sure you book your seats to join us on our intergalactic adventure.

Why not dress up as your favourite intergalactic traveller?!

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Tickets £11, £15, £19 (adults) £8, £10, £12 (children) Booking fees may apply*

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Our decorations are up, the Orchestra is in the mood for some festive cheer and our wonderful Melody Makers and Liverpool Philharmonic Children’s Choir are ready to kick start Christmas with lots of songs to sing-along and bopalong to. a special someone with a white beard and red coat will be dropping by so make sure you bring your friends and family, your best voice and your best moves as we all get ready to take Christmas by storm.

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Tickets £14, £17, £26 (adults) £9, £10, £14 (children) Booking fees may apply*

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Tickets £11, £15, £19 (adults) £8, £10, £12 (children) Booking fees may apply*

Musicians from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra –

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Tickets £11 (adults) £7 (children) Booking fees may apply*

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These concerts introduce young children to the different sounds of our Orchestra through story-telling. We’re inviting you to come along to the Mad Professor’s laboratory where presenter Claire Henry will conduct all sorts of mad-cap musical experiments with musicians from our Orchestra.

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It’s never too early to introduce your children to the sights and sounds of an Orchestra. This season we’ve got new concerts designed specifically for our youngest audiences. Fidgeting, wriggling, dancing and exploring are all part of the experience as we invite you to the Music room for informal and interactive fun for the youngest members of the family.

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sleeping Beauty, robin hood, Princess Fiona, the Queen of narnia – who is your favourite character from the land of fairy tales? Why not dress up and let us know?

Claire Henry presenter

se e

From fairy tale palaces to princes and princesses, join the Orchestra and court jester (and presenter) Alasdair Malloy as we explore the musical and magical kingdoms from the Tales of Narnia, Robin Hood, Beauty and the Beast and many more. We’ll glide through the beautiful Sleeping Beauty Waltz and end with an all-out party as guests at shrek’s Swamp Dance!

Saturday 17 June 1pm & 2.45pm Music Room

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Michael Seal conductor Alasdair Malloy presenter –

NEW!

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Sunday 9 April 2.30pm

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Y A ou m K E in ig M .T. T d o ht us he f al M so ic al Ext ag lik s Ro ra- ic (s e… ck Ter ee (s re pag s ee e pa tria 23 ge l( )

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The whole show is fantastic. Santa is simply wonderful in engaging the audience. The choir were fabulous. The musicians are first class. We hire a minibus and make a special event of it for the children and grandchildren.

Magical Musical The Mad Professor Family Concert especially for the under 5s.

Kingdoms

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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FOCUS ON BACH To hear the music of Johann Sebastian Bach is like hearing the inner workings of the Universe – music that echoes down the centuries, weaving patterns and drawing out emotions that feel as eternal as nature and as truthful as the deepest secrets of our own souls. Every musician loves to play Bach, and this season, in the intimate spaces of St George’s Hall Concert Room and our new Music Room, you can experience it straight from the source: from the joyous celebration of the Goldberg Variations to the pure, unadorned beauty of the suites and sonatas for solo cello and violin. Music that’s quite simply as good as it gets: here, now – and forever.

‘Bach belongs not to the past, but to the future.’

George Bernard Shaw

Chamber Music

at st George’s hall Concert room

Liverpool Philharmonic’s Chamber Music Series features performances by some of the world’s greatest string quartets, vocalists and recital artists in the stunning St George’s Hall Concert Room. This intimate space, seating up to 450 people, provides a splendid setting for these concerts.

R EVOLUTION Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

sponsored by

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James Ehnes violin Tuesday 27 September 7.30pm Tuesday 4 October 7.30pm

Tuesday 4 October 7.30pm Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin: Partita No.3 Sonata No.2 Partita No.2

‘In the beginning there was Bach, and James Ehnes… Music lovers drank in Ehnes’ performance – the purity of his phrasing, the precision of his intonation and the power of his interpretation.’

The seattle Times

a revolution doesn’t have to be noisy: sometimes all it takes is one man and a violin. Over two extraordinary concerts, our artist in residence James ehnes plays all of Johann sebastian Bach’s sonatas and Partitas for solo violin – some of the most sophisticated and yet piercingly beautiful music ever created for a bow and four strings. a universe in a grain of sand: there’s no greater, or purer, challenge for any artist or any audience. Be there, and be transported.

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

James Ehnes © Benjamin Elaovega

Tuesday 27 September 7.30pm Bach Sonatas and Partitas for Solo Violin: Sonata No.1 Partita No.1 Sonata No.3

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Jamie Barton mezzo-soprano James Baillieu piano

Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio

Wednesday 19 October 7.30pm

Tuesday 1 November 7.30pm

Turina Homage to Lope de Vega Dvor˘ák Gypsy Songs Op.55 Sibelius Six Songs Brahms selection of Lieder

‘A great artist, no question, with an imperturbable steadiness of tone, and a nobility of utterance that invites comparison not so much with her contemporaries as with mid-20th century greats such as Kirsten Flagstad.’

The Guardian

British audiences first discovered the american mezzo Jamie Barton when she swept the board at the 2013 Cardiff singer of the World competition. But even without her keen musical intelligence – and that radiant voice – this song recital would be worth hearing for Barton’s wonderfully imaginative choice of music: favourites by Brahms and Dvořák mingling with exquisite rediscoveries by sibelius and Joaquín Turina.

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Beethoven String Trio in B flat major Op.11 Shostakovich Piano Trio No.2 in E minor Op.67 Brahms Piano Trio No.1 in B major Op.8 (revised)

KLR Trio © Christian Steiner

Programme includes:

Jamie Barton © Stacey Bode

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Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

‘It's a rare luxury to hear musicmaking of such integrity and joy, and an equally rare privilege to be party to such an intimate musical conversation.’ american record Guide

since their debut at the White house in 1977, the KalichsteinLaredo-robinson Trio have built a worldwide reputation – and in their fortieth year, and still performing with their original line-up, they’re arguably the world’s finest Piano Trio. In this rare Liverpool appearance they explore the heartland of the trio repertoire – youthful Beethoven, Brahms at his most ardently romantic, and shostakovich’s searingly personal second Trio.

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Ehnes Quartet

Red Priest Winter Baroque Carnival

Wednesday 23 November 7.30pm

Friday 9 December 7.30pm

Mozart String Quartet in B flat major K589 ‘Prussian’ Bartók String Quartet No.4 Dvor˘ák Selections from Cypresses Tchaikovsky String Quartet No.1

‘An impressive programme from an impressive group of musicians. The bravura of the players certainly left an impression, but it is likely the soft moments that will not be forgotten.’

