Oxford Beethoven Festival 2020

Festival 2020

Beethoven

January - December 2020

Oxford 1

Oxford

Philharmonic

Orchestra

Orchestra in Residence at the University of Oxford

January - December 2020

Oxford

Beethoven

Festival 2020 Honorary Patron H.E. the German Ambassador Dr Peter Wittig | Patron Alfred Brendel KBE | Artistic Director Marios Papadopoulos MBE

Welcome from H.E. the German Ambassador Dr Peter Wittig Honorary Patron As German Ambassador to the United Kingdom, I feel very privileged to be Honorary Patron of the Oxford Beethoven Festival 2020. We are all looking forward to a truly memorable year of exceptional musical performance to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven.

The programme put together by the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra rises magnificently to the occasion with a splendid array of concerts, opera, recitals and events.

A musical genius and innovator both as a composer and virtuoso pianist, Beethoven is one of the most renowned German composers of all time, but his music belongs to wider Europe and indeed to the whole world. His revolutionary approach to composition, especially in his later years, to this day continues to have an extraordinary impact on our understanding of tonal music and its intellectual, emotional and creative processes.

Beethoven – known for having said 'I love a tree more than a man' – provides a musical evocation of natural phenomena as varied as thunderstorm and birdsong in his Symphony No. 6, the 'Pastoral'. 2020 marks not only the 250th birth year of our great composer, but also the 50th anniversary of UN World Environment Day. On 5 June 2020, the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra will perform Beethoven’s sublime masterpiece as part of the Pastoral Project. This project, launched by the BTHVN 2020 Organisation in Bonn in cooperation with the Earth Day Network and the United Nations, casts a spotlight on one of the most pressing problems of our time, climate change, and the urgent need to effectively protect the environment. I am immensely looking forward to this outstanding event 2

and sincerely hope that this imaginative global initiative will have the impact it deserves.

I am especially delighted that the internationally acclaimed violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter is scheduled to give a concert at the Sheldonian Theatre on 11 December 2020 which will surely be one of the highlights of the Oxford Beethoven Festival 2020.

It is deeply gratifying to witness the fruitful cooperation between Oxford and Bonn, its German twin city and Beethoven’s birthplace, manifested in the close collaboration between the respective Beethoven festivals as well as between the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra and the Philharmonischer Chor der Stadt Bonn.

We are all looking forward to the Oxford Beethoven Festival 2020 with great Freude – the sentiment so close to the heart and genius of both Schiller and Beethoven. Let me conclude by expressing my particular gratitude to the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra and its director Marios Papadopoulos for giving us such a brilliant and delightful celebration of Beethoven’s genius in a rich contemporary context.

Welcome from Alfred Brendel Patron To present Beethoven, the inexhaustible master of chamber music, symphony, concerto and sonata, in a festival of such proportions, is no mean undertaking. No other leading composer underwent a comparable development from classicism to the boldness of his late works, an innovative achievement that has influenced 20th

century composers like Schoenberg and Bartók and made Stravinsky boundlessly admire his Große Fuge, Op. 133. No other musician has surpassed Beethoven's expressive range, that includes the most moving introversion as well as drama, tragedy and humour. Dealing with Beethoven's masterpieces is a never-ending process of discovery. May the Oxford Beethoven Festival 2020 contribute to this quest, and our ever deepening sense of wonder.

Welcome from Marios Papadopoulos Artistic Director What better place to celebrate Beethoven’s anniversary than in Oxford, a city that is twinned with Bonn where the composer was born 250 years ago.

In our year-long Festival to celebrate the occasion, we will be presenting all the symphonies and concertos, a concert performance of Fidelio, a performance of the 'Triple' concerto with Maxim Vengerov, Sergei Babayan and Mischa Maisky as soloists and a performance of the 'Pastoral' symphony on UN World Environment Day. Anne-Sophie Mutter will be performing the Violin Concerto in December 2020.

Elsewhere, we are planning a series of recitals by different pianists playing all the piano sonatas while our principal players in the Orchestra will be covering the complete violin and cello sonatas. Other chamber music highlights include performances by the Juilliard and Takács Quartets and

an evening featuring TS Eliot's Four Quartets narrated by Jeremy Irons.

Martha Argerich and Stephen Kovacevich will be giving us a rare chance to hear Beethoven’s Große Fuge arranged by the composer for four hands.

As part of our University Residency we are organising a symposium of leading Beethoven scholars who will converge on Oxford to present their latest research on the composer, a Study Weekend with masterclasses by Alfred Brendel, and a survey of historic recordings of Beethoven given by the distinguished broadcaster and writer Rob Cowan.

The Festival will close on the 13 December 2020 with a performance of Symphony No. 9 featuring the Philharmonischer Chor der Stadt Bonn.

The Oxford Beethoven Festival 2020 is the most comprehensive celebration of the composer’s life and work anywhere in the UK. I invite you to join us on this journey to celebrate Beethoven’s genius and contribution to humanity.

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Orchestral Beethoven changed music and even altered the status of the musician in society. There wasn’t a single area of repertoire or musical activity he didn’t make a lasting impact on. But it’s the composer’s orchestral works that, for understandable reasons, still have the widest and most hefty impact.

The orchestra expanded hugely after Beethoven’s lifetime. But it’s striking how much Beethoven’s orchestral music seems to do more – to say more, to build more, to explode more and even to whisper and sing more – than music by later composers who had all manner of colours and textures at their disposal. With Beethoven, even a modest-sized orchestra can inhabit the ‘entire world’ described by Gustav Mahler.

We think of Beethoven’s early symphonies as Classical and preparatory. But even his Symphony No. 2 was written on a scale hitherto unknown in music.

Landmark works came thick and fast after that. The great heroism of the third; a universe of ideas mined from just three notes in the fifth. And so on, towards the epic ninth.

Over the last 50 years, I have performed most of Beethoven’s works, both as a pianist and conductor, including cycles of the complete piano concertos and symphonies. On this special occasion to celebrate the master’s 250th anniversary, the Oxford Philharmonic and I embark on our third crusade of these eternal masterpieces.

The musical ideas that we hope to share with our audience are not arbitrary: they will have been formulated by informed opinion based on knowledge, experience and considered principles. I hope that you will be receptive to these ideas and derive as much pleasure from listening to Beethoven’s perennial masterpieces as we will from performing them.

Dr Marios Papadopoulos, MBE Artistic Director, Oxford Beethoven Festival

It wasn’t just symphonies. Beethoven expended the expressive range and physical dimensions of the piano concerto, making that genre his own, too.

His concertos for piano and violin contain some of his most enchanting melodies, and they can turn from joyous to haunting in the space of a bar.

As always with Beethoven, exuberantly joyous works poured from him even when he was in the depths of despair.

I have been captivated by Beethoven’s music ever since I was a boy learning some of his piano works. The music - so powerful yet so intimate - speaks to me like no other and transports me to spiritual heights.

