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• Pram and Modified Toy Orchestra Plus Support Shady Bard 

  Mon 15 Oct Town Hall

  Town Hall celebrates the electric local music scene with three hotly-tipped Birmingham-based bands. Pram create haunting and mesmerising music and will launch their eagerly anticipated new album at the concert. Modified Toy Orchestra circuit-bend toys beyond their original capabilities, creating perfect pop songs from imperfect instruments. Completing the line up are the miniature indie orchestra Shady Bard. In association with Capsule
  
  
  

• 10.30am Birmingham City University - Law, Humanities, Development and Society 10.30am 

  Fri 15 Feb Symphony Hall

  Due to an unprecedented demand all guest tickets for this ceremony have now sold out. In addition to the internet broadcast of the Awards Ceremonies, the University has arranged for this Award Ceremony to be broadcast live to Hall 8 within the International Convention Centre. This is in the same building as Symphony Hall and friends and family will be able to watch the ceremony as it is broadcast live. Entry to this Hall is free of charge. Please contact Academic Registry on 0121 331 6509 to confirm the number of guests that you wish to attend the broadcast. Alternatively you may wish to email natasha.cochrane@bcu.ac.uk with the name of the graduating student, the ceremony broadcast that you will be attending and the number of guests that you will be bringing.
  
  
  

• 2.30pm Birmingham City University - Faculty of Health  

  Mon 4 Feb Symphony Hall

  Due to an unprecedented demand all guest tickets for this ceremony have now sold out. In addition to the internet broadcast of the Awards Ceremonies, the University has arranged for this Award Ceremony to be broadcast live to Hall 8 within the International Convention Centre. This is in the same building as Symphony Hall and friends and family will be able to watch the ceremony as it is broadcast live. Entry to this Hall is free of charge. Please contact Academic Registry on 0121 331 6509 to confirm the number of guests that you wish to attend the broadcast. Alternatively you may wish to email natasha.cochrane@bcu.ac.uk with the name of the graduating student, the ceremony broadcast that you will be attending and the number of guests that you will be bringing. PLEASE NOTE THIS GRADUATION STARTS AT 2.30PM
  
  
  

• BBC Radio 3: Mendelssohn Live!  

  Fri 8 May Town Hall

  BBC Radio 3 celebrates the 200th anniversary of Mendelssohn's birth with a live broadcast of its drivetime show _In Tune_ presented by Sean Rafferty. The BBC Philharmonic and Nicholas Kraemer take to the platform joined by international talent. Violinist *Tai Murray* performs Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, organist *Thomas Trotter* plays the very same instrument Mendelssohn used when he visited Town Hall in 1837, and the BBC Chorister of the Year, *Alice Halstead*, sings his _O for the Wings of a Dove_.
  *BBC Philharmonic* *Nicholas Kraemer* conductor
  
  

• The Ed Doolan Christmas Show  

  Fri 19 Dec Symphony Hall

  Ed and his team celebrate the festive season at Symphony Hall with a special broadcast that you can be part of. There will be special interviews with Paul Nicholas, The Krankies and Bev Bevan, as well as some great music from the West Midlands Fire Service Band and Birmingham's Community Gospel Choir. We'll also be expecting you to join in for a rousing finale of Christmas Carols led by pupils from Baverstock School! You can find more information by visiting "BBC Christmas":http://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/christmas/
  
  
  

• 'AND NOW, THE NEWS'  

  Thu 5 Jun Town Hall

  What soundtrack would you choose to accompany the news? Have you wondered about the music behind the headlines? A new commission by New Guide to Opera (Michael Wolters and Marcus Dross) explores this idea in our increasingly media-driven society, with original music performed to a live broadcast of the BBC News. The performance features students from Birmingham Conservatoire alongside cellist Julian Lloyd Webber, one of the most creative musicians of his generation. Julian will also perform a new work written specifically for him by Howard Goodall. The concert launches both the New Generation Arts Festival and Integra 2008, taking place at Birmingham Conservatoire. Integra works take centre stage in the second half, with the performance of a second commission, by Ed Bennett and Juneau Projects as well as a performance by renowned swedish ensemble Ars Nova and works by Pierre Jodlowski and Kent Oloffson. £10, 60 Plus/Under 16’s/Unwaged £8, Students £2.50 Please note that, owing to the live link with the BBC News, this concert will start promptly at 7pm. Please be seated by 6.55pm.
  *Launch of New Generation Arts Festival and Integra 2008* *Julian Lloyd Webber* _cello_
  