Bachtrack

For James ehnes, chamber music is the centre of his musical life – and in the ehnes Quartet he’s found exactly the right people with which to explore it. “It took only about five minutes into rehearsal for me to realise this is something special” he says, and tonight the ehnes Quartet shares that unique connection in three landmarks of the quartet repertoire, plus Dvořák’s enchanting Cypresses – a magical bonus.

‘Purists would probably run a mile from what Red Priest does to this music, but virtuosity, verve and creative spontaneity are fused together in a way that makes the impact positively volcanic.’

The Daily Telegraph

Programme includes: Corelli Concerto Grosso in G minor ‘Christmas Concerto’ Vivaldi Winter from The Four Seasons

They called him the red Priest – but you probably know him better as antonio Vivaldi. Led by recorder player extraordinaire Piers adams, “Baroque supergroup” red Priest puts the anarchy back into Baroque music, making every performance into a carnival. Tonight, they give a spectacular twist to music by Corelli, handel, Bach – and of course Vivaldi himself. something hot and strong for a winter night: this should be sensational!

Handel Suite from Messiah

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Tickets £25

Red Priest

Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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Armida Quartet Sunday 8 January 2.30pm

Haydn String Quartet Op.33 No.6 ‘Russian’ Marko Nikodijevi´ c String Quartet Beethoven String Quartet Op.59 No.1 ‘Razumovsky’ –

supported by rodewald Concert society

‘Absolute dedication to the music, combined with diligence and precision, created permanent goosebumps. That is why the Armida Quartet is already one of the today’s greatest chamber groups.’ hamburger abendblatt

as former BBC new Generation artists, the Berlin-based armida Quartet has already established themselves as one of the most striking ensembles on the european scene. This powerful programme lets them test their mettle against two of the supreme masters of string chamber music – haydn and Beethoven – plus a new work, from the young serbian composer Marko nikodijevi´c.

Armida Quartet © Felix Broede

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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Kirill Gerstein piano Sunday 12 February 2.30pm

Bach 4 Duettos, BWV 802-805 Brahms Piano Sonata No.2 in F sharp minor Op.2

Kirill Gerstein © Marco Borggreve

Liszt Transcendental Études

‘Gerstein scored a knockout … [his] playing was distinguished by his mastery of the music's ever shifting moods. He unleashed the fire of feverishly impassioned moments, then bought subtle artistry to more delicate effects…’ houston Chronicle

‘The audience was stunned by Gerstein's hour of knife-edge virtuosity.’ new Zealand herald

russian-born pianist Kirill Gerstein doesn’t just play with a lightning virtuosity that recalls the great russian virtuosi of the past. he brings poetic insight to everything he touches, and this Liverpool recital programme opens amidst the timeless beauty of Bach before Gerstein scales the everest of romantic pianism: a full performance of Liszt’s jaw-dropping Transcendental Études.

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Brodsky Quartet With Martin Roscoe piano Wednesday 8 March 7.30pm

Beethoven String Quartet No.14 Op 131 Elgar Piano Quintet

“It’s ghostly stuff.” even edward elgar himself knew there was something unique about his Piano Quintet – a haunted, impassioned masterpiece written in the embers of the First World War. and when one of Britain’s most dynamic string quartets comes together with the great Cheshire-born pianist Martin roscoe, you know to expect something special: masterpieces by Bach and Beethoven will be worth the price of admission in their own right.

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Kitty Whately © Natalie J Watts

‘The players gave unstintingly of their passion and energies, playing with a spirit so transformational you felt they were actually improving the world. Had it not been for dry concert conventions, they would surely have called a lock-in and played through the night.’

The strad

Bach The Art of Fugue

Brodsky Quartet

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Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Kitty Whately soprano Joseph Middleton piano Madelaine Newton speaker

Garrick Ohlsson piano Friday 5 May 7.30pm

Tuesday 25 April 7.30pm

Programme includes: Vaughan Williams Silent Noon Trad.

Ma Bonny Lad Gurney Down By The Salley Gardens Arne Where the Bee Sucks, There Suck I Korngold Four Shakespeare Songs Op.31

‘Whately is a captivating live performer… In an age of glossily interchangeable international artists, this one isn’t afraid to tell us her story. I, for one, want to hear more.’

Gramophone

as a winner of the Kathleen Ferrier award and a former BBC new Generation artist, Kitty Whately has emerged as one of Britain’s most characterful young sopranos.

Tonight she presents a recital with a very personal difference. This Other Eden is an evening inspired by the landscape of england, with music by Vaughan Williams, Britten and arne matched by the words of shakespeare, Walter de la Mare, Thomas hardy and many others – performed by Kitty’s mother, actress Madelaine newton.

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Beethoven Sonata No.24 in F sharp major Op.78 Schubert Sonata in A major D959 Smetana selection from Czech Dances Falla Andaluza from Cuatro Piezas Españolas Falla suite from El Amor Brujo

Garrick Ohlsson © Paul Body

This Other Eden

‘Magnificently eagle-like, powerful and steady yet ready to swoop on the incidental details. The American pianist approached the monumental side of the work with seeming effortlessness, but his playing was also full of refinement.’

The Daily Telegraph

It’s taken us over two decades to bring the great american pianist Garrick Ohlsson back to Liverpool Philharmonic and following his performance of Brahms’s second Concerto (Thursday 4 May, see page 49) this recital will show why it’s been worth the wait. Ohlsson’s command of Beethoven and schubert goes without saying – but from smetana’s playful Czech dances to a whole sequence of spanish miniatures, the second half of his programme shows that he’s not afraid to smile, too.

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Tickets £25

Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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Katona Twins Tuesday 6 June 7.30pm

‘Rocking on stage like the Fab Four, the duo oozed attitude.’

The straits Times

Programme includes: Bach French Suite No.5 in G major

‘The brilliant Katona Twins… could hardly be bettered for charm, zest, wit and colouristic flair.’

The Daily Telegraph

Bartók Romanian Folk Dances Beatles Day Tripper, Come Together, Eleanor Rigby

Born in hungary but at home in Liverpool, there’s only one word to describe the classical guitar playing of Peter and Zoltán Katona: phenomenal. Their appearances always bring the house down: in tonight’s programme, two musical worlds collide, as folk-inspired music from Bartók and Kodály will spark off their own versions of Beatles songs – performed with that unforgettable Katona showmanship.

Watch those fingers fly!

Kodály Dances of Galánta

arranged by the Katona Twins

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Tickets £25 Katona Twins

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Booking fees may apply*

ensemble 10/10 Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’s award-winning contemporary music group, Ensemble 10/10 is taking part in University of Liverpool’s Open Circuit Festival and performing

in the stunning surroundings of St George’s Hall Concert Room and our new venue Music Room.

They present programmes which feature composers of the best contemporary music of today.