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Orchestral Symphony & Concerto Cycle I

Symphony & Concerto Cycle II

Saturday 25 January 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

Thursday 6 February 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21

Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 55, ‘Eroica’

Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58

Marios Papadopoulos piano/conductor

Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67

Concert introduced by John Suchet

Marios Papadopoulos piano/conductor

Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5)

Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5)

Pre-concert Event 18:30 Young Artists' Platform

Pre-concert Recital 18:30

A chance to hear the Oxfordshire County Youth Orchestra

Young Artists' Platform

Free admission

Free admission

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A chance to hear talented young musicians

Symphony & Concerto Cycle III

Symphony & Concerto Cycle IV

Thursday 13 February 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

Tuesday 12 May 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37 Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92

BEETHOVEN Concerto for Violin, Cello, and Piano in C major, Op. 56, ‘Triple’

Marios Papadopoulos piano/conductor

Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36

Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5) Supported by Simon & Alison Ryde

Maxim Vengerov violin Mischa Maisky cello Sergei Babayan piano Marios Papadopoulos conductor Tickets £60 £40 £30 £20 (students from £5) Supported by Prof. Raymond Dwek & Mrs Sandra Dwek in honour of the Ben-Gurion University’s 50th anniversary, and by Geoffrey & Caroline de Jager

Pre-concert Recital 18:30 Young Artists' Platform A chance to hear talented young musicians Free admission

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OrcHestrAl Panel Discussion 18:00

Pastoral for the Planet Friday 5 June 2020 Oxford Town Hall, 19:30

MENDELSSOHN The Hebrides Overture, Op. 26, ‘Fingal's Cave’ (Side-by-Side)

Chaired by Professor Lord Krebs Leading climate experts and musicians come together to discuss the inspiring effect of the natural world in Beethoven’s music, and explore music as a force in the fight against the climate crisis Free admission

BUTTERWORTH The Banks of Green Willow VAUGHAN WILLIAMS The Lark Ascending BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, ‘Pastoral’* Charlotte Scott violin Marios Papadopoulos conductor* Hannah Schneider conductor The contrast between Beethoven’s insistent fifth symphony and his idyllic sixth couldn’t be more marked. From pounding heroism, Beethoven takes his listeners for a restorative walk in the countryside with his sixth, which quickly attracted the nickname ‘Pastoral’. Here, the symphony forms the culmination of a concert reflecting the country, continent and planet around us. As the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra plays Beethoven’s ‘Pastoral’ on UN World Environment Day, orchestras throughout the world will do the same, highlighting the overwhelming challenges faced by our planet.

Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5)

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Sunday 7 June 2020 Oxford Town Hall, 15:00

Mission: Earth FUNomusica Family Concert Most suitable for ages 4-8 Alasdair Malloy presenter Isn’t our planet amazing and wonderful? Today we’ll celebrate the natural beauty of the Earth with music from several composers including Beethoven who have been inspired by wonders of nature and different landscapes.

From the blue of the ocean to the red of the desert, the green of the rainforest to the white of the icecaps, from storms to sunny days, we’ll also consider what can be done to protect our planet for the future.

Pre-concert craft activities at 14:00 Concert ends 16:00

Tickets adults £10 children £4

Mass in C major Wednesday 1 July 2020 Oxford Town Hall, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Die Weihe des Hauses Overture, Op. 124 Ah! perfido, Op. 65 Mass in C major, Op. 86 Eilana Lappalainen soprano Marta Fontanals-Simmons mezzo-soprano Joshua Ellicott tenor Božidar Smiljanić bass Choir to be announced Peter Tiboris conductor Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5) Supported by Geoffrey & Caroline de Jager

In partnership with

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Orchestral Music Orchestral Symphony & Concerto Cycle V

Symphony & Concerto Cycle VI

Thursday 19 November 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

Thursday 26 November 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8 in F major, Op. 93

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 4 in B flat major, Op. 60

Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 19

Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 73, ‘Emperor’

Symphony No. 6 in F major, Op. 68, ‘Pastoral’

Marios Papadopoulos piano/conductor

Marios Papadopoulos piano/conductor

Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5)

Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5)

Supported by Geoffrey & Caroline de Jager

Pre-concert Recital 18:30 Young Artists' Platform A chance to hear talented young musicians Free admission

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Pre-concert Talk 18:30 Marios Papadopoulos in conversation with Jessica Duchen Free admission

Symphony & Concerto Cycle VII Friday 11 December 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:00

BEETHOVEN Christus am Ölberge, Op. 85 Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61 Eleanor Dennis soprano Ian Bostridge tenor David Soar bass The Choir of Keble College Anne-Sophie Mutter violin Marios Papadopoulos conductor Tickets £60 £40 £30 £20 (students from £5) Supported by Michael Thomas & Serena Simmons

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Orchestral Symphony & Concerto Cycle VIII Sunday 13 December 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Fantasia in C minor, Op. 80, ‘Choral Fantasy’ Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, ‘Choral’ Claire Rutter soprano Angela Simkin mezzo-soprano Toby Spence tenor David Shipley bass Philharmonischer Chor der Stadt Bonn Paul Krämer chorus master Marios Papadopoulos piano/conductor Concert introduced by John Suchet Tickets £60 £40 £30 £20 (students from £5)

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OPerA In the Autumn of 1892, Beethoven travelled to Vienna from his hometown of Bonn, a journey that took over a month by stagecoach. He arrived in the imperial city just as new and powerful forces were making themselves felt. Upheaval was in the air, imagined by Goethe and realised by Napoleon. Society was in the midst of transformation.

This was the context for Fidelio, one of Beethoven’s most troubled creative projects but ultimately one of his most powerful. It is the composer’s own vision of a French revolutionary ‘rescue’ opera in which the heroine Leonore embodies the feminine idea of freedom held up by the French revolution.

Fidelio’s themes have a universal resonance: unjust imprisonment, the vested interests of those in power and heroic valour in the service of liberty. In the opera, Beethoven develops existing rhetorical models while creating a gripping realism that ensures no message is lost. In addition to noble, admirable heroes, we are shown petty, jealous characters just like ourselves.

But the chief wonder of Fidelio is its score. Beethoven may have struggled to get it right, but he did so in the end. It contains some of the composer’s most inspiringly heroic and touchingly tender music. Its journey through oppression, anger and tension to ultimate release is itself a wonder.

Fidelio Sunday 31 May 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:00

BEETHOVEN Fidelio, Op. 72 Complete concert performance Emma Bell Leonore Andrew Staples Florestan David Shipley Rocco Haegee Lee Marzelline Yuriy Yurchuk Don Pizarro Robin Tritschler Jaquino Daniel Grice Don Fernando Garsington Opera Chorus Jonathon Swinard chorus master Marios Papadopoulos conductor Tickets £60 £40 £30 £20 (students from £5)

We are thrilled to present this one-off concert performance of the opera, which will reveal all its depth of feeling and colouristic detail. Joining the Orchestra is a first-rate cast and one of the UK’s finest opera choruses.

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solo piano Beethoven wasn’t just interested in the piano as a vessel for his music.

He was interested in the piano as a piece of technology. In his lifetime, the capabilities of the instrument transformed. It gained new means of expression that allowed extra subtlety, greater power and more gradations of colour and shade in between. Beethoven’s piano music tracked those developments every step of the way. In fact, it probably spurred them on.

The piano sonata remained with the composer nearly all his life and his cycle of piano sonatas is the greatest, most varied and most daring ever composed. If Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier established itself as the Old Testament of the piano repertoire, Beethoven’s piano sonatas took their place as its New Testament.

In style, expression and freedom, the sonatas were born of Beethoven the improvising pianist. ‘Beside his skill, Beethoven has greater clarity and profundity of ideas,’ said the composer Carl Ludwig Junker on listening to Beethoven improvise; ‘in short, he speaks to the heart.’

After the early piano sonatas signalled a composer of discipline but flair, Beethoven’s sonatas started to encompass extreme evocation and structural novelty. The new sonorities of the ‘Moonlight’ sonata and the intense themes of the ‘Appassionata’ and ‘Waldstein’ proved that Beethoven was just as expressive in these works as in his symphonies.

This was music of wild fantasy and deep reflection, pushing the boundaries of the creative arts as well as the instruments it was written for. To perform Beethoven’s sonatas across Oxford, and the extraordinary exploration of mood, movement and mindset that is the Diabelli Variations, we welcome a line-up of some of the finest pianists alive including Sir András Schiff, Paul Lewis, Martha Argerich, Stephen Kovacevich, Kristian Bezuidenhout, Jonathan Biss, and more.

Jonathan Biss Thursday 23 January 2020 St John the Evangelist Church, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 15 in D major, Op. 28, ‘Pastoral’ Sonata No. 20 in G major, Op. 49 No. 2 Sonata No. 3 in C major, Op. 2 No. 3 Sonata No. 27 in E minor, Op. 90 Sonata No. 28 in A major, Op. 101 Jonathan Biss piano This concert forms the first in a full survey of the sonatas from different pianists in recital throughout 2020.

