Felix Mendelssohn was a German composer, pianist, musical conductor and teacher. Unfortunately, Mendelssohn did not live a very long life but still composed around 750 musical works. He started to compose music when he was only 11, and wrote his first master piece, the ‘String Octet in E-Flat Major’ , when he was 16. Some of his most famous works include A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the ‘Violin Concerto in E minor’ , and The Hebrides Overture Mendelssohn was also an active conductor: in 1829 he conducted the first performance of the St. Mathhew Passion since Bach’s death and with that introduced the Bach revival of the 19th century.
In 1829, Mendelssohn and his friend Karl Klinegmann travelled to Scotland. During this trip, Mendelssohn travelled to the Hebrides Island and visited Staffa, an island known for its Puffins and large caves. The cave “Fingal’s Cave” made an impression on Mendelssohn with its echoing acoustics which emphasised the sound of crashing waves. This is where the inspiration behind Hebrides Overture originated. The piece does not tell a specific story but rather sets a scene: the atmosphere of the Atlantic and the sound of waves colliding with rocks. It took Mendelssohn 3 years to finish the score and it had its first performance at the Philharmonic Society in London in May 1832.
Programme Notes by Celine Olsen
PROGRAMME
NOTES
Dani Howard (b. 1993)
TromboneConcerto(2020/21)
I. Realisation
II. Rumination
III. Illumination
The British composer and orchestrator Dani Howard has gained a large amount of international recognition for her work. She was born in 1993 in Hong Kong and later studied composition at the Royal College of Music in London. Howard’s musical works have been performed across the UK, as well as a great deal of countries internationally. Her work has been commissioned and performed by several different orchestras, including the London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
Howard’s ‘Trombone Concerto’ was commissioned by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic and she started writing it during the lockdowns in 2020. She wrote it with the help of trombonist Peter Moore, who also premiered the work. The concerto was inspired by the “simple acts of kindness of people during the pandemic.” According to Howard, the aim of the concerto was to provide a “hugely joyful, colourful, and explosive” piece. It has three movements: Realisation, Rumination, and Illumination Howard’s Trombone Concerto was called “an instant classic” by The Times, and in 2022 she won a Royal Philharmonic Society Award for the concerto.
Programme Notes by Celine Olsen
Gustav Holst (1874 – 1934)
The Planets,Op.32
1. Mars, the Bringer of War
2. Venus, the Bringer of Peace
3. Mercury, the Winged Messenger
4. Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity
5. Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age
6. Uranus, the Magician
7. Neptune, the Mystic
English composer Gustav Holst was born in 1874, and was well known throughout his career for the excellent orchestration skills that were routinely showcased in his work. He found inspiration in new European compositions by the likes of Stravinsky, since the English folk-song school was a rigid and inflexible practice in comparison to the musical independence that Holst looked for.
The Planets is a suite consisting of seven tone poems that were written between the years of 1914 to 1916. While the title initially implies a connection to astronomy or Roman mythology, Holst outright stated that the poems “were suggested by the astrological significance of the planets. There is no programme music in them, neither have they any connection with the deities of classical mythology bearing the same names. If any guide to the music is required, the subtitle to each piece will be found sufficient, especially if it be used in a broad sense. For instance, Jupiter brings jollity in the ordinary sense, and also the more ceremonial type of rejoicing associated with religions or national festivities. Saturn brings not only physical decay, but also a vision of fulfilment. Mercury is the symbol of the mind.”
The first poem is Mars, the Bringer of War Completed shortly before the outbreak of World War I, this battle march in 5/4 time features brass fanfares, dynamic climaxes and the characteristically percussive sound of col legno as the strings use the wood of their bows. This piece encompasses the brutality and terror of war.
Venus, the Bringer of Peace begins with a serene solo from the horn, a drastic change of pace from the overwhelming character of Mars. Gently oscillating harmonies converge to produce chords
that flutter and sparkle, and the solo violin line skips softly over the light accompaniment.