23 Songs of a Mad Woman Wednesday 5 October 8pm Music Room

Call of the North

Swedish Meatballs

Wednesday 26 October 7.30pm St George’s Hall Concert Room

Saturday 25 March 7.30pm Leggate Theatre, University of Liverpool, part of Open Circuit Festival

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“There’s a sense of positive musical creativity in Liverpool” says composer Kenneth hesketh, who took siren whistles, images of cinema and that golden glow at the end of the day to create his riotous Theatre of Attractions. Gary Carpenter takes a tropical journey, the late John McCabe loses himself in the australian jungle, and amidst all the colour and action, new voices make themselves heard with a World Premiere from Christopher Brooks Composition Prize winner, Bethan Morgan-Williams. In other words, just another evening of adventures beyond the imagination from Clark Rundell and Liverpool’s all-star team of new music champions, Ensemble 10/10.

Booking fees may apply*

Tickets £15

James Wishart 23 Songs of a Madwoman Dot.Song Tango in L – Clark Rundell conductor Ensemble 10/10 –

Music, madness and a tango bent at a very strange angle… welcome to the incredible soundworld of Liverpool composer James Wishart for his 60th birthday. Clark Rundell and Ensemble 10/10 gave the very first performances of much of this music: close up in the Music room, there’s no more thrilling, fascinating or magical way to get inside the head of a true Merseyside original.

John McCabe Rainforest Gary Carpenter Bermuda Suite and Dolphin Bethan Morgan-Williams New Work

Winner of the Christopher Brooks Composition Prize: World Premiere

Kenneth Hesketh Theatre of Attractions – Clark Rundell conductor

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Tickets £15

Christian Lindberg Conder Canyon for Trombone and Brass Quintet Andrea Tarrodi Empireo for Chamber Orchestra Jan Sandström A Short Ride On A Motorbike for trombone and strings Per Egland Give Me Your Beak

– Christian Lindberg conductor

Please note that further information and tickets for this performance are only available from the Open Circuit Festival. www.opencircuitfestival.co.uk

Clark Rundell

Booking fees may apply*

Christian Lindberg Arabenne for Trombone and Strings

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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THIS SEASON IN THE MUSIC ROOM

Get closer to live music... ... in the informal setting of our new Music Room with ensembles from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and guest artists.

Our Close Up series includes the revolutionary music of Bach, The Beatles, Stravinsky and more. Music Room provides a small and informal space to enjoy the much-loved favourites of composers new and old, or to try out something unknown or different.

Please note that seating in the Music room is unreserved. Doors open one hour before the performance start time.

As well as our Close Up series, you can enjoy our Lunchtime Concerts (page 72) in the Music Room.

Want to get more out of the music?

Check out our tours, talks and pre and post concert discussions hosted in the Music Room. For more information see pages 74-81.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Close up

The Soldier’s Tale

Monday 14 November 8pm

Sunday 30 October 8pm Stravinsky Soldier’s Tale Jim Stephenson The Devil’s Tale

– Frank Cottrell-Boyce narrator Timothy Jackson conductor Benjamin Mellefont clarinet Gareth Twigg bassoon Brendan Ball trumpet / cornet Simon Cowen trombone Mihkel Kerem violin Anthony Williams double bass – UK Premiere

Klezmer-ish © Jacqui Moore

Klezmer-ish

a weary soldier, a sinister stranger, and a deal that seems too good to be true. at the end of the Great War, Igor stravinsky created a miniature musical drama with a deadly sting in its tail. Members of the Orchestra come together to make this fateful bargain – and then for the first time in the uK, american composer Jim stephenson turns the whole thing wickedly on its head with a sequel to The Soldier’s Tale.

Thomas Verity clarinet Concettina Del Vecchio accordion Marcel Becker double bass Robert Shepley guitar / violin –

Following their sold out concert last year, Klezmer-ish, an ensemble of four musicians from the Orchestra, are back by popular demand. Join them as they let down their hair to entertain with an evening of music fused from gypsy jazz, tango and klezmer.

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Tickets £15

Booking fees may apply*

–

Tickets £15

Booking fees may apply*

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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Ksenija Sidorova Monday 19 December 8pm Ksenija Sidorova accordion

as our special guest in our traditional spirit of Christmas concerts, this close up experience with world famous accordionist Ksenija sidorova will guarantee an evening of mesmerising music. Full of passion, fiercely energetic and compelling to watch, wait ‘til you hear her play! The versatility of this instrument will be evident in a programme of music that Ksenija loves the most, including works from Mozart as well as some less known composers who have written for the instrument including Kusiakov, Voitenko and schnittke.

John Harle 60th Birthday Bash

Wednesday 4 January 8pm

Wednesday 15 February 8pm

Considered to be amongst the most profound of all classical musical works, our Principal Cello Jonathan aasgaard will wow you with two evenings of pure unadulterated Bach with a rare opportunity to enjoy all of his Solo Cello Suites.

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Tickets £15

Booking fees may apply*

John Harle saxophone Steve Lodder piano

John harle has done more than any other saxophonist to increase the repertoire for the saxophone. On the occasion of his 60th birthday John asked his composer friends… elvis Costello, Carl Davis, Michael nyman, Graham Fitkin and more… to write short pieces for him: the outcome will be an evening of music representing the worlds of classical, jazz, rock and new music.

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Tickets £15

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Bach’s Cello Suites: Part Two

Tickets £15

Booking fees may apply*

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Bach’s Cello Suites: Part One Bach Cello Suites 1, 4 & 5 – Jonathan Aasgaard cello

Booking fees may apply*

Wednesday 11 January 8pm Bach Cello Suites 2, 3 & 6 – Jonathan Aasgaard cello – Tickets £15

Booking fees may apply*

John Harle

Ksenija Sidorova

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Anderson and Roe

New York Counterpoint

Monday 20 March 8pm

Wednesday 10 May 8pm

Programme includes: Stravinsky The Rite of Spring arranged for piano duo

Programme includes: Steve Reich New York Counterpoint Ianuis Xenakis Charisma

Plus works by Piazzolla, Thomas Adès, Coldplay and Lennon and McCartney – Anderson and Roe piano duo

Tickets £15

Booking fees may apply*

right up to the modern day: the kaleidoscopic music of Lindberg’s Steamboat Bill Jr. and the intense duo Charisma written in homage to the French composer Jean-Pierre Guézec.

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Tickets £15

Booking fees may apply*

Bach Allemande Salvatore Sciarrino Let me die before I wake – Benjamin Mellefont clarinet Deni Teo cello

One of our latest signings, Benjamin Mellefont, Principal Clarinet, performs steve reich’s New York Counterpoint, a composition intended to capture the throbbing vibrancy of Manhattan. This programme is packed with revolutionary music from the Baroque era with Bach’s Allemande

Benjamin Mellefont © Mark McNulty

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Béla Kovács Homage to Manuel de Falla

Anderson and Roe © Lisa Marie Mazzucco

a century ago, stravinsky’s Rite of Spring put a stick of dynamite under the world of classical music. and now piano duo anderson and roe will shake it up again in the Music room with musical acts of revolution by Piazzolla, adès and John Lennon. expect to leave with your ears buzzing and your mind in overdrive.