‘This could be a Beethoven cycle to treasure’ was The Guardian’s verdict after Jonathan Biss launched his own complete survey of the works on record. Here, this most perceptive of American pianists offers us five sonatas including the meditative ‘Pastoral’, the straight-talking Sonata No. 20 and the emotionally charged Sonata No. 27.

Tickets £25 £20 £15 £10 (unsighted)

Piano

Sonata Cycle

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John Lill Saturday 29 February 2020 St John the Evangelist Church, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 16 in G major, Op. 31 No. 1 Sonata No. 18 in E flat major, Op. 31 No. 3, 'The Hunt' Sonata No. 22 in F major, Op. 54 Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57, 'Appassionata' John Lill piano The famous ‘Appassionata’ is every bit the product of Beethoven in the year 1804. For the French essayist Romain Rolland, it was Beethoven ‘unleashing of elemental forces, the passions, the madness of men and the elements’.

For the critic of the Allgemeine musikalische Zeitung, it was Beethoven talking ‘from heart to heart.’ Elder statesman among British pianists, John Lill, comes to the church of St John the Evangelist to continue our sonata cycle with the ‘Appassionata’, the compact Sonata No. 22 and the restless creativity of Beethoven’s Op. 31.

Tickets £25 £20 £15 £10 (unsighted)

Piano

Sonata cycle

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solo piano Kristian Bezuidenhout

Martha Argerich & Stephen Kovacevich

Saturday 13 June 2020 University Church of St Mary the Virgin, 19:30

Sunday 14 June 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Rondo in C major, Op. 51 No. 1

Programme to include MOZART Five Variations in G major, K. 501

Rondo in G major, Op. 51 No. 2 Sonata No. 7 in D major, Op. 10 No. 3 Sonata No. 10 in G major, Op. 14 No. 2 Sonata No. 8 in C minor, Op. 13, 'Pathétique' Kristian Bezuidenhout fortepiano The culmination of Kristian Bezuidenhout’s recital at University Church is one of Beethoven’s last eighteenth-century utterances: a ‘grand sonata’ for piano whose steadily heightening turbulence, prophetic exhaustion and ultimate drama would lend it the name ‘Pathétique’. Before that, the charismatic South African keyboardist brings us two of Beethoven’s most decorative sonatas written under the benevolent influence of Haydn and Mozart, and the immediately engrossing set of Rondos Op. 51.

DEBUSSY En blanc et noir, L. 134 Lindaraja, L. 103 Prélude à l’apres midi d’un faune, L. 86 (arr. for Two Pianos) Martha Argerich piano Stephen Kovacevich piano

Piano

Two titans of the piano, Martha Argerich and Stephen Kovacevich, come to the Sheldonian Theatre for a piano duo programme pivoting on Beethoven’s extraordinary Große Fuge Op. 134 – the colossus that once ended the composer’s thirteenth string quartet and is heard here in the composer’s own arrangement for two pianists. It is preceded by the heavenly – Mozart’s crystalline G major variations – and followed by the mesmerising – impressionistic piano works by Debussy including the two piano arrangement of his Prélude à l’apres midi d’un faune.

Cycle

Tickets £60 £40 £30 £20 (students from £5)

Tickets £20 £15 £10 (unsighted)

Sonata

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BEETHOVEN Große Fuge in B flat major, Op. 134 (for Four Hands)

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solo piano Sir András Schiff Thursday 18 June 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 30 in E major, Op. 109 Sonata No. 31 in A flat major, Op. 110 Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111 Sir András Schiff piano Beethoven’s last three piano sonatas were composed in a single, intensive spurt of activity around 1820 and seem to open up entirely new worlds. They move from melancholy considerations of familial love (No. 30), through ethereal shadows of Beethoven’s own Missa Solemnis, in progress at the time (No. 31), to the combination of serenity and latent power that ultimately characterises the last (No. 32). In each, we sense the birth of new life and new hope. To play them at the Sheldonian Theatre we welcome a legend of the piano and a true friend of Oxford’s classical music life, Sir András Schiff.

Tickets £50 £38 £28 £18 (students from £5)

Piano

Sonata Cycle

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Oxford Piano Festival Alumni

Paul Lewis

Sunday 2 August 2020 Jacqueline du Pré Music Building, 15:00

Sunday 2 August 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 20:00

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 2 No. 1

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 13 in E flat major, Op. 27 No. 1, 'Quasi una fantasia'

Sonata No. 9 in E major, Op. 14 No. 1 Sonata No. 25 in G major, Op. 79, 'Cuckoo' Sonata No. 11 in B flat major, Op. 22 Ignas Maknickas piano Julius Asal piano Martin James Bartlett piano Nuron Mukumi piano

Sonata No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 27 No. 2, 'Moonlight' Diabelli Variations, Op. 120 Paul Lewis piano

Alumni of the Oxford Piano Festival gather for this recital in which we hear Beethoven’s very first published sonata. Even in this impressionable F minor work, Beethoven is prone to provocation – a sudden fortissimo here, a defiant modulation there. Next we graduate to the chamber-like sophistication of the Sonata No. 9 and to Beethoven’s singing Sonata Op. 79. Finally, Sonata No. 11, a work which saw the composer embrace the world of the virtuoso once more, rounds off this display of talent from artists nurtured here in Oxford.

‘Paul Lewis gives you the best of all possible worlds,’ wrote Gramophone upon the British pianist’s completion of his Beethoven Sonata recordings a decade ago. Warmth, intelligence, conviction and total service of the composer pervade Lewis’s playing and here he brings us three outright masterpieces, ending with the monumental Diabelli Variations. Before it, the reverie which characterises the famous ‘Moonlight’ sonata, and its predecessor which moves from contrast and disorientation to fiery defiance.

Tickets £20 (students £5)

Tickets £40 £30 £20 £12 (students from £5)

Piano

Sonata Cycle

Piano

Sonata Cycle

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sOlO PiAnO Kit Armstrong Thursday 8 October 2020 St John the Evangelist Church, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 2 in A major, Op. 2 No. 2 Sonata No. 24 in F sharp minor, Op. 78, 'à Thérèse' Sonata No. 6 in F major, Op. 10 No. 2 Sonata No. 19 in G minor, Op. 49 No. 1 Sonata No. 26 in E flat major, Op. 81a, 'Les adieux' Kit Armstrong piano

Evgeni Koroliov Kit Armstrong, winner of the 2019 Beethoven Ring awarded by citizens of the composer’s hometown of Bonn, continues our cycle of the composer’s piano sonatas with works spanning 17 years. From the freshness of No. 2 to the roguish charm of No. 6 and the classical grace of No. 19, we arrive at the two magnificent works Beethoven conceived in the February of 1810: the fairytale originality of No. 24, and the song of jubilation wrought from a heartrending farewell that is No. 26. Don’t miss this contribution to our Beethoven celebrations from a pianist for whom ‘intellect is completely in the service of the music’ (International Piano).

Tickets £25 £20 £15 £10 (unsighted)

Piano

Sonata cycle

2020

Tuesday 3 November 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 12 in A flat major, Op. 26, 'Funeral March' Sonata No. 17 in D minor, Op. 31 No. 2, 'The Tempest' Sonata No. 29 in B flat major, Op. 106, 'Hammerklavier' Evgeni Koroliov piano ‘A penetrating tour de force’ was how Gramophone described one of Evgeni Koroliov’s very first recordings. As the Beethoven sonata cycle moves to the Holywell Music Room, the Russian pianist brings with him some of its biggest beasts, starting with the journey from pathos to glitter that characterises the Sonata No. 12. Then, it is on to the churning, unanswerable questions of ‘The Tempest’ and the colossus that is the ‘Hammerklavier’ – the work after which Beethoven declared, ‘now, I know for certain how music could and should be written.’