  

• Orchestra of the Swan: Essential Mahler  

  Wed 25 Mar Town Hall

  Three of the most popular works by their respective composers, in small orchestra versions that are every bit as delightful as the originals. Free pre and post concert talks with David Curtis and orchestra members. Orchestra of the Swan are a Town Hall associate artist Orchestra of the Swan corporate partner: Clarke Willmott
  
  *Debussy* _arr Schoenberg_ L'aprés midi d'un faune *Berlioz* _arr Mathews_ Nuit d’été *Mahler* _arr Stein_ Symphony No 4
  

• Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain Christmas Special 

  Thu 6 Dec Town Hall

  The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain is a cult orchestra of all-singing, all-strumming, all-plucking ukulele players, featuring only ukuleles little ones, big ones, high ones, low ones, with not a twang incongruous. No guitars, No drums, No pianos, No backing tracks, and certainly No banjos. The orchestra has sold out shows all over the UK and have made triumphant appearances at the Glastonbury Festival, The Big Chill, the Edinburgh Fringe, and on Jools Holland’s Hootenanny on BBC 2.
  
  
  

• Family Concert: Animal Magic with the Orchestra of the Swan  

  Sat 1 Dec Town Hall

  Orchestra of the Swan will play a programme of family favourites including Peter and the Wolf and Jungle Nocturne for orchestra and audience. Bring your favourite cuddly animal and join Explorchestra of the Swan on a musical safari!
  
  
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra  

  Sun 17 Feb 2008 Symphony Hall

  Martyn Brabbins regularly wows Birmingham audiences with his interpretations of British and contemporary music; tonight he makes his first appearance with the CBSO Youth Orchestra in a powerful 20th-century programme. Former BBC Young Musician of the Year Guy Johnston is the soloist in Shostakovich’s punchy First Cello Concerto, but first the Youth Orchestra brings all its zest and freshness to Britten’s bracing suite of seascapes. And then Martyn Brabbins leads them through one of the great modern orchestral showpieces Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra. Part life-and-death drama, part flamboyant musical firework display, it’ll be a gripping challenge for this outstanding young orchestra. “There can be no higher compliment you can pay to the CBSO Youth Orchestra than that they can be listened to like an orchestra of professionals; no allowances made for youth or inexperience.” The Birmingham Post, February 2007
  Martyn Brabbins conductor Guy Johnston cello
  Britten: Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No. 1 Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra
  

• CBSO Summer Concert - CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy  

  Sun 10 Aug Town Hall

  When the CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy, the virtuoso chamber orchestra drawn from the CBSO’s acclaimed Youth Orchestra, gave its first concert last September, the critics were unanimous. “Rapture was really the only natural response,” declared The Birmingham Post, going on to describe the Academy as “this jaw-droppingly brilliant group”. Now it steps onto a bigger stage: past meets present, as the stars of tomorrow raise the roof in Birmingham’s most historic music venue.
  *Michael Seal* Conductor *Morgan Szymanski* Guitar
  *Part* Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten *Ligeti* Concert Romanesc *Rodrigo* Concierto de Aranjuez *Beethoven* Symphony No.7
  

• The National Children's Orchestra of Great Britain  

  Sat 12 Apr Town Hall

  The National Children’s Orchestra will leave you astounded and amazed by the quality of sound produced by such a young orchestra. £17, £14, £10, under 16’s £5 60 plus/full-time students/unwaged £15, £12, £8
  *Hilary Davan Wetton* Conductor
  *Handel* Overture in D minor (arr Elgar) *Walton* Henry V Suite (arr Mathieson) *Finzi* Elergy: The Fall of the Leaf *Arnold* Tam O’Shanter Overture *Vaughan Williams* Job, A Masque For Dancing
  

• University of Birmingham Choir and Philharmonic Orchestra  

  Sun 15 Mar Town Hall

  £12, concessions £8, students £5
  *Daniele Rosina* conductor
  *Bernstein* Chichester Psalms *Elgar* Variations on an Original Theme for Orchestra, Op36, _Enigma_ *Fauré* Requiem in D minor, Op 48
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy  