The last of the planets to be written was a lively scherzo titled Mercury, the Winged Messenger It has a bright and swift character defined by fastmoving passages that flurry past in a whirlwind of motion. With the metallic sounds of both the harp and celeste, a truly mercurial tonality is created.
Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity was most inspired by the English folk music tradition that was central to many of Holst’s peers, including Ralph Vaughan Williams. Holst initially uses bold, blaring horns to capture the jubilation of the planet, but upon moving into the middle section the strings play a stately, lyrical tune that was later used to create the patriotic hymn I vow to thee my country.
As the subtitle suggests, Saturn, the Bringer of Old Age depicts the passage of time, with the musical focus on the growth from eager, young naivety, represented through syncopated chords, to steady maturity with a stately march, and then to the end of life with a powerful and immense dirge. And yet we are not left with this sorrow; instead, the subsequent music brings us to the fulfilment and resolution that follow old age.
Uranus, the Magician starts with a four-note musical cipher of Holst’s name using the German notation. The music is crowded by eerie chords that are then contrasted by comical sections in a major tonality, only to be lost once again as the orchestra dives back into a more mysterious sound. The music ends quietly, the hushed dynamics working in contrast to our expectations of this piece.
The suite closes with Neptune, the Mystic This piece is both ethereal and cold, with high registers and an “always very quiet” (sempre pianissimo) performance direction creating a sound that feels truly heavenly. As a chorus of singers begin to provide wordless vocalisation, Holst’s Neptune begins to seem untouchable. A planet far from Earth, and thus far from the grasp of humans; Neptune always feels just out of reach, taken away by the chorus as the music slowly fades to nothing.
Programme notes by Millie Shurmer
TONIGHT’S PERFORMERS
The Royal Holloway Symphony Orchestra
Violin1
Clarise Chong *
Nicole Yuen *
Lingling Bao-Smith *
Hannah Lam
James Perrin
Tristan Hail
Lily Thompson
Bella Morgan
Paul Kam
Alannah Harbach
Luca Parr
Violin2
Christopher Bacon *
Phedra Low *
Rachel Pankhurst
Terry Chen
Angel Katsenza
Winston Ung
Helen Stephen
Amelia Tamblyn
Solveiga Urbanaviciute
Maggie Ip
Andreas Karapanagiotidis
Joseph McCartney
Karina Piper
Viola
Laura Field *
Elizaveta Rnic
Maisie Pearce
Izzy Wroe
Phoebe Canell
Cello
Oliver Grimes *
Naoki Aso *
Kian Jan-Dickens
Evelyn Pong
Claudia Buchanan
Bella Hughes
Jasmine Akibo-Betts
Jocelyn Hails
Niamh Sherwood
Thomas Homer
Jake Addison
DoubleBass
Owen Morgan
Owen Ward
Georgia Lloyd ^
Flute
Evelina Venslovaite *
Gwendolyn Schneider *
Klara Sweeney
Thomas Boyle
Eunice Chan
Boe Talbot
BassFlute
Rachel Li
Piccolo
Ruby Dodd
Iris-Amelia Davies
Oboe
Joseph Stapleton
Lucy Griffiths
BassOboe
Christina East ^
Clarinet
Ben Hall *
Josephine Edwards
Sam Pollacco
Billy White
BassClarinet
Izzy Reid
Bassoon
Luke Passmore *
Rosina Murray
Michael Elderkin (also contrabassoon) ^
Horn
Josephine Palmer *
Hana Benlalam
Isabella Ackland ^ Isaac Shieh ^
Saxophones
Pippa Brown
Elijah Olukoya
Jimmy Davies
Trumpet
James McPherson *
Peter So
Oskar Warren
Daniel Clough
TenorTrombone
Anna Bailey ^
Ned Pettitt ^
BassTrombone
Tom Williams ^
Percussion
Reece Walker
Will Bishop
Sophia Wilhelmi
Harry Millar
Joshua Li
Ellen Gao
Harp
Victoria Lee
Nicolette Chin ^
Keyboard
Thomas Mansfield
Jason Fan
* Orchestral Scholar
^ External Musician
| Page
Singers
Isabel Bonnett
Jasmine Chauhan
Christina Finlay
Millicent Fryer
Abigail Jones
Harriet Marsh
Tia McBain
Lottie McCallum
Aoife Smith
Dimitra-Eftychia Sotiropoulou
Irina Temerel
Charlotte Vosper
Committee
Clarise Chong Orchestral Manager
Klara Sweeney
Gwendolyn Schneider
Ben Hall
Luke Passmore
Nicole Yuen