Tickets £25 (students £5)

Piano

Sonata cycle

Louis Schwizgebel Saturday 14 November 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata No. 4 in E flat major, Op. 7, 'Grand Sonata' Sonata No. 5 in C minor, Op. 10 No. 1, 'Little Pathétique' Sonata No. 21 in C major, Op. 53, 'Waldstein' Louis Schwizgebel piano Three of Beethoven’s most visionary sonatas for piano.

Even in the early No. 4, the composer was investing his music with characteristic verve, syncopations and energy. But Beethoven didn’t just push the envelope with forcefulness. The sonata contains pain and melancholy, anticipating the ghostly humour encased in No. 5 and the shimmering vitality and strange apparitions of the work he wrote for his dear friend Count Waldstein. To play all three, we welcome the Swiss pianist Louis Schwizgebel whose recorded Beethoven is ‘poised, lively and full of subtle, changing detail’ (BBC Music Magazine).

Tickets £25 (students £5)

Piano

Sonata Cycle

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chamber Music Even against the unprecedented scale and expression of his symphonies, Beethoven’s chamber music makes big gestures. The composer rarely sat down and produced a piece from scratch in a flash of inspiration. Rather, he jotted themes down in notebooks and carried them around for years, refining them in his mind and choosing the right moment to set them free.

That technique made itself felt in Beethoven’s string quartets, which journey from the novel to the pioneering to the experimental. ‘Surely you don’t consider these works to be music?’ enquired the composer Clementi on encountering Beethoven’s Op. 59 quartets. ‘They are not for you, but for a later age,’ the composer reportedly replied. By the time of his late quartets, the composer was staring into the abyss.

Beethoven’s violin sonatas go to expressive places the genre had never visited before (the ‘Kreutzer’ sonata spawned literature, films and other pieces of music in homage). The cello sonatas hint at the composer’s urge to explore the complexities of the human condition, paving the way for the late string quartets themselves. As deafness sucked him into its world of silence, it was these works in which Beethoven found tranquility and affirmation.

Our exploration of Beethoven’s most important chamber works, in intimate venues across Oxford, is focused on the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra’s own talented musicians. For the new sonorities and unspeakably poignancy of Beethoven’s Op. 59 and Op. 131 quartets, we are proud to welcome the legendary Takács and Julliard Quartets.

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TS Eliot Four Quartets Saturday 1 February 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

TS ELIOT Four Quartets BEETHOVEN String Quartet No. 15 in A minor, Op. 132 Jeremy Irons narrator Soloists of the Oxford Philharmonic Beethoven’s music was coursing through TS Eliot’s mind when he wrote his wartime poetic masterpieces, the Four Quartets. In this performance at the Sheldonian Theatre, Jeremy Irons recites Eliot’s unsurpassed contemplation of time, the universe and the divine while the Soloists of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra play Beethoven’s testament to beauty and humanity, the String Quartet Op. 132.

Pivoting on its expansive slow movement, a hymn of thanksgiving from a recuperating Beethoven, there is no more penetrating insight into the nature of suffering and difficulty than this masterpiece from Beethoven’s pen.

Tickets £45 £35 £25 £15 (students from £5)

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chamber Music Takács Quartet

Immortal Beloved

Sunday 2 February 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 15:00

Friday 6 November 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

BEETHOVEN String Quartet No. 6 in B flat major, Op. 18 No. 6

Programme to include: BEETHOVEN Excerpt from Andante favori, WoO 57

String Quartet No. 16 in F major, Op. 135

Andenken, WoO 136

String Quartet No. 9 in C major, Op. 59 No. 3, ‘Razumovsky’

String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 95

Takács Quartet It is already an iconic string quartet, but according to The Spectator, the Takács Quartet has ‘never sounded better.’ At this concert in Oxford’s Sheldonian Theatre, the ensemble opens up Beethoven’s universe via string quartets early, mature and late. They start with the freewheeling atmosphere of the last work from his first set, Op. 18. To end, they perform the culmination of his set inspired by Russia’s fun-loving ambassador to Vienna, Count Razumovsky. In between, one of Beethoven’s most remarkable creations – the universe of emotion and meditation that is compacted into the composer’s Op. 135.

Tickets £40 £30 £20 £12 (students from £5)

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An die Hoffnung, Op. 32 An die ferne Geliebte, Op. 98 Lisch aus, mein Licht!, Wo0 149 Bagatelle in E flat major, Op. 126 No. 6 Der schwer gefaßte Entschluß from String Quartet No. 16 in F major, Op. 135 Jessica Duchen narrator Benjamin Appl baritone Manon Fischer-Dieskau piano Soloists of the Oxford Philharmonic

The identity of the ‘Immortal Beloved’, to whom Beethoven wrote an unaddressed love letter in 1812, has been so well protected that she remains a mystery to this day – or almost. Until the late 20th century the significance of one candidate was virtually wiped from history. Could this be her? In her forthcoming novel, Immortal, author and music critic Jessica Duchen explores the tragic history of this extraordinary woman, and what appears to be her long influence on Beethoven and his music. This narrated concert brings a heartbreaking love story to life while demonstrating its heroine’s enduring presence in Beethoven’s works.

Tickets £25 (students £5)

Juilliard Quartet Tuesday 8 December 2020 Sheldonian Theatre, 19:30

RAVEL String Quartet in F major, M. 35 Jörg Widmann String Quartet No. 9 (UK premiere) BEETHOVEN String Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131

The Boston Globe described the Juilliard Quartet as ‘the most important American quartet in history.’

This legendary ensemble comes to the Sheldonian Theatre for a programme anchored by the string quartet Beethoven considered his greatest of all.

Structurally unique, unbearably profound yet alive with humanity, Beethoven’s Op. 131 is a work that, for

the music historian Harvey Sachs, ‘seems to traverse all human experience.’ Even in the context of the scintillating quartet by Ravel and the UK premiere

by Jörg Widmann, this score for four musicians will provide living proof that the immense power of Beethoven’s music remains undimmed.

Tickets £40 £30 £20 £12 (students from £5)

Juilliard Quartet

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cHAmber music Beethoven & his Colleagues Beethoven was the first composer who enjoyed rock star status. Bach, Mozart and Haydn may have been looked upon as giants, but Beethoven was a titan. His influence was enormous, in life and death alike, and music throughout the 19th century was affected by and referred to what had been going on in its first three decades.

With the programmes presented by the Soloists of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra in this series, comes the opportunity to compare Beethoven’s music with that of his contemporaries and colleagues. Here Beethoven’s sonatas are interwoven with works by Mozart, Haydn, Hummel and

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Paganini as well as composers lesser known today, such as Romberg, Kreutzer, Wölfl, Diabelli, Viotti, Spohr and Ries. Most of them Beethoven knew, some of them he knew well.

Beethoven’s music belongs to what is crucial in art and creativity in the world we know, but that does not lessen the importance of the musicians and composers around him. They were highly creative and utterly productive, and seem to have lived by an unquestionable passion for music. In these concerts I hope you will enjoy uncovering with us the music, and calibre of music, which Beethoven himself encountered in his daily life.