  Sun 26 Jul Town Hall

  After its triumphant Town Hall debut last season, the CBSO Youth Orchestra’s brilliant chamber orchestra returns with a riotously entertaining programme spanning three centuries, including Ibert’s _Divertissement_ and Rameau’s _Les Boréades_.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* conductor
  *Ibert* Divertissement *Rameau* Les Boréades - Suite *Prokofiev* Violin Concerto No 2 *Julian Anderson* Alhambra Fantasy
  

• Orchestra Baobab  

  Sat 4 Apr Town Hall

  Orchestra Baobab are one of Africa’s great iconic bands, creators of one of the world’s most sublime and truly distinctive pop sounds. Founded in 1970, Orchestra Baobab fused Afro-Cuban rhythm and Portuguese Creole melody with Congolese rumba, high life and a whole gamut of local styles - kickstarting a musical renaissance in their native Senegal, which turned the capital Dakar into one of the world’s most vibrant musical cities. They produced more hits in less than a decade than other bands in a lifetime.
  
  
  

• The National Children's Orchestra  

  Sat 23 Aug Town Hall

  If you are looking to see something outstanding and inspiring this summer period then the National Children's Orchestra is the performance to see. The quality of sound produced by such a young orchestra is outstanding. Each year NCO auditions hundreds of talented children to take up the 500 highly sought after places. The sheer passion and enthusiasm of the children adds to the experience making it perfect, for you and your friends and family alike. You have to see it to believe it! £10, £14, £17, Under 16's £5 60 plus/full-time students/unwaged/ disabled patrons £8, £12, £15
  
  
  

• Birmingham Schools Gala Concert - 2nd July 2008  

  Wed 2 Jul Symphony Hall

  
  Birmingham Schools': Azaad Dhol Group String Sinfonia Steel Band Wind Orchestra Choir Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• Birmingham Music Service  

  Sun 3 May Town Hall

  The Birmingham Schools' Symphony Orchestra performs in the Birmingham Music Service's Symphony Hall concert.
  *Birmingham Schools' Symphony Orchestra* *Micheal Seal* conductor *Thomas Gould* soloist
  *Arvo Pärt* Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten *Tchaikovsky* Violin Concerto *Sibelius* Symphony No 2
  

• Made in America  

  Tue 24 Feb Symphony Hall

  Many composers have left Europe to find a new home in the USA, and both in Bartók’s wartime Concerto for Orchestra - composed for the virtuosi of the Boston Symphony Orchestra - and Dvorˇák’s most popular concerto, composed in New York, you can hear elements of each composer’s old world as well as the new. John Adams’ riotous orchestral showpiece seems more authentically American, though it was a by-product of his celebrated opera Nixon in China, and imagines Madam Mao reliving her music-hall past.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Alban Gerhardt - cello City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Adams: The Chairman Dances (24 Feb) 12’ Dvorák: Cello Concerto in B minor 40’ Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra 35’
  

• Symphonic Rock with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra  

  Fri 20 Feb 2009 Symphony Hall

  Following sell-out shows at London's Royal Albert Hall, experience the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performing great rock anthems and classic pop tracks, featuring hits by: *Queen, The Moody Blues, The Beatles, Procol Harum, U2, Madonna, Bon Jovi, Meat Loaf and Eric Clapton*
  *Nick Davies* conductor *Metro Voices*
  
  

• Birmingham Music Service Gala Concert  

  Thu 16 Jul Symphony Hall

  This evening will be compered by *Jamie Crick* from Classic FM
  Featuring Birmingham Schools' Brass Band Recorder Sinfonia Wind Orchestra Symphony Orchestra Gala Choir
  
  