Magnus Lindberg Steamboat Bill Jr.

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Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

Goldberg Variations Thursday 15 June 10pm Bach Goldberg Variations arranged by Dmitri sitkovetsky – James Clark violin Vicci Wardman viola Jonathan Aasgaard cello

They say that Bach wrote his Goldberg Variations to soothe a sleepless nobleman. a simple melody unlocks a chain of 30 musical puzzles; brilliant, intricate and endlessly fascinating, they’re bigger than the imagination of any one performer. Tonight, three of our string players come together for a late night encounter with one of music’s most beautiful minds.

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Lunchtime Concerts Join us in the Music Room for a musical interlude to your busy day with our series of Lunchtime Concerts. These concerts, all of which feature musicians and ensembles from the Orchestra, last about an hour and are just £8.

Please note that seating in the Music room is unreserved. Doors open at 12 noon so turn up early, grab a coffee or a bite to eat and choose your seat to enjoy some of the best music in town!

Cello Sonata Monday 10 October 1pm Delius Cello Sonata Frank Bridge Four pieces for Cello and Piano Cello Sonata Spring Song – Liubov Ulybysheva cello John Paul Ekins piano – Tickets £8

Booking fees may apply*

sponsored by

Tickets £10

Booking fees may apply*

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Please note that the start time of this performance is 10pm, and follows in the main hall after the ‘Concerto for Orchestra’ concert (see page 54).

Liubov Ulybysheva

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Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

All Cellos Monday 12 December 1pm Programme includes: Barber Adagio for Strings Carlos Gardel Tango ‘Por Una Cabeza’ Wagner Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde Ian Stephens Dance for Eight – Jonathan Aasgaard Hilary Browning Ian Bracken Gethyn Jones Stephen Mann Ruth Owens Alexander Holladay Mark Lindley Liubov Ulybysheva –

Ensemble of St Luke’s

Beatles Best for String Quartet

Monday 23 January 1pm

Monday 27 March 1pm

Stravinsky Three Pieces for String Quartet

An All-Beatles programme of music for string quartet including: Hey Jude Strawberry Fields Get Back – James Clark violin Sarah Hill violin Daniel Sanxis viola Hilary Browning cello –

Ian Stephens Dances Overheard Beethoven String Quartet Op.18 No.4 – Alexander Marks violin Sophie Coles violin Robert Shepley viola Gethyn Jones cello – Tickets £8

Booking fees may apply*

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Jonathan Aasgaard and Ian Buckle Monday 8 May 1pm Beethoven Cello Sonata in A major Op.69 Shostakovich Cello Sonata in D minor Op.40 – Jonathan Aasgaard cello Ian Buckle piano – Tickets £8

Booking fees may apply*

Tickets £8

Booking fees may apply*

Thomas Verity & Simon Passmore

© Mark McNulty

Booking fees may apply*

Programme includes works by John McCabe, John Ireland and more.

– Thomas Verity clarinet Simon Passmore piano – Tickets £8

Booking fees may apply*

Jonathan Aasgaard © Mark McNulty

Monday 27 February 1pm

Tickets £8

Booking Fees *Online/Phone 7.5% per order administrative fee applies, including all costs. standard postage is free. In Person no fees for cash / debit card payments. Credit card payments incur a 2% transaction fee, cheque payments subject to 70p order charge.

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TALK, TOURS AND TAKING PART There are lots of ways to get more out of music‌ Understand the social, political or historical context to the music, learn more about composers, hear from world-class musicians, ask questions of world famous artists or join us on a tour to discover the workings, stories and myths of Liverpool Philharmonic Hall past and present!

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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A Perfect Introduction: Our free pre-concert talks and interviews with visiting artists are a great way to get more out of the performance. The talks are free to all ticket holders.

Andrew Manze © Benajim Ealovega

They start at 6.15pm in the Music room.

Eroica (see page 19) Thursday 15 September 6.15pm – stephen Johnson speaks about Beethoven’s symphonies as we embark upon the complete cycle in september. stephen broadcasts frequently for BBC radio 3, 4 and the World service. he presents BBC radio 3’s Discovering Music and is a regular contributor to BBC Music Magazine.

Psycho: Film with Live Orchestra! (see page 26) Monday 31 October 6.15pm – Dr ruth Doughty, a member of the faculty of the Liverpool screen school at Liverpool John Moores university, speaks about Psycho and its magnificent score by Bernard herrmann.

Petrenko’s Mahler (see page 45) Thursday 30 March 6.15pm – norman Lebrecht, one of the most widely-read commentators on music, culture and politics, regular presenter on BBC radio 3 and author of Why Mahler?, returns to Liverpool to discuss Mahler’s Symphony No.5.

Symphonic Landscapes (see page 48) Thursday 20 April 6.15pm – Conductor andrew Manze discusses Vaughan Williams’ symphonies no.5 and 6.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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Get More from the Music Post-Concert Question Time If you’ve ever left a concert wanting to learn more about the performers or repertoire performed, this is your chance to ask! Join conductors and soloists in an informal question and answer session starting 15 minutes after the end of the concert in our new venue, Music room.

The events are free to all ticketholders and last approximately 30 minutes.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Beethoven Finale (see page 22) Friday 30 September Join our artist in residence James ehnes and conductor andrew Manze as we come to the conclusion of Beethoven’s symphonies.

– Mozart Clarinet Concerto (see page 23) Thursday 13 October Conductor nicholas Collon and one of our latest signings, Principal Clarinet Benjamin Mellefont.

– Russian Superstars (see page 39) Thursday 2 February Pianist Daniil Trifonov and Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko.

– Firebird (see page 41) Thursday 23 February Violinist ning Feng and conductor Carlos Miguel Prieto – The Power of Two (see page 44) Thursday 23 March Conductor Christian Lindberg and american duo anderson and roe.

It was 50 years ago today (see page 52) Wednesday 31 May Born in Liverpool, roger McGough is President of the Poetry society and one of Britain's best loved poets. he rose to fame in the sixties with the publication of the groundbreaking collection The Mersey Sound. Tonight as we celebrate 50 years of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, he is joined by Mike Jones, Lecturer of Music Industries at university of Liverpool… ready for your questions.

– White Nights (see page 55) Thursday 22 June This is your last opportunity this season to join us in our post-concert question time, so come and ask Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko and violinist ray Chen your questions.