Mats Lidström Curator, Beethoven & his Colleagues Recital Series (Solo Cello, Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra)

Recital I Friday 6 March 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 1 in F major, Op. 5 No. 1 Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 5 in D major, Op. 102 No. 2 MOZART Andantino in B flat major, K. Anh. 46/K. 374g DIABELLI Sonatina for Cello and Piano in C major BEETHOVEN Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 2 in G minor, Op. 5 No. 2 Peter Adams cello Magdalena Nasidlak piano Tickets £25 (students £5)

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cHAmber music Recital II

Recital III

Saturday 7 March 2020

Holywell Music Room, 15:00

Saturday 7 March 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 1 in D major, Op. 12 No. 1

RIES Sonata for Violin and Piano in F minor, Op. 19

Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 2 in A major, Op. 12 No. 2

PAGANINI Cantabile, Op. 17

SPOHR Mazurka and Scherzo from Sechs Salonstücke, Op. 135 BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 5 in F major, Op. 24, ‘Spring’ VIOTTI Serenade in A major for Two Violins, Op. 23 No. 1 Tamás András violin Evgenia Epshtein violin Katya Apekisheva piano Tickets £25 (students £5)

BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 8 in G major, Op. 30 No. 3 KREUTZER La Molinara BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 10 in G major, Op. 96, ‘The Cockcrow’ Anna-Liisa Bezrodny violin Charlotte Scott violin Diana Ketler piano Tickets £25 (students £5)

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Recital IV Friday 27 November 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Rondo in G major, WoO 41 HAYDN Violin Sonata No. 2 in D major BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 6 in A major, Op. 30 No. 1 SCHUBERT Rondo brilliant in B minor, D. 895 BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 7 in C minor Op. 30 No. 2 Carmine Lauri violin Eva Bindere violin Simon Hester piano Tickets £25 (students £5)

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cHAmber music Recital V

Recital VI

Saturday 28 November 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

Sunday 29 November 2020 Holywell Music Room, 19:30

BEETHOVEN Sonata for Cello and Piano in F major, Op. 17

BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 4 in A minor, Op. 23, 'Little Kreutzer'

ROMBERG Sonata for Cello and Piano in E minor, Op. 38 No. 1 BEETHOVEN Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 3 in A major, Op. 69 HUMMEL Les charmes de Londres for Solo Piano, Op. 119 WöLFL Grand Duo for Cello and Piano in D minor, Op. 31 BEETHOVEN Sonata for Cello and Piano No. 4 in C major, Op. 102 No. 1 Mats Lidström cello Sholto Kynoch piano Tickets £25 (students £5)

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Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 3 in E flat major, Op. 12 No. 3 ROLLA Duo for Violin and Viola, Op. 12 No. 3 BEETHOVEN Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 9 in A major, Op. 47, ‘Kreutzer’ Natalia Lomeiko violin Yuri Zhislin violin Iván Martín piano Tickets £25 (students £5)

study weekend Only a handful of Beethoven’s contemporaries really understood his music, and those who did immediately recognised him as a one-off. So advanced were elements of his language that they appeared, to many, to foreshadow a future age.

Beethoven’s scores remain some of the most rewarding yet challenging to interpret. They stand at the crossroads of the Classical world of gallantry and historically informed performance, and Romantic notions of self-expression and self-examination. As always, the notes on the page provide musicians with little more than a roadmap.

For this comprehensive Study Weekend at St Hilda’s College, we welcome one of the greatest performers of Beethoven’s works, Alfred Brendel, to share his insights with young ensembles tackling the composer’s string quartets. Music Director of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, Marios Papadopoulos, will guide pianists through the composer’s piano works in the context of his own traversal of the concertos this season with his Orchestra.

We also welcome two speakers with particular expertise to share their insights into Beethoven’s legacy. The great broadcaster and critic Rob Cowan will lead participants through an informative and entertaining survey of Beethoven’s piano works on record, from the dawn of the age of recording to the present day, while expert on Viennese music of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, Misha Donat, will join Brendel for a discussion of vital elements of Beethoven’s music and its interpretation.

Saturday 1 February 2020 JdP Music Building, St Hilda’s College

Sunday 2 February 2020 JdP Music Building, St Hilda’s College

11:00-13:00 Alfred Brendel String Quartet Masterclass 14:00-16:00 Marios Papadopoulos Piano Masterclass

10:00-10:45 Rob Cowan – Beethoven on Disc: The Great Moments

16:15-17:30 Alfred Brendel in Conversation with Misha Donat

11:00-13:00 Alfred Brendel String Quartet Masterclass

Tickets £10 per morning or afternoon session or £25 for all 3 sessions (students £5 per session)

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symposium Beethoven was one of the most disruptive forces in musical history, if not the most. He was the first composer to have legions of ‘fans’ (in the modern sense of the word) but was a man who worshipped art and forsook almost everything else. He was fixated on progress, which he saw as indelibly bound-up in the idea of freedom. His most iconic work, the ninth symphony, has renewed political significance, symbolising as it does a united Europe that is beginning to fracture.

In this specially convened two-day Symposium, experts from the Universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Vienna, Connecticut, Manchester, Los Angeles, North Carolina and London, and from Beethoven Haus Bonn, come together to consider aspects of Beethoven’s music and his time, and examine trends in his music’s performance and reception.

Beethoven’s anniversary year should not pass without a rigorous discussion of the composer’s art and his legacy. This symposium in England’s oldest seat of learning will provide vital context for a year of discussion, celebration and performance.

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Thursday 6 & Friday 7 February 2020 Edward Boyle Auditorium, Jacqueline du Pré Music Building

Convener: Professor Eric Clarke, University of Oxford Tickets £15 per morning or afternoon session or £25 per day (students free admission at the door)

Thursday 6 February 2020 09:30-10:30

Professor Glenn Stanley – University of Connecticut

Dealing with Fidelio: Beethoven’s Problem Child and our Problem Too

No other work occupied Beethoven as long as Fidelio did: over a ten-year span he created three drastically different versions. We have a problem with Fidelio only if we make one for ourselves: instead of enjoying the music as a ‘culinary’ experience (Brecht) or embracing what it says about marital love and fidelity, personal courage and human rights and freedom, we would ask about the relevance of its ideological message and, from this perspective, critically appraise interpretations in contemporary criticism and productions.

10:45-11:45

Professor Elaine Sisman – Columbia University Counting Works, Counting Variations

Thinking in a series, thinking in numbers, pervaded Beethoven’s relation to the opus concept. It was also critical to his ‘new manner’ for variations in 1802. This talk explores the elements, including fugue, that Beethoven used to turn 15 into 30 variations, and threads those elements into a consideration of his compositional counting practices throughout his career.

13:00-13:30

Lunchtime Recital by William Kinderman (part of JdP Lunchtime Series) BEETHOVEN Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111 Free entry

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Professor William Kinderman – University of California, Los Angeles

Dystopian and Utopian Symbols in Beethoven: from the Appassionata to Op. 111

How to base an artwork on reality without creating a ‘Glass Bead Game’? An engagement with utopian/dystopian symbols is evident in Beethoven’s music, whose political character often reflects the influence of Schiller. Vladimir Lenin admired the 'Appassionata' Sonata Op. 57 as ‘marvelous superhuman music’ while distrusting its impact; Otto von Bismarck reportedly said that if he ‘listened often’ to the piece ‘he would always be very brave.’ The tragic or dystopian world of the 'Appassionata' owes much to correspondences with Beethoven’s highly political opera, Fidelio. This lecture recital commences by commentary and performance of another Beethovenian work that begins in a tragic mode but unlike the 'Appassionata', embodies a path of self-determination leading to a utopian outcome: the final Sonata in C minor, Op. 111.

15:00-16:00

Professor Birgit Lodes – University of Vienna Beethoven Confronts Death

In my presentation I wish to contextualise Beethoven’s personal remarks about death in this changing cultural framework. I will also propose that Beethoven’s conception(s) of the 'Last Things' are relevant for a deeper understanding of several of his compositions; e.g. the early Bonn Cantata on the Death of Emperor Joseph II. (1790), the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives and Fidelio (in which Jesus and Florestan respectively confront death), as well as works such as the song-cycle An die Ferne Geliebte, the Elegischer Gesang, and the 'Et vitam venturi' fugues in his masses.

16:15-17:15

Professor Nicholas Marston – University of Cambridge Registering the ‘Eroica’

This paper explores register in the outer movements of the ‘Eroica’ symphony. Engaging closely with Schenker’s 1930 analysis, in which the two-line register is understood as the obligate Lage while the three-line octave is treated as essentially decorative or reinforcing, it argues to the contrary, asserting the structural significance of the latter. By paying particular attention to Beethoven’s scoring for the flute, it develops a narrative of registral ‘failure’ in the finale that is in stark contrast to the standard ‘heroic’ readings of this work.