Hannah Lam
Socials and Events Manager
Assistant Orchestral and Socials Manager
Fundraising Chief
Stage Manager
Assistant Stage Manager
Assistant Stage Manager, Librarian
Phedra Low Librarian
Rebecca Miller Conductor
California-born conductor Rebecca Miller has earned an international reputation for her compelling, insightful, and energetic presence on the podium and for her ability to communicate with audiences of all ages. Recent guest-conducting includes the Kuopio Symphony Orchestra, Västerås Sinfonietta, DalaSinfoniettan,Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, New Haven Symphony Orchestra, Gävle Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra of the Swan, The OrchestraNow,TheBardMusicFestival,BBC NationalOrchestraofWales,Orchestraofthe Age of Enlightenment, London Mozart Players,LondonPhilharmonicOrchestra,BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia, City of LondonSinfonia,NationalYouthOrchestraof Scotland, Orquesta Sinfonica Nacional de Mexico, and at the BBC Proms in the Royal Albert Hall. Following her debut with the Uppsala Chamber Orchestra in Sweden, she was immediately re-invited and appointed Chief Conductor, a post which sheheldfrom2019-2023.
In previous seasons, Rebecca has guestconductedtheHoustonSymphony,Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, Reno Philharmonic, Bakersfield Symphony, Santa Cruz Symphony, Chicago College of the Performing Arts, Huntsville Symphony, Williamsport Symphony, and Musiqa Houston, and with the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra in Israel. Firstprize winner in the Eduardo Mata International Conducting Competition, she has conducted throughout Mexico,includingrepeatedengagementswith theOrquestaSinfonicaNacionalandOrquesta Filarmonica delUNAM, and the state orchestras of Yucatan, Aguascalientes, and Sinaloa.In2017,Rebeccawasalsofeaturedin the Bruno Walter National Conductors PreviewwiththeNashvilleSymphony.
Rebecca’s discography includes CDs with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (CPE Bach Symphonies / Signum Records, which made the final shortlist for a 2014 Gramophone Award), with the BBC Concert Orchestra (Henry Hadley Orchestral works / Dutton Epoch), with the BBC Scottish Symphony (piano concertos by Amy Beach, Dorothy Howell, Cecil Chaminade / Hyperion Records), and three CDs with the Royal Northern Sinfonia (Haydn Symphonies / Signum Records; George Frederick Bristow’s ‘Jullien Symphony’ / New World Records; Concertos by Aaron Jay Kernis / Signum Records).
Rebecca is passionate about her work with young musicians – she has recently started regular partnerships with the National Children'sOrchestraandthewiththeLondon Symphony Orchestra Discovery, and previously worked with the National Youth Orchestras of Scotland, NYO Wales, and NYOGB, with the Chicago College of the PerformingArts,andwiththeNationalYouth Orchestra of Venezuela (Teresa Carreño), much to the acclaim of its late founder José Antonio Abreu. She was conductor at the Royal Academy of Music’s JuniorDepartment formanyyears,wheresheformedthegroundbreaking and unique JA Classical Orchestra, and works regularly with the Southbank Sinfonia in London,whereshe was AssociateConductorforthreeyears.
As Director of Orchestras at Royal Holloway University of London, she has been widely acclaimed for building the orchestral programme to new heights – starting an orchestralscholarshipprogramme,initiatinga side-by-side programme with the London Mozart Players, securing high-profile engagements (including ‘Magna Carta 800 at Runnymede’ a project with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Temple Church Choir, performed in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth II and 4000 dignitaries and honoured guests), and establishing a new initiativecalled ‘Music +’, which aims to build bridgesthroughmusicwithinterdepartmental projectsandinterdisciplinaryresearch.