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xxxxxxxxxxx Discover the Classics Join us to discover the musical, social and historical stories behind some of the revolutionary music, composers and artists in the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’s 2016 – 2017 season.

hosted by Classic FM Creative Director and Breakfast show host, Tim Lihoreau, Jane Jones, presenter of Classic FM’s The Full Works concerts and the Weekend Breakfast Show, and cellist from our Orchestra, Gethyn Jones, Discover the Classics sessions are packed with insight and musical interludes.

Tim, Jane and Gethyn are joined by Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko and Benjamin Mellefont to provide commentary with plenty of opportunities for questions, discussion, fun and lively debate. all you need is a passion for music, we’ll take care of the rest!

sessions take place on saturdays from 11am to 1pm in the Music room.

Saturday 17 September Tim Lihoreau with Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko

This Discover the Classics session is linked to the Beethoven symphonic cycle, the first four concerts of the season (see pages 19-21).

– Saturday 8 October Gethyn Jones with Benjamin Mellefont This Discover the Classics session is linked to the concerts on 13 & 14 October (see page 23).

– Saturday 15 October Tim Lihoreau on Rachmaninov

This Discover the Classics session is linked to the concert on 20 October (see page 24).

– Saturday 19 November Tim Lihoreau with Nicola Benedetti

This Discover the Classics session is linked to the concerts on 17 & 20 november (see page 28-29).

Saturday 21 January Tim Lihoreau with Chief Conductor Vasily Petrenko

This Discover the Classics session is linked to the concert on 22 January (see page 37).

– Saturday 11 March Jane Jones

This Discover the Classics session is linked to the concert on 11 March (see page 43).

– Please note that these sessions are designed to be informal and informative. Discussions will be based on the concerts highlighted, but will not necessarily always include a discussion about every aspect of the repertoire.

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Tickets £15 per session or £75 for all six sessions.

Students / claimants £10 per session.

Booking fees may apply*

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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Discover the Classics

Lunchtime Learning Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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xxxxxxxxxxx Lunchtime Learning ever wanted to learn more about the revolutionary music of Beethoven or ask questions to musicians about the music they love to play? Lunchtime Learning is the perfect place to be… a chance to learn something new, meet like-minded people and enjoy inspiring music…

Join composer and lecturer Ian stephens in our Lunchtime Learning series in the Music room. Informal and friendly, these two-hour sessions are open to everyone, whether you are new to classical music or a regular concert-goer.

This season, in addition to the regular format of a workshop followed by the opportunity to listen to the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra in rehearsal, we have three Beethoven and Friends sessions with the ensemble of st Luke’s, a string quartet of royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra musicians. In these sessions we will explore Beethoven’s string quartets, looking into some of the music that inspired him and the quartets that followed in his revolutionary footsteps.

sessions take place in the Music room.

Wednesday 2 November 12.45pm Rehearsal Visit Music of Dvořák, Berlioz and Górecki, with conductor Patrycja Pieczara and mezzo-soprano Madeleine Shaw.

(Linked to the concert on 3 november) – Monday 5 December 12pm Beethoven and Friends 1 Ensemble of St Luke’s – Wednesday 11 January 12.45pm Rehearsal Visit Music of Liszt, Mozart, Dukas and ravel, with conductor Yan Pascal Tortelier and pianist Paul Lewis.

(Linked to the concert on 12 January) – Wednesday 1 March 12.45pm Rehearsal Visit Music of Liszt, ravel and Bartók, with conductor Gilbert Varga and pianist Louis Schwizgebel.

(Linked to the concert on 2 March)

Wednesday 19 April 12.45pm Rehearsal Visit Music of sibelius and Vaughan Williams, with conductor Andrew Manze.

(Linked to the concert on 20 april) – Monday 15 May 12pm Beethoven and Friends 2 Ensemble of St Luke’s – Thursday 8 June 12pm Beethoven and Friends 3 Ensemble of St Luke’s Please note that only a selection of repertoire will be discussed in each session. We cannot guarantee that the orchestral rehearsals will cover the entire repertoire listed or involve all the soloists mentioned.

– Tickets £15 per session £10 claimants & students Booking fees may apply*

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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The Liverpool Philharmonic Experience have you ever wondered what happens backstage, wanted to see the dressing rooms, been curious about the workings of the uK’s oldest continuing professional symphony orchestra or wanted to learn more about the heritage of our glorious art Deco building? The ‘Liverpool Philharmonic experience’ is just the ticket… With three different types of experience, all starting in the Music room, we’ve got something to suit everyone from our youngest audiences to families, music lovers and heritage hunters!

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Discover Thursday 1 December 11am Thursday 2 March 11am Thursday 25 May 11am

– Learn about the organisation’s rich heritage, explore some of the ‘secret spaces’ and enjoy a musical surprise by a royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra musician.

Tour lasts approximately 2 hours Tickets £15

Delve Deep Thursday 10 November 11am Thursday 26 January 11am Thursday 4 May 11am

– With historical material from the archives, delve into the orchestra’s history and workings, hear some of the intriguing (and ghostly!) stories, gain a better understanding of a

musician’s life and experience a live performance by a royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra musician.

Tour lasts approximately 2 hours Tickets £15

Play Friday 28 October 11am Saturday 13 May 11am

– a super-engaging experience for kids* and adults with musical surprises and untold tales. You’ll experience what it’s like to play an instrument centre-stage, hold the conductor’s baton and enjoy a live demonstration by a royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra musician.

Tour lasts approximately 90 minutes *Suitable for children aged 5+ Tickets £12, children £8

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Group Tours

If you have a group of 30+ we can look at scheduling an exclusive tour.

For more information please call 0151 210 2901. special rates are also available for school groups.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Liverpool Philharmonic Youth ensembles Simon Emery Artistic Director, Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Ensembles Sir Simon Rattle Patron

Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra Sunday 27 November 2.30pm Liverpool Philharmonic Youth ensembles provide regular music-making opportunities for more than 200 children and young people aged 7 – 23 from across Liverpool and the north West to develop their musicianship and composition and to take part in exhilarating performances.

Working alongside professional musicians, international artists and fantastic conductors, the Youth ensembles season includes the revolutionary music of Bach, Berlioz and stravinsky, as well as New Works, a premiere of new music written by our rushworth Young Composers.

We hope you are able to join us for what promises to be fantastic season.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Berlioz Overture, Les Francs-Juges Górecki Three Dances Op.34 Saint-Saёns Symphony No.3 ‘Organ’ – Simon Emery conductor Ian Tracey organ –

Tickets £9 adults / £6 under 25s / £2 Liverpool Young Musician Pass Booking fees may apply*

© Mark McNulty

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Rushworth Young Composers Thursday 2 February 6pm

Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra

Choral Celebration!

Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Orchestra

Sunday 2 July 2.30pm

Sunday 26 March 2.30pm New Works Premieres of new music written by our rushworth Young Composers and performed by members of Liverpool Philharmonic Youth ensembles –

Please note this is a free concert, but tickets must be booked in advance. This concert takes place in the Music Room.