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Friday 7 February 2020 09:00-10:00

Professor David B. Levy – Wake Forest University Whither the European Hymn?: Re-imagining Beethoven's Ninth Symphony in the 21st century

No other work occupied Beethoven as long as Fidelio did: over a ten-year span he created three drastically different versions, in response to critical opposition, pressure from friends and colleagues, and changing political constellations.

10:15-11:15

Claire Holden – University of Oxford Beethoven: The Long and Short of it

Over the past 40 years, historically informed performances of the music of Beethoven have significantly influenced the Classical Music mainstream.

The effect has unquestionably been rejuvenating, but are these stylistic characteristics historically appropriate? This talk discusses aspects of rhythm and articulation in modern ‘period’ performances in relation to what we know about the practices of the early nineteenth century.

11:30-12:30

Professor Barry Cooper – University of Manchester

Performing Beethoven’s Piano Music in the 21st Century

There is no obligation for Beethoven’s piano music to be played exactly as he intended it. Nevertheless, there is something distinctive about a performance that aims to present the music in this way, and many pianists may wish to do this. We cannot always know Beethoven’s precise intentions, but we can be confident about certain aspects. These include the instruments he wanted used, the actual notes to be played, the dynamics, slurs, ornament signs, and use of the pedal. Modern pianists readily observe many of the demands of Beethoven’s notation (and implied intention); but with some aspects, modern convention has frequently overridden textual precision.

14:00-15:00

Professor Laura Tunbridge – University of Oxford Beethoven Great and Small

Size may not be everything in Beethoven's music, but its greatness tends to be implicitly associated with works on a grand scale. That is, though, to underestimate those smaller pieces that might demonstrate different aspects of his musical approach. In this talk I will consider the relationship between Beethoven maximus and minimus, through a series of music examples chosen from throughout his lifetime.

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symPOsium 15:15-16:15

Professor Daniel Leech-Wilkinson – King’s College, London Treating Beethoven as Shakespeare

For two centuries it has seemed fruitful to compare Beethoven and Shakespeare, the Zeuses of our musical and theatrical pantheons. We worship them and seek to perform their works: in search of ways to live better lives we cherish their texts for the guidance they offer. This talk examines the ideologies underlying the radically opposed ways in which we do these things. As well as discussing ethical issues we’ll consider what would be the artistic and commercial effects of performing Beethoven as we perform Shakespeare and vice versa, testing ideas with examples. And we’ll ask what the comparison tells us about the morality of classical music performance, including the comfortable home it provides for structural prejudice. What does it mean in this context to claim Beethoven as liberator? Or is he really our most dangerous prisoner?

16:30-17:30

Professor Dr Christine Siegert – Beethoven Haus Bonn

Gender and Space in Beethoven’s Incidental Music to Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s ‘Egmont’

In Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's tragedy ‘Egmont’, the two protagonists are clearly defined by space: The title role is situated in the public sphere, even his execution - which is now shown on stage - is held on the market place of Brussels. The space of the female protagonist Klärchen, on the other hand, is at the private home.

However, she is trying to overcome these limitations, but in vain: Her attempt to convince the citizens of Brussels to rise up and free the imprisoned Egmont fails miserably.

In my paper, I will explore how Beethoven's incidental music defines gendered space. On the one hand, it reinforces the gender differences of Goethe's play, on the other hand I would like to focus on the possibilities Beethoven shows to transgress the gendered limitations.

eXHibitiOn Thursday 6 - Sunday 9 February 2020 Weston Library There will be a small display of Beethoven material on show in the Weston Library. This will include an original Beethoven manuscript from the Bodleian Library’s collections, along with first editions of some of the works being discussed or performed at the Symposium.

Martin Holmes Curator, Oxford Beethoven Festival 2020 Exhibition (Alfred Brendel Curator of Music, Bodleian Libraries, University of Oxford) 3636

Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra Praised as ‘excellent’

by Gramophone magazine and ‘thoroughly impressive’ by BBC Music Magazine, the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra’s reputation is based on the uncompromising artistic standards of its Founder and Music Director, Marios Papadopoulos, and maintained by some of the finest musicians in the UK. Established in 1998 and formerly known as Oxford Philomusica, the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra occupies a unique position within the UK orchestral landscape. As an Orchestra of the highest quality, the Oxford Philharmonic attracts some of the world’s greatest artists to appear in its series including Maxim Vengerov, Valery Gergiev, Anne-Sophie Mutter, Martha Argerich, András Schiff, Renée Fleming, Lang Lang, Nicola Benedetti, and Vladimir Ashkenazy.

In addition to the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra’s annual concert season in Oxford, touring performances across the UK, family concerts, annual Oxford Piano Festival, and Chamber Music Series, it boasts a growing list of international engagements including the Orchestra’s debut at the Tivoli Festival in Copenhagen in June 2019, and an upcoming US debut at Carnegie Hall in May 2020. Acclaimed recordings include works by Nimrod Borenstein for Chandos, cello concertos by Shostakovich and Mats Lidström (Solo Cello of the Oxford Philharmonic), both conducted by Vladimir Ashkenazy, on the BIS label, A Merton Christmas with Merton College Choir, Haydn’s The Creation with the Choir of New College, and the Handel/Mendelssohn Acis and Galatea with Christ Church Cathedral Choir.

The Orchestra’s most recent disc The Enlightened Trumpet with soloist Paul Merkelo was released on Sony Classical in September 2019.

Following his remarkable debut with the Orchestra in 2013, Maxim Vengerov became its first Artist in Residence. Over an unprecedented four-season collaboration, Vengerov and the Oxford Philharmonic performed across the UK, recorded the violin concertos of Brahms and Sibelius as well as Mendelssohn’s Octet. In July 2018 Vengerov appeared at Cheltenham Music Festival and Saffron Hall with the Soloists of the Oxford Philharmonic - a tight-knit group of musicians described by The Times as ‘glorious individual players’ and by Jessica Duchen as ‘a line-up to match any top-notch international chamber ensemble and probably beat them on their own turf’. As part of the Oxford Philharmonic’s 20th anniversary celebrations in the 2018/19 season, Vengerov, Anne-Sophie Mutter and Martha Argerich joined the Orchestra for a gala concert at the Barbican.

The Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra has been firmly committed to outreach work from its earliest days, with projects taking music to areas of social and economic disadvantage, including hospitals, Special Schools, and partnerships with Oxford City Council and Oxfordshire County Council. In 2002, the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra was appointed the first ever Orchestra in Residence at the University of Oxford, and frequently collaborates with the Faculty of Music in educational programmes. In the 2019/20 season, the Orchestra launched its Side-by-Side scheme for school and University students, which provides an opportunity for young musicians to perform within the ranks of a professional orchestra.

A partnership with J & A Beare provides our distinguished members with opportunities to play on Stradivari instruments, adding a new dimension to the sound of the Orchestra.

The Orchestra and its Music Director were awarded the City of Oxford’s Certificate of Honour in 2013, in recognition of their contribution to education and performance in Oxford.

The continual search for excellence underpins the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra’s reputation, and is reflected in an Orchestra that strives to create bold musical statements with every concert it presents.

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Booking Information How to Book

How to Save

Venue Information

Box Office Online: oxfordphil.com Telephone: 01865 980 980 (Mon-Fri 09:00-18:00) E-mail: boxoffice@oxfordphil.com

Discounts cannot be combined

Box Office The box office at the Sheldonian Theatre opens 4 hours before each concert. The box office at all other venues opens 1 hour before each concert.

Booking Dates Monday 2 December, 11:00 - Priority booking for Patrons and multi-buy purchases of 10+ concerts Wednesday 4 December, 11:00 - Priority booking for Friends and multi-buy purchases of 5+ concerts Monday 9 December, 11:00 - General booking Priority booking for multi-buy purchases by telephone only Refunds and Conditions of Sale Tickets may be exchanged for another concert or a credit voucher (valid for six months) if returned at least two weeks before the concert. Refunds can only be given if a concert is sold out or cancelled. All returned and exchanged tickets incur an administration fee of £2 per ticket. Please note our concerts are not recommended for children under the age of six.