• Orchestra of the Swan: Mozart V Salieri  

  Sun 30 Nov Town Hall

  Despite a lack of evidence, the legend that Salieri poisoned Mozart out of jealousy has been fixed in people's minds by the film Amadeus. The older composer could certainly spin a good tune, but judge for yourselves whether he comes anywhere near the genius of two of Mozart's most delightful. 1.30pm free pre-concert talk Post-concert Conversation Club in the Circle Bar 15 mins after the end of the performance. "It's just how music should be." Birmingham Post £8.50, £12.50, £16.50, £19.50 Choir benches £6.50 60 plus £7.50, £11.50, £15, £17.50 Orchestra of the Swan is a Town Hall Associate Artist.
  *Orchestra of the Swan* *David Curtis* Conductor *Diane Clark* Flute *Helen Cole* Harp
  *Salieri* Symphony in D *Mozart* Concerto for flute & harp K297 *Mozart* Symphony No 29
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy Conductor Michael Seal - Mathias, Shchedrin, Beethoven 

  Sat 1 Sep Book through our ticket office for CBSO Centre

  Be there at the start of something special - the inaugural concert of the CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy, a virtuoso chamber orchestra drawn from the membership of the CBSO's acclaimed Youth Orchestra. The Youth Orchestra's brass show their mettle in a modern Welsh showpiece, before CBSO Assistant Conductor Michael Seal leads our young players through Shchedrin's hilarious, very Russian re-imagining of Bizet's opera. Beethoven's most brilliant symphony brings the evening to a flying finish. www.cbsoyouthorchestra.com *TICKETS FOR THIS EVENT NOW AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR ONLY*
  Michael Seal conductor
  *Programme to include:* *Mathias* Summer Dances *Shchedrin* Carmen Suite *Beethoven* Symphony No. 4
  

• Orchestra of the Swan Season 2008/09  

  Sun 12 Oct to Sun 10 May Town Hall

  A series of friendly and informal afternoon concerts hosted by conductor David Curtis. Orchestra of the Swan - an Explorchestra! Making music - breaking barriers '...a gutsy and versatile group...' The Guardian Orchestra of the Swan gives performances of the highest professional standard, sharing our passion and conveying the spirit with all our audiences. '...a clear, warm-toned performance...a radiant lyrical splendour...' The Independent Supported by Arts Council England "www.orchestraoftheswan.org":http://www.orchestraoftheswan.org
  Conductor David Curtis
  Pre-concert talk taking place in the auditorium at 1.30pm Post-concert Conversation Club taking place in the Circle Bar 15 minutes after the end of the performance. Entrance free to concert ticket holders
  

• The Queen Symphony  

  Sun 10 Jun Symphony Hall

  The Queen Symphony is the brainchild of composer, conductor and arranger Tolga Kashif. Four years in the making, it is an explosive new work for orchestra and choir celebrating the enormous musical legacy of rock legends Queen. It is an opportunity to hear their most famous tunes as you have never heard them before.
  *Orchestra of Opera North* *Leeds Philharmonic Choir* *Tolga Kashif* Conductor *Ian Buckle* Piano
  *Glinka* Overture _Russlan and Ludmilla_ *Rachmaninov* Piano Concerto No 2 *Kashif* Queen Symphony
  

• Symphonic Spectacular!  

  Fri 19 Sep Symphony Hall

  This concert is for secondary schools, and is designed for and by students in Key Stages 3 & 4. Forget keyboards and samplers - the full symphony orchestra is the biggest, most powerful machine ever devised for making music! Get up close and see how it works in this special concert. Tommy Pearson takes the orchestra to pieces, while the CBSO’s brilliant new conductor Andris Nelsons steers the full CBSO through a showcase performance of Berlioz’ thrilling Fantastic Symphony.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Tommy Pearson - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• Glenn Miller Orchestra  

  Fri 2 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  _Swing In The New Year_ Have yourself a classic forties celebration as Ray McVay directs the UK’s greatest Big Band in a nostalgic journey through Glenn Miller’s legendary hits and wartime chart toppers.
  Jan Messeder, Colin Anthony, The Uptown Hall Gang, The Moonlight Serenaders _With very special guest International award-winning singing sensation_* Rosemary Squires* and *Lindy-hopping duo* *The Jumping Jack Jivers*
  _All your favourites_ Moonlight Serenade In The Mood Adios American Patrol Little Brown Jug Kalamazoo St. Louis Blues March The Orchestra will perform the second half of the concert in the World War II uniforms of the US Army Air Force
  