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Sunday 16 July 2.30pm

Beethoven Overture, Egmont Elgar Cello Concerto Stravinsky Suite, The Firebird (1919) – Simon Emery conductor Jonathan Aasgaard cello –

Tickets £9 adults / £6 under 25s / £2 Liverpool Young Musician Pass

The rushworth Foundation

Booking fees may apply*

side by side with musicians from the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra – Programme includes: Concerto Competition winner TBA

Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Choir Liverpool Philharmonic Children’s Choir Melody Makers Simon Emery conductor, Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Ensembles Artistic Director Alison White conductor, Liverpool Philharmonic Children’s Choir & Melody Makers Director –

Berlioz Hungarian March from The Damnation of Faust

Tickets £9 adults / £6 under 25s / £2 Liverpool Young Musician Pass

Bartók Concerto for Orchestra – Simon Emery conductor –

Tickets £9 adults / £6 under 25s / £2 Liverpool Young Musician Pass Booking fees may apply*

© Mark McNulty

Jonathan Aasgaard © Mark McNulty

© Mark McNulty

Booking fees may apply*

Bach extract from Orchestral Suite No.1

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

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Plan your visit A-Z Access

Liverpool Philharmonic strives to be as accessible as possible to all our patrons. Please let the Box Office know of your specific requirements when booking to ensure we can accommodate your specific needs when booking and to make the best use of our facilities.

Booking Fees Online / Telephone orders 7.5% booking fee applies In person Cash / Debit cards no Charge Credit Card 2% / Cheque 70p Group tickets 50p per ticket Save on booking fees by becoming a member!

Booking fees DO nOT apply to silver Members (£100 per year), and you’ll enjoy a host of other benefits as well. For more information on membership see page 8.

(Booking fees still apply to Group (10+) orders)

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Baby Changing Facilities

Baby changing facilities are available in the WC in the outer corridor of the auditorium close to Box 7.

Booking Tickets

You can book tickets online, over the phone or in person. Tickets for the 2016 – 2017 season are on general sale to the general public from Monday 4 July. Booking for subscribers opens earlier – for more information about buying and booking tickets as a subscriber see pages 11-13.

Box Office

Our Box Office is open for in person booking and telephone booking at the following times. (You can also book your tickets online at www.liverpoolphil.com) Telephone: Monday to saturday 9.30am - 6pm performance days 9.30am - 5.30pm non-performance days

sunday 12noon - 6pm performance days 12noon - 5pm non-performance days In Person: Monday to saturday 10am - 15 minutes after the concert begins performance days 10am - 5.30pm non-performance days

sunday 12noon - 15 minutes after the concert begins performance days Closed - non-performance days

Concessions

under 25s, students and claimants can purchase tickets for just £7 on production of appropriate identification (subject to availability). Concessionary tickets are not available for all of our concerts. Please enquire at Box Office for further information.

Disabled Parking

Blue Badge holders are able to reserve car park spaces (in the Caledonia street Car Park) for most royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra concerts by calling 0151 709 3789. all reservations must be made at least 1 week in advance of the concert and are subject to availability. Blue Badge holders can also park in any onstreet Pay and Display bay and on single or double yellow lines for up to three hours, except where there is a ban on loading or unloading.

Dining at Liverpool Philharmonic

You can enjoy dining in our splendid Grand Foyer. Pre-show dining can be reserved from 5pm and we’re open post-show for drinks and nibbles. Please reserve your tables in advance to avoid disappointment.

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Group Discounts

Generous group discounts are available for most concerts: Groups of 15 – 29 Groups of 30 – 59 Groups of 60+ Booking fees apply.

10% off 15% off 20% off

For more details email group.bookings@liverpoolphil.com or call 0151 709 3789.

Hearing Induction Loop

a hearing Induction Loop enhancement system for hearing aid users is available in Box Office and the main auditorium. The loop system in the auditorium requires infrared equipment, which can be requested from the kiosk in the Foyer.

Lifts

Lifts provide access to the stalls, Boxes, Circle, basement toilets, Grand Foyer and the 1840 room.

Mobile Phones

Please ensure that all mobile phones and other communications devices are switched on to silent before entering the auditorium.

Opening Times

see information about our opening times under ‘Box Office’.

Public Transport

Liverpool Philharmonic hall is within walking distance of Lime street and Central stations. We are also on the frequent 75, 80 and 86 bus routes. For more information visit www.merseytravel.gov.uk

Parking

You can reserve and pre-pay via our Box Office for parking at Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral, which is situated on Mount Pleasant and is a 5 minute walk along hope street.

Car parking is available for only £4.

This car park is available from 6pm – 11pm.

Liverpool Philharmonic hall car park, situated off Caledonia street, is a pay and display car park, open 24 hours. spaces are very limited and are on a first come, first served basis.

Blue Badge holders are able to reserve car park spaces by calling 0151 709 3789. all reservations must be made at least 1 week in advance of the concert and are subject to availability.

Photography

Flash photography or recording of any performance in any format is strictly prohibited.

Seating Plan

Main auditorium: You can now see a ‘view from your seat’ online at liverpoolphil.com. a full seating plan of the main auditorium can be found on page 86.

Music room: Please note that seating for Music room concerts and events is unreserved.

st George’s hall Concert room: some seating has limited leg room.

Please inform the Box Office at the time of booking if you have specific requirements.

Standby Tickets

senior Citizens (aged 65 or over at the time of booking) can purchase half-priced tickets In PersOn OnLY on the day of the concert. standby tickets are limited to 2 per person, and are subject to availability. standby tickets are not available for all of our concerts.

Please enquire at Box Office for further information.

86

Seating Plan - Wheelchair spaces - Transfer seats - Armrest on aisle lifts for ease of transfer from wheelchair or walker Rear Circle

Subscribe and save

By becoming a subscriber you instantly start to save money. You will save money on the price of your tickets and on booking fees. You can also exchange your tickets up to 24 hours before the concert, free of charge, for any other concert in the same season. see pages 10-13.

Ticket exchange

subscribers and members can exchange their tickets against any other royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra concert in the same season. Ticket exchanges for customers who are not subscribers or members incur a service charge of £2 per ticket. all exchanges must be made 24 hours in advance by post or in person.

Transfer seats

We have a number of transfer seats. armrests on the aisle lift for ease of transfer from a wheelchair.

Book now at www.liverpoolphil.com

Wheelchairs and wheelchair users

O N M L K J H G

We have two wheelchairs for customers’ use, subject to availability. Please see any member of Liverpool Philharmonic staff on arrival to request use of one.

Wheelchair users and other customers who require a companion or carer to assist their visit are entitled to a free ticket for their companion / carer. In order to access this discount, you must register with our access scheme. Please visit liverpoolphil.com or call our Box Office on 0151 709 3789 for details.