We reserve the right to refuse admission and to change the date, time, artist, programme or venue of any event where unavoidable. Please see our website for full Terms and Conditions.

Privacy Policy The Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra is committed to ensuring that your personal data is protected.

We use the information that we collect about you in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation 2018 and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003. This privacy policy sets out how we use and protect any information that you share with us.

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Friends/Patrons Discount Join our Friends Scheme and save 15%.

Join our Patrons Scheme and save 20%.

Purchase limit of 2 tickets per concert during priority period for bookings of under 5 concerts.

Multi-buy Bookings Must be booked in one transaction.

Book 5 – 9 concerts and save 10%.

Book 10+ concerts and save 15%.

During priority period: number of tickets purchased must be the same for each concert.

After priority period: any number of tickets can be purchased, however the discount will only apply to the same number of tickets per concert. Multi-buy tickets cannot be refunded and can only be exchanged for events within the same season.

Group Bookings Book 10+ tickets for one concert and save 10%.

Concessions Full-time students receive a £5 ticket in the lowest price band or a £5 discount for all other price bands through generous contributions to our Concert Access Fund for Students.

Unemployment benefit claimants save £5 on full-price tickets. Under 18s, registered disabled and wheelchair users with one companion save 50%.

Opening Times Doors open 30 minutes before the advertised concert start time and 10 minutes before a pre-concert event.

Special Requirements If you require a wheelchair space or have specific access or seating requirements please call us on 01865 980 980 so that we can advise you on the best seating arrangements for your needs. All our venues have disabled access and facilities.

Latecomers We will endeavour to admit latecomers when possible.

Latecomers will be seated in a designated area until the interval, when they can take their allocated seat.

Unreserved Seating Unreserved seating entitles you to a seat within your chosen area rather than a specific seat.

Sponsors and those with disabilities are entitled to reserved seating, allocated at the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra's discretion.

Contact us Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra 29a Teignmouth Road, London NW2 4EB 01865 987 222 (general) 01865 980 980 (box office) info@oxfordphil.com

Sheldonian Theatre Seating Plan DOOR

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Brochure design by Larisa Afrić.

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Photography credits: Richard Cave, Chris Gloag, Benjamin Ealovega, Hideki Shiozawa, simone-dinnerstein, Beethovenfest - Sonja Werner, Kristian Schuller/DG, Nadia, F. Romanini, Jean-François Mousseau, Marco Borggreve, Amanda Tipton, Lisa-Marie Mazzucco, Ian Wallman.

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Donors and Benefactors

Venues

Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra Trust (charity no. 1084256) acknowledges with deep gratitude the financial contributions made over the last twelve months by the following: Diamond Benefactors A.G. Leventis Foundation, Geoffrey & Caroline de Jager, Zvi & Ofra Meitar Family Fund, Mr & Mrs Lief Rosenblatt, Sana Sabbagh, The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Platinum Benefactors The H.K. Leventis Foundation, Simon & Alison Ryde, The Sackler Trust Gold Benefactors Marco & Francesca Assetto, Andrew & Celia Curran, Prof. & Mrs Raymond Dwek CBE, Donald Fothergill, David Haenlein, Rose Lew, Michael & Susan Pragnell, Mr & Mrs Bjarne Rieber, Dame Theresa Sackler, Marjorie Schwab, James & Dr Shirley Sherwood, Cynthia So, The Thompson Family Charitable Trust, Barbara & Donald Tober, The Tolkien Trust, University of Oxford, Christopher Wright, Andrey & Natalia Yakunin Silver Benefactors Elena Ambrosiadou, Prof. Paul Davies & Dr Saphié Ashtiany, Geoffrey Bradfield, Sir Ronald & Lady Cohen, Dorset Foundation, Pehr Gyllenhammar, Anita Higham OBE, Dr Pierre Keller, Dr Adrian & Caroline Künzi, Sophie Luo, The Michael Marks Charitable Trust, Dr Michael Peagram, Kim Samuel, Lema Al Tamimi Benefactors Sir John & Lady Aird, The Arts Society Oxford, Mr & Mrs Mark Barrett, Baroness Veronique Bich, Sir Winfried Bischoff, Lee & CeCe Black, Louis E. Black, Raymond Blanc OBE, Dr Timea Bor, The British Honey Company, David Aaron Carpenter, The Calleva Foundation, Samantha & Nabil Chartouni, Dr & Mrs Peter Collins, Suzi & David Cordish, The D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust, Alun Evans & Hilary Reid Evans, Laurent Faugerolas & Catherine Vaillant-Faugerolas, Dr Amanda Foreman, Martin & Christine Fricker, The Marchioness of Hamilton, Jeff & Pauline Hewitt, Sir John & Lady Hood, Lady Horton, Alireza Ittihadieh, Robert & Caroline Jackson, the JFR Charitable Trust, Dr Konstanze Koepff-Röhrs, George & Eva Koukis, Lady Jane Rayne & Robert Lacey, Mr & Mrs John Leighfield CBE, Anthony

& Jenny Loehnis, The Loveday Charitable Trust, Fatima & Eskander Maleki, McLaren Racing Limited, Martha Mehta, Amanda & David Milne QC, Antonia & Spiros Milonas, Acis & Aleca Montanios, Oxford City Council, Erik Penser, Lennart & Mona Perlhagen, Andrew & Bee Robb, Nicole Rolet, Faanya Rose, Dr Rosemary Sanders, Edward & Anne-Francoise Schneider, The Souldern Trust, Gregory & Susan Spence, Jean & Helene Peters, David & Elizabeth Ure, Jolana Vainio, Dr Pål Voltersvik & Liv Astrid Høgvold, Linda Walker & Christoph von Graffenried, Ari & Heba Zaphiriou-Zarifi Aeonian Circle Prof. Paul Davies & Dr Saphié Ashtiany, Anita Higham OBE, Dr Adrian & Caroline Künzi, David & Elizabeth Ure Patrons Lucy Asquith, John & Hilary Bach, Philip & Cassie Bassett, Mary Beattie, Irja Brant, Dr Penelope Brook, Anthony Burt, Eric & Karen Caines, Katherine Carpenter, Emma Chamberlain OBE, Melissa Clarke, Ian Collard, Charles & Gisela Cooper, Sir Anthony Cleaver, Luce Churchill, Sir Frederick & Lady Crawford, Tony & Revd Mary Cruddas, Neville & Christine Dalton, Dr John & Baroness Deech, Nadia Dimsdale, Patricia Donnelly, David & Elizabeth French, John Gore, Nicholas Goulder, Peggotty & Andrew Graham, Professors Malcolm & Jennifer Green, Dr William Hayes & Dr Anne Grocock, Ron & Penny Gulliver, Peter & Valerie Hill, Godfrey & Elizabeth Holliday, Dr Chris Hornby, Deborah Hornsby, Glen & Mandy James, Prof. Richard Jenkyns, Richard Kellett-Clarke, Prof. Martin Kemp, Sir Anthony & Lady Kenny, Marion Khalili, Michael Leech OBE & Dr Joyce Leech, Kaye & David Lillycrop, Michael & Sarah Livingston, Constantine Logothetis, Eric & Claire Lowry, The Lyminster Trust, Patrick Matthiesen, Joy Morning, The Mosawi Foundation, Amanda Nicholson, Mark & Jill Pellew, David Pick, Derek & Muriel Pilkington, Sir Brian & Lady Pomeroy, Lord & Lady Roborough, Anthony & Tania de Rothschild, Blake & Anne Samuels, Sander Schakelaar, Alan Smith, Lord & Lady Reginald Stewart, Richard Viney, Bruno Wang, Dr Trudy Watt, Sam & Suzanne Webber, Angela Beatson Wood Donors who prefer to remain anonymous

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Jacqueline du Pré Music Building St Hilda’s College, Cowley Place, Oxford OX4 1DY Holywell Music Room Holywell Street, Oxford OX1 3SD Oxford Town Hall St Aldate’s, Oxford OX1 1BX Sheldonian Theatre Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3AZ St John the Evangelist Church Iffley Road, Oxford OX4 1EH University Church of St Mary the Virgin High Street, Oxford OX1 4BJ Weston Library Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BG

The University of Oxford logo is the registered trademark of the University of Oxford. The Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra is licensed to use the mark in the branding of events in the United Kingdom. The Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra is run by the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra Trust. Neither the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra nor the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra Trust are part of the University of Oxford.

Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra Royal Patron HRH Princess Alexandra Life Presidents Geoffrey de Jager Harry Leventis Menahem Pressler Honorary President The Rt Hon the Lord Patten of Barnes, CH Vice President Sir Victor Blank Patron Vladimir Ashkenazy Piano Festival Patron Alfred Brendel KBE Piano Festival President Sir András Schiff Piano Festival Life President Dame Fanny Waterman Patron for New Music Marina, Lady Marks Music Director Marios Papadopoulos MBE Assistant Conductor Hannah Schneider Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra Trust Registered Charity no. 1084256 Donald Fothergill (Chairman) Geoffrey de Jager (Deputy Chairman)

Elena Ambrosiadou Dr Saphié Ashtiany Marco Assetto Raymond Blanc OBE Prof. Michael Earl Peter Earl Pehr Gyllenhammar David Haenlein Aviad Meitar Marios Papadopoulos MBE Sir Jonathan Phillips James Sherwood George Tsavliris Christopher Wright Advisory Council Dr Saphié Ashtiany (Chair) Emma Chamberlain OBE Prof. Michael Earl Joanna Foster CBE Peggotty Graham Jeff Hewitt Robert Jackson Lady Kenny Lord Krebs Dr Jill Pellew Sir Jonathan Phillips Bob Price Hilary Reid-Evans Sir Ivor Roberts Prof. Peter Tufano Prof. Sir John Vickers David Whelton OBE

Finance and General Purposes Committee Prof Michael Earl (Chairman) Maggie Copus David Haenlein Jeff Hewitt Anthony Loehnis Richard Smethurst Honorary Members Lord Butler of Brockwell Sir Jeremy Greenstock Lady Heseltine John Leighfield CBE Margarita Louis-Dreyfus Sir Michael Parkinson CBE Dr Michael Peagram Anthony Smith CBE Prof Reinhard Strohm Francesca Schwarzenbach Bruno Wang Board Members, American Friends of the Oxford Philharmonic April Gow Andre Gregory Marios Papadopoulos MBE Christopher Wright

Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra Productions Ltd Company no. 03592323 VAT no. 208 4077 20 Directors Peter Earl David Haenlein Anthi Papadopoulos Marios Papadopoulos MBE Administration Concerts Music Director Marios Papadopoulos MBE Executive Assistant to the Music Director Beau Marshall Planning Officer Helen Ecclestone Logistics Officer Bethany Wright Stage Manager Max Howard Executive Director American Friends of the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra April Gow Development Officer Laura Davies

Marketing/Events Director Anthi Papadopoulos Events and Ticketing Officer Stella Papadopoulos Marketing Officer Georgia Goody-Miceli Special Projects Heike Levy Media Press and PR Nicky Thomas Media Education/Community Director David Haenlein University Residency Coordinator Beau Marshall Piano Festival Coordinators Stella Papadopoulos Bethany Wright Production Design/ Office Supervisor Larisa Afrić Librarian Helen Harris

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Diary January - December 2020

Booking dates Monday 2 December, 11:00 - Priority booking for Patrons and multi-buy purchases of 10+ concerts Wednesday 4 December, 11:00 - Priority booking for Friends and multi-buy purchases of 5+ concerts Monday 9 December, 11:00 - General booking Priority booking for multi-buy purchases by telephone only

January Thursday 23 January St John the Evangelist Church Jonathan Biss 14 Saturday 25 January Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle I

Sunday 2 February Sheldonian Theatre Takács Quartet 6

February Saturday 1 February Jacqueline du Pré Music Building Study Weekend Saturday 1 February Sheldonian Theatre TS Eliot Four Quartets

Already on sale

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Sunday 2 February Jacqueline du Pré Music Building Study Weekend

31

23

31

Thursday 13 February Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle III

24

Saturday 29 February St John the Evangelist Church John Lill 15

Thursday 6 February Jacqueline du Pré Music Building Symposium 33-34 Thursday 6 February Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle II

6

Friday 7 February Jacqueline du Pré Music Building Symposium 35-36

7

March Friday 6 March Holywell Music Room Beethoven & his Colleagues Recital Series I 27 Saturday 7 March Holywell Music Room Beethoven & his Colleagues Recital Series II 28

Saturday 7 March Holywell Music Room Beethoven & his Colleagues Recital Series III 28

May Tuesday 12 May Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle IV

7

Sunday 31 May Sheldonian Theatre Fidelio 13

June Friday 5 June Oxford Town Hall Pastoral for the Planet

8

Sunday 7 June Oxford Town Hall FUNomusica 9 Saturday 13 June University Church of St Mary the Virgin Kristian Bezuidenhout Sunday 14 June Sheldonian Theatre Martha Argerich & Stephen Kovacevich Thursday 18 June Sheldonian Theatre Sir AndrĂĄs Schiff

16

Sunday 2 August Jacqueline du PrĂŠ Music Building Oxford Piano Festival Alumni 19 Sunday 2 August Sheldonian Theatre Paul Lewis

19

October 16

18

July Wednesday 1 July Oxford Town Hall Mass in C major

August

9

Thursday 8 October St John the Evangelist Church Kit Armstrong 20

November Tuesday 3 November Holywell Music Room Evgeni Koroliov

20

Friday 6 November Holywell Music Room Immortal Beloved

24

Saturday 14 November Holywell Music Room Louis Schwizgebel Thursday 19 November Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle V Thursday 26 November Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle VI

21

Sunday 29 November Holywell Music Room Beethoven & his Colleagues Recital Series VI 30

December 10

10

Friday 27 November Holywell Music Room Beethoven & his Colleagues Recital Series IV 29 Saturday 28 November Holywell Music Room Beethoven & his Colleagues Recital Series V 30

Tuesday 8 December Sheldonian Theatre Juilliard Quartet

25

Friday 11 December Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle VII

11

Sunday 13 December Sheldonian Theatre Symphony & Concerto Cycle VIII

12

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Beethoven

Festival 2020 January - December 2020

Oxford 44

Peter Adams w Tamás András w Katya Apekisheva w Benjamin Appl Martha Argerich w Kit Armstrong w Julius Asal w Sergei Babayan Martin James Bartlett w Emma Bell w Anna-Liisa Bezrodny Kristian Bezuidenhout w Eva Bindere w Jonathan Biss w Ian Bostridge Alfred Brendel w Eleanor Dennis w Jessica Duchen w Joshua Ellicott Evgenia Epshtein w Juilliard Quartet w Manon Fischer-Dieskau Marta Fontanals-Simmons w Daniel Grice w Simon Hester w Jeremy Irons Diana Ketler w Evgeni Koroliov w Stephen Kovacevich w Sholto Kynoch Eilana Lappalainen w Carmine Lauri w Haegee Lee w Paul Lewis Mats Lidström w John Lill w Natalia Lomeiko w Ignas Maknickas Mischa Maisky w Alasdair Malloy w Iván Martín w Nuron Mukumi Anne-Sophie Mutter w Magdalena Nasidlak w Marios Papadopoulos Claire Rutter w Sir András Schiff w Hannah Schneider w Louis Schwizgebel Charlotte Scott w David Shipley w Angela Simkin w Božidar Smiljanić David Soar w Toby Spence w Andrew Staples w John Suchet w Takács Quartet Peter Tiboris w Robin Tritschler w Maxim Vengerov w Yuriy Yurchuk w Yuri Zhislin