• Tchaikovsky and Dvorák  

  Thu 29 Oct Symphony Hall

  Style and authenticity just ooze from the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. Dvořák himself conducted this orchestra’s first concert and the highlight of tonight’s programme is his grandly tragic Seventh Symphony. Superstar of the violin, Nicola Benedetti, is a regular visitor to Symphony Hall and joins the orchestra in Tchaikovsky’s heart-warming Violin Concerto.
  *Czech Philharmonic Orchestra* *Jakub Hrusa* _conductor_ *Nicola Benedetti* _violin_
  *Janáček* _Taras Bulba_ *Tchaikovsky* Violin Concerto *Dvořák* Symphony No 7
  

• Poll Winner's Concert: Walsall Jazz Orchestra  

  Fri 27 Mar Symphony Hall Foyer Bars

  Walsall Jazz Orchestra, winners of the recent audience poll, return for a gig which celebrates the 5th anniversary of the Rush Hour Blues sessions. Free Admission
  
  
  

• The Scottish Fiddle Orchestra Hogmanay Celebration 

  Sat 29 Dec Town Hall

  The Scottish Fiddle Orchestra returns to Town Hall with its fun-filled programme of jigs, reels, strathspeys, songs, and beautiful slow airs. Their strings, accordions, flutes, piano, piper, percussion, singers, piano, and the Town Hall organ will have you clapping along to the music and joining in the songs. A lively night to remember for all of the family, with a particularly Scottish theme, which will get you in the mood for Hogmanay.
  *John Mason MBE* Conductor *Colette Ruddy* Soprano *Dennis Haggerty* Tenor *Chris Bone* Piper *Iain McGlinchey* Organist *Jim McColl MBE* Compere
  
  

• Cleveland Orchestra Plays Mahler  

  Sun 21 Oct Symphony Hall

  If you had to name the top half-a-dozen orchestras in the world, the Cleveland would be amongst them. They return to Birmingham with the work that inaugurated Symphony Hall in 1991. Mahler's _Resurrection_ Symphony is a man's journey through exultation and despair, culminating in a terrifying vision of the last judgement and crowned by one of the most joyful endings in all music. Great music, a great orchestra and a great hall this is one of the highlights of the season.
  *Franz Welser-Most* Conductor *Malin Hartelius* Soprano *Bernarda Fink* Mezzo-soprano *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus*
  *Mahler* Symphony No 2, _Resurrection_
  

• British Classics  

  Fri 8 Aug Town Hall

  The National Youth Orchestra of Wales has the distinction of being the first national youth orchestra in the world. It combines traditional expectations with a contemporary outlook, develops a first-class training experience into performances that are full of energy and passion, and is not afraid to challenge audiences with a repertoire that is bold and adventurous. £10, Full-Times Students & 60 plus £6
  *National Youth Orcehstra of Wales* *Owain Arwel Hughes OBE* conductor
  *Mathias* Celtic Dances *Britten* Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra *Vaughan Williams* Symphony No 2, a London Symphony
  

• Orchestra of the Swan: Italian Sunshine  

  Sun 12 Oct Town Hall

  Mozart meets Mediterranean sunshine for an autumn Sunday matinee. Orchestra of the Swan are renowned for the vivacity of their excellent playing and the sunny informality of their presentation. They're joined this afternoon by the outstanding Jennifer Pike, 2002 BBC Young Musician of the Year and 2008 winner of the South Bank Show/The Times Breakthrough Award. Top-class playing and fantastic value for money. -"It's just how music should be."_ *Birmingham Post* 1.30pm free pre-concert talk and Post-concert Conversation Club in the CircleBar 15 mins after the end of the performance. £8.50, £12.50, £16.50, £19.50 Choir benches £6.50 60 plus £7.50, £11.50, £15, £17.50 Orchestra of the Swan is a Town Hall Associate Artist.
  Orchestra of the Swan David Curtis _conductor_ Jennifer Pike _violin_
  *Rossini* Overture, _An Italian Girl in Algiers'_ *Mozart* Violin Concerto No. 3 in G *Mendelssohn* Italian Symphony
  

• Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain Christmas Special  

  Thu 11 Dec Town Hall

  The cult orchestra of all-singing, all-strumming, all-plucking ukulele players return to Town Hall following last year's triumphant sell out concert! *Please note this performance is currently sold out. Clicking on the below link will take you to the booking page if any returns are available.* Alternatively you can call the Box Office on 0121 780 3333 to enquire.
  