Young Musicians Pass

under 18, live in Liverpool and play a musical instrument? You can attend concerts for just £2. Visit liverpoolphil.com to apply for a pass. Tickets are offered subject to availability and no other discounts apply.

1 1 1 1 1 1

F E D C B A

X W V U T S

1 1 1 1 1

5 5

1 1

1

1 1 1 1

4

1 1 1

3

1 1 1

2

9

8

1

P O N M L K J H G F E D C B A

10

11

Boxes

Stalls P O N M L K J H G F E D C B A

55 48 50 48 48 48 50 50

F E D C B A

46 46 46 38 38 38

X W V U T S

12

F E D C B A

44 44

48

50 50 50

13

14

15

P O N M L K J H G F E D C B A

O N M L K J H G

X W V U T S

16

44 44

17

44 44 44

18

44 44 42

19

42 42 42

20

40 40 40

21

40

1

1

N M L K J H G

X W V U T S

1

1

Grand Circle

X W V U T S

1

1

5

F E D C B A

1

7

6

N M L K J H G Upper Circle

N M L K J H G

1 1

Stage

22

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Corporate and Private Events at Liverpool Philharmonic We’re pleased to be able to offer Liverpool Philharmonic hall and the associated spaces to be hired for a range of events from private parties and weddings to corporate receptions and conferences. Whatever the occasion, we provide unique settings for a memorable occasion.

The Grand Foyer, brimming with art deco features with large etched windows overlooking hope street, is the perfect place for an afternoon tea for 50, a celebration dinner for 100 or a cocktail party for 350!

Our newest space, Music Room, is a double-height room located on the ground floor and can accommodate up to 250 for a reception, or 120 for lunch or dinner. a versatile space with outstanding acoustics and a state of the art sound system make it the perfect choice for your meetings, seminars and wedding receptions.

Views across the city don’t come much better than our top-floor 1840 room. It’s an intimate space for a small-scale reception or private dinner. easy access to the Grand Circle makes it ideal for pre-concert receptions and corporate hospitality.

Call or email for more information:

0151 210 3802 hire@liverpoolphil.com www.liverpoolphil.com

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Michael eakin, royal Liverpool Philharmonic Chief executive, Vasily Petrenko, royal Liverpool Philharmonic Chief Conductor and Jon seal, Investec Wealth & Investment Chartered Wealth Manager.

at Investec Wealth & Investment we take great pride in our partnership with the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. We look forward to the 2016-17 season with great anticipation and I am confident that we will all continue to be thrilled and inspired by the sheer vibrancy, virtuosity and vitality of the Orchestra’s performances.

Our continued partnership with Liverpool Philharmonic is testament to our strong and long-established commitment to Liverpool. The royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra will continue to be a key element of the City of Liverpool’s cultural life under the leadership of Vasily Petrenko. We believe that Liverpool Philharmonic, both nationally and internationally, plays a central role in the cultural and economic renaissance that the City continues to enjoy.

Investec Wealth & Investment is proud of its Liverpudlian heritage and, as a significant employer in the City, recognises the importance that business and culture working in partnership has in supporting the City’s long term goals. Our business’s foundations are built on nurturing and supporting strong and enduring relationships with our clients. These relationships are built on trust, integrity and understanding – valuable and often rare commodities in today’s complex financial world. Our partnership with Liverpool Philharmonic reflects our core ethos perfectly.

We are proud to continue our support of Vasily and the Orchestra and have no doubt the 2016-17 season will provide us all with more extraordinary performances in the coming year.

David Owen Senior Investment Director Investec Wealth & Investment

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Michael eakin, royal Liverpool Philharmonic Chief executive, Professor nigel Weatherill, LJMu Vice-Chancellor, sir Brian Leveson, LJMu Chancellor and members of the university’s student Opportunities Team.

Liverpool John Moores university is intrinsically linked to the city of Liverpool, its people, its traditions and its history, and we are making vital and varied contributions to the future success of the city region.

Our aim is to deliver not just a world-class education but one that expands our students’ minds and enables them to experience the transformative effect of art and culture in all its forms. Our partnerships with theatres, arts and music organisations are now an essential part of our offer to students and they also support our wider vision of making learning and culture more accessible to the people of Liverpool.

Our partnership with royal Liverpool Philharmonic has helped change perceptions of classical music across our university

community and hundreds of our students now regularly attend orchestral concerts. Furthermore, by harnessing our combined expertise we are able to inspire children and young people of all ages and backgrounds by demonstrating that learning and culture are vital to their personal development and to today’s society.

We are immensely proud of our partnership with Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, which we believe represents everything that is great about the city of Liverpool. It is ground-breaking, challenging and, most importantly, it fuels the city’s

love of music and creativity. We look forward to further extending our partnership and establishing new and mutually beneficial ways of working together.

Professor Nigel Weatherill Vice-Chancellor Liverpool John Moores University

Diary September 2016 15 Thu 6.15pm 15 Thu 7.30pm 17 Sat 11am 17 Sat 7.30pm 22 Thu 7.30pm 25 Sun 2.30pm 27 Tue 7.30pm 30 Fri 7.30pm 30 Fri

Pre-Concert Talk Eroica Discover the Classics Duh-duh-duh dummmmm!

Pastoral Ode to Joy James Ehnes violin Beethoven Finale Post-Concert Question Time

P75 P19 P77 P20 P20 P21 P59 P22 P76

James Ehnes violin 10/10: 23 Songs of a Mad Woman Discover the Classics A Kind of Magic Cello Sonata Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto Post-Concert Question Time Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto Discover the Classics Jamie Barton / James Baillieu Romantic Rachmaninov Russian Revolution 10/10: Call of the North Experience: Play Carl Davis’ 80th Birthday The Soldier’s Tale Pre-Concert Talk Psycho: Film with Live Orchestra!