Previously, Rebecca served as Resident Conductor of the Louisiana Philharmonic OrchestraandAmericanConductingFellowof The Houston Symphony, and Assistant Conductor of the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra. She holds a B.Mus. in Piano Performance from Oberlin Conservatory, an M.Mus in Orchestral Conducting from Northwestern University, and for two years was the Paul Woodhouse Junior Fellow in Orchestral Conducting at London’s Royal CollegeofMusic.
Harvey Lok
Assistant Conductor
Harvey is a finalist Music and English student at Royal Holloway interested in exploringtheintricaterelationshipbetween music and literature. He has toured to Australia, Estonia, France, the Netherlands, Vienna, etc. with various ensembles and performedinprestigiousvenuesincludingthe MusikvereinandTemppeliaukoChurch.Heis currently the co-founder and conductor of vocalensembleHemiola,withnotableproject highlights such as Parry’s ‘Songs of Farewell’ with Lady Clare’s Consort and curating programmes responding to the Book of Job and Sara Teasdale’s poem ‘Love and Death’.
Harvey credits his musical roots to the Hong Kong Children’s Choir, where he initially sung intheirConcertChoirasatreble.Growingup, he has been a student conductor for various groups, including The Illumino Singers, Diocesan Boys’ School Music Department, and the Hong Kong Children’s Choir. He was previouslyabasschoralscholarwiththeChoir of Royal Holloway, where he contributed to several album recordings and had the opportunity to conduct nearly fifty works, including the UK premiere of Cecilia McDowall’s‘Musicofthe Stars’.He alsojoined Royal Holloway’s New Voices Consort as their assistantdirector.
In recognition of his musical achievements, Harvey has been awarded prizes and scholarships by Royal Holloway, Youth Arch Foundation, Diocesan Boys’ School, and the Hong Kong Children’s Choir. Harvey was also fortunate to take part in multiple conducting masterclasses by David Hill, Fred Sjöberg, Gábor Hollerung, Joseph Bastian, Sanders Lau,andStuartOverington.
Thisyear,Harveyhastakenonthepositionof Senior Assistant Conductor for the Royal HollowaySymphonyOrchestraandservedas a guest coach for Royal Holloway’s Conductor Collective.
Amelia Lewis Trombone
Amelia Lewis is an emerging musician, trombonist and vocalist, experienced in solo, orchestral, chamber and jazz backgrounds. HavinggrownupinWestYorkshirebutliving andstudyinginLondonattheculminationof her Bachelor’s degree at the Royal Academy ofMusic,shedrawsinspirationfromanarray of musical influences, ranging fromthe brass bands of her childhood to the tuition of top London orchestral professors such as Peter Moore, Matthew Gee and Ian Bousfield. Career highlights as of yet amass performances in the Royal Albert Hall, Birmingham Symphony Hall, Bridgewater Hall,andUlsterHall.
OUR PROGRAMME
NOTES
The notes created for this event programme have been written by a team of students at the Department of Music, as part of the Concert Management & Artist Personnel Programme.
This is a professional development initiative run by the Concert Office where students are able to experience first-hand what goes on behind-the-scenes, who organises the publicity for an event, to even how to coordinate and manage a rehearsal schedule. All members of the programme are mentored by the College's Performance Administrator, James Mark, and receive training from industry specialists.
Tonight’s programme notes were written by Millie Shurmer and CelineOlsen.
Feeling thirsty?
Pop by our stalls just outside the auditorium for a drink or a snack!
We hope you enjoy the performance by RHSO tonight. One of our talented cellists, Evelyn Pong, has designed custom stickers for each of Holst’s Planets that are available for purchase during the interval and after the concert. Please stop by to grab one! Thank you so much for supporting us!
Take a gamble in our Raffle and stand a chance to win some lovely prizes, including some delicious chocolates, a bottle of wine, a decorative plant for your home and more.
All proceeds will go towards fundraising for our upcoming tour in the summer!
Thank you so much for coming tonight, and if you're on social media, do tag us in all your photos