  
  

• CBSO & Aston Performing Arts Academy Proudly Present Latino Grooves  

  Mon 29 Jun Town Hall

  A collaboration with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Aston Performing Arts Academy, The Drum and Birmingham Conservatoire. Featuring the Aston Singers, the CBSO Berkley Street Dance Orchestra plus guest vocalists and the APAA Orchestra. Join in the celebrations and achievements of the APAA students in a Latino musical extravaganza! Latino Grooves features favourites such as the _Mexican Hat Dance_ and _The Girl From Ipanema_. This community event is the culmination of a series of coaching sessions led by the CBSO musicians over the course of the summer term.
  *Jenetta Hurst* conductor
  
  

• Brahms: A German Requiem English Concert Singers, Chorus & Orchestra 

  Sun 8 Mar 2009 Town Hall

  To celebrate their 20th anniversary year, the 200 performers of the English Concert Singers/Chorus and Orchestra, under their founding Music Director, Dr. Roy Wales, present Brahms’ greatest choral work, A German Requiem. Vaughan Williams’ beautiful, lyrical Serenade to Music (choral version) and Mendelssohn’s colourful overture The Hebrides complete this special anniversary concert.
  *English Concert Singers* *English Concert Chorus* *English Concert Orchestra* *Roy Wales* Conductor *Helena Dix* Soprano *William Berger* Baritone
  *Mendelssohn* The Hebrides (Fingal’s Cave) *R. Vaughan Williams* Serenade to Music *Brahms* A German Requiem
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra  

  Sun 21 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  Conductor Michael Seal has built a special relationship with the CBSO Youth Orchestra - and tonight he takes them on the ride of their lives. John Foulds’ rapturous English tone-poem was forgotten for decades before the CBSO relaunched it in 2006; tonight, it’s the perfect upbeat to Elgar’s haunting, hugely popular Cello Concerto, performed by a stunning young Scandanvian cellist. And then William Walton unleashes hell, with his stupendous First Symphony. Blazing with passion and driven by an almost volcanic energy, nothing in British music is remotely like it. If you heard the CBSO Youth Orchestra playing Mahler last season, you’ll know to expect a performance that’ll take your breath away.
  *CBSO Youth Orchestra* *Michael Seal* _conductor_ *Andreas Brantelid* _cello_
  *Foulds* _April - England_ 8’ *Elgar* Cello Concerto 26’ *Walton* Symphony No 1 43’
  

• Guillemots with CBSO  

  Thu 11 Oct Town Hall

  Nominated for the 2006 Mercury Music Prize for their debut album _Through The Windowpane_, and the 2007 Brits Best British Live Act, Guillemots are pioneering the future, inspired by the vision and voice of their lead singer, Birmingham-born Fyfe Dangerfield. This unique event features the Guillemots working live with CBSO. It includes the world premiere of a specially commissioned piece by Fyfe, alongside songs for the band with orchestra and music chosen by Fyfe as influential upon him. Commission supported by the John Feeney Charitable Trust.
  *Guillemots* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Nick Ingman* Conductor
  
  

• National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain  

  Tue 6 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  There is nothing quite like the excitement of an orchestra of young musicians - many of these talented young performers are having their first encounters with great orchestral music, experiencing it onstage at Symphony Hall with a freshness and passion never to be recaptured. They start 2009 with an epic journey across Alpine landscapes with wonderful European conductor Semyon Bychkov, renowned for subtle and revelatory performances of Strauss. Discover Berio’s glorious vocal and orchestral collage, which pays tribute to many composers from Mahler to Bach and exuberantly captures the spirit of the 1960s when it was composed. Click "here":http://www.thsh.co.uk/page/contact-us/press-office/midlands-musicians-join-britain-s-top-youth-orchestra/ for the event press release in our Press Office section.
  *Semyon Bychkov* conductor *London Voices*
  *Berio* Sinfonia 27' *Strauss* An Alpine Symphony 47'
  

• Made in America  

  Wed 25 Feb Symphony Hall

  Many composers have left Europe to find a new home in the USA, and both in Bartók’s wartime Concerto for Orchestra - composed for the virtuosi of the Boston Symphony Orchestra - and Dvořák’s most popular concerto, composed in New York, you can hear elements of each composer’s old world as well as the new. John Adams’ riotous orchestral showpiece seems more authentically American, though it was a by-product of his celebrated opera Nixon in China, and imagines Madam Mao reliving her music-hall past. *Please note the change to the previously advertised start time for this concert. The concert will now begin at 1pm, with the pre-concert talk at 12 noon. Ticket holders have been notified directly by post/email during the week beginning 12 January.*
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Alban Gerhardt - cello City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  *Brahms* Three Hungarian Dances 12’ *Dvořák* Cello Concerto in B minor 40’ *Bartók* Concerto for Orchestra 35’
  

• Rattle Conducts Schumann  

  Fri 19 Dec Symphony Hall

  Earlier this year, Sir Simon Rattle picked music by Schumann as one of his eight choices on Desert Island Discs. Now he turns his attention to two of the composer’s most popular works: the fresh and vibrant _Spring Symphony_ and the _Rhenish Symphony_ - a joyous celebration of the Rhineland, the awe-inspiring gothic architecture of Cologne Cathedral and, of course, the river itself. *Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight’s recommended concert:* _Fresh from his role as one of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’s Artists Laureate 2008 for the European Capital of Culture, Sir Simon Rattle returns to his former stomping ground here in Birmingham. This evening he’ll be conducting the OAE, an orchestra he’s been closely associated with for many years now. Rattle is one of just six conductors who’ve been key in the development of this self-governing orchestra established more than twenty years ago. It was he who took the OAE to Glyndebourne for the first time in 1989 with Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro; the orchestra is now a regular visitor to the East Sussex festival._ "Classic FM":http://www.classicfm.co.uk Tickets £5-£45
  *Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment* *Sir Simon Rattle* conductor
  *Berlioz* King Lear overture 15’ *Schumann* Symphony No 1, Spring 32’ *Schumann* Symphony No 3, Rhenish 33’
  

• Mahler's Third Symphony  

  Tue 7 Oct Symphony Hall

  From its opening primeval theme, thundered out by eight horns, to its exultant earth-shattering close, this is a journey of discovery like no other. Mahler’s Third Symphony is one of the most extravagant all-embracing symphonies ever written, with an impact that will fill every corner of Symphony Hall. Mahler himself spoke of it as being “of such magnitude that it mirrors the whole world”. It is performed by Iván Fischer and the Budapest Festival Orchestra, whose recent performances of Mahler have had the critics reaching for superlatives. £5-£37.50 Choir not available. Please note there is no interval.
  *Budapest Festival Orchestra* *Iván Fischer* conductor *Birgit Remmert* mezzo-soprano *The Ladies of the City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus* *City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Chorus - Seniors*
  *Mahler* Symphony No 3 99’
  

• Good Friday St Matthew Passion Sung in English 

  Fri 6 Apr Symphony Hall

  This annual performance of Bach�s sublime St Matthew Passion is now a well-established Easter tradition in Birmingham. Once again Birmingham�s own Bach Choir combines with the English Chamber Orchestra and distinguished soloists to re-tell the profoundly moving events of Holy Week. There will be an extended interval for tea and the performance will end at approximately 6pm.
  Birmingham Bach Choir English Chamber Orchestra Paul Spicer Conductor Christopher Gillett Evangelist Paul Whelan Christus Yvette Bonner Soprano William Towers Alto Ed Lyon Tenor Peter Savidge Bass
  Bach St Matthew Passion
  

• University of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra  

  Sun 2 Dec Symphony Hall

  
  
  *King Edward VI High School Junior Choir* *Mark Chaundy* Tenor *Colin Timms* Conductor *Wagner* Prelude, The Mastersingers *Beethoven* Symphony No. 7 *Berlioz* Te Deum
  

• Tchaikovsky From St Petersburg  

  Tue 14 Oct Symphony Hall

  The St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra is Russia’s oldest and most legendary orchestra, conducted by Tchaikovsky himself for the first performance of his tragic Pathétique Symphony. In tonight’s concert, this most emotional of all Russian works is heard next to the autumnal melancholy of Elgar’s cello concerto, in the hands of the wonderful Dutch cellist Quirine Viersen. *Classic FM's Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight's recommended concert:* _