P59 P67 P77 P23 P72 P23 P76 P23 P77 P60 P24 P25 P67 P80 P25 P69 P75 P26

Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Trio Lunchtime Learning Dvorák Symphony No.7 IntergalactIc Journey

P60 P79 P27 P56

October 2016 4 5 8 8 10 13 13 14 15 19 20 23 26 28 28 30 31 31

Tue Wed Sat Sat Mon Thu Thu Fri Sat Wed Thu Sun Wed Fri Fri Sun Mon Mon

7.30pm 8pm 11am 7.30pm 1pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 11am 7.30pm 7.30pm 2.30pm 7.30pm 11am 7.30pm 8pm 6.15pm 7.30pm

November 2016 1 2 3 6

Tue Wed Thu Sun

7.30pm 12.45pm 7.30pm 2.30pm

Key Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra

•

10 10 11 14 17 19 20 23 24 27

Thu Thu Fri Mon Thu Sat Sun Wed Thu Sun

11am 7.30pm 2.30pm 8pm 7.30pm 11am 2.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 2.30pm

Experience: Delve Deep L’après-midi L’après-midi Klezmer-ish Benedetti’s Brahms Discover the Classics Benedetti’s Brahms Ehnes Quartet Elgar’s Cello Concerto Youth Orchestra

P80 P28 P28 P69 P28 P77 P29 P61 P30 P82

Experience: Discover New World New World Lunchtime Learning Red Priest Winter Baroque Carnival Big Band Wonderland All Cellos Big Band Wonderland Sing-Along with Santa Sing-Along with Santa Spirit of Christmas Sing-Along with Santa Sing-Along with Santa Spirit of Christmas Ksenija Sidorova Spirit of Christmas Sing-Along with Santa Spirit of Christmas Spirit of Christmas Bring in the New Year

P80 P31 P31 P79 P61 P31 P73 P31 P56 P56 P33 P56 P56 P33 P70 P33 P56 P33 P33 P34

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial: Film ...

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial: Film ...

Bach’s Cello Suites: Part One Messiah Armida Quartet Lunchtime Learning

P35 P35 P70 P35 P62 P79

December 2016 1 1 2 5 9 10 12 13 17 17 17 18 18 18 19 20 22 22 23 31

Thu Thu Fri Mon Fri Sat Mon Tue Sat Sat Sat Sun Sun Sun Mon Tue Thu Thu Fri Sat

11am 7.30pm 2.30pm 12pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 1pm 7.30pm 11.30am 2.30pm 7.30pm 11.30am 2.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 2.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

January 2017 2 2 4 7 8 11

Mon 2pm Mon 7pm Wed 8pm Sat 7pm Sun 2.30pm Wed 12.45pm

8pm 11 Wed 12 Thu 7.30pm 13 Fri 2.30pm 19 Thu 7.30pm 21 Sat 11am 22 Sun 2.30pm 23 Mon 1pm 26 Thu 11am 26 Thu 7.30pm 28 Sat 7.30pm

Bach’s Cello Suites: Part Two Paul Lewis plays Mozart Paul Lewis plays Mozart 100 Years of Revolution Discover the Classics Petrenko’s Shostakovich Ensemble of St Luke’s Experience: Delve Deep Finnish Skies Musicals Rock

P70 P36 P36 P37 P77 P37 P73 P80 P38 P38

Rushworth Young Composers Post-Concert Question Time Russian Superstars Russian Superstars Kirill Gerstein piano John Harle 60th Birthday Bash Night at the Opera Firebird Post-Concert Question Time Firebird Thomas Verity & Simon Passmore

P83 P76 P39 P39 P63 P70 P40 P41 P76 P41 P73

Lunchtime Learning Experience: Discover Rhapsody Grieg Piano Concerto Brodsky Quartet with Martin Roscoe Discover the Classics The Damnation of Faust Anderson and Roe The Power of Two Post-Concert Question Time 10/10: Swedish Meatballs Youth Orchestra Beatles Best for String Quartet Pre-Concert Talk Petrenko’s Mahler

P79 P80 P42 P43 P64 P77 P43 P71 P44 P76 P67 P83 P73 P75 P45

February 2017 2 Thu 6pm 2 Thu 2 Thu 7.30pm 3 Fri 2.30pm 12 Sun 2.30pm 15 Wed 8pm 18 Sat 7.30pm 23 Thu 7.30pm 23 Thu 24 Fri 2.30pm 27 Mon 1pm

March 2017 1 2 2 5 8 11 11 20 23 23 25 26 27 30 30

Wed Thu Thu Sun Wed Sat Sat Mon Thu Thu Sat Sun Mon Thu Thu

12.45pm 11am 7.30pm 2.30pm 7.30pm 11am 7.30pm 8pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 2.30pm 1pm 6.15pm 7.30pm

• Youth Ensembles • Chamber Music Concerts • Close Up Concerts • Lunchtime Concerts • Talks, Tours and Taking Part Events • Family Concerts

April 2017 2 6 7 9 12 19 20 20 25 27 28

Sun Thu Fri Sun Wed Wed Thu Thu Tue Thu Fri

2.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 2.30pm 7.30pm 12.45pm 6.15pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 7.30pm

Petrenko’s Mahler Symphonie Fantastique!

Symphonie Fantastique!

Magical Musical Kingdoms Hope and Passion Lunchtime Learning Pre-Concert Talk Symphonic Landscapes Whately/Middleton/Newton Journey through Italy Journey through Italy

P45 P46 P46 P57 P47 P79 P75 P48 P65 P49 P49

Experience: Delve Deep Sounds like Shakespeare Garrick Ohlsson piano Jonathan Aasgaard & Ian Buckle New York Counterpoint Bach Concerti Experience: Play Lunchtime Learning Guitar Concerto The Dream Team Returns Experience: Discover The Dream Team Returns It Was 50 Years Ago Today Post-Concert Question Time

P80 P49 P65 P73 P71 P50 P80 P79 P51 P51 P80 P51 P53 P76

It Was 50 Years Ago Today Katona Twins Lunchtime Learning Gloria!

Concerto for Orchestra Goldberg Variations The Mad Professor The Mad Professor

P53 P66 P79 P54 P54 P72 P57 P57

May 2017 4 4 5 8 10 11 13 15 20 25 25 26 31 31

Thu Thu Fri Mon Wed Thu Sat Mon Sat Thu Thu Fri Wed Wed

11am 7.30pm 7.30pm 1pm 8pm 7.30pm 11am 12pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 11am 7.30pm 7.30pm

June 2017 3 6 8 10 15 15 17 17

Sat Tue Thu Sat Thu Thu Sat Sat

7.30pm 7.30pm 12pm 7.30pm 7.30pm 10pm 1pm 2.45pm

22 22 23

Thu 7.30pm Thu Fri 7.30pm

White Nights Post-Concert Question Time White Nights

P55 P76 P55

Choral Celebration!

Youth Orchestra

P83 P83

July 2017 2 Sun 2.30pm 16 Sun 2.30pm

Book tickets now at www.liverpoolphil.com Box Office 0151 709 3789 Fb.com/LiverpoolPhilharmonic @Liverpoolphil

PRINCIPAL FUNDERS

Thanks to the City of Liverpool for its financial support

PRINCIPAL PARTNERS

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra The

Orchestra in North West England

royal Liverpool Philharmonic society a company limited by guarantee registered in england number 88235 registered charity number 230538 – Patron her Majesty the Queen President The rt hon the earl of Derby DL – Please note, programme is correct at time of going to print.

For the most up to date information visit liverpoolphil.com – Design Paul hooley Commissioned photography Mark Mcnulty Front cover Vasily Petrenko, Chief Conductor of the royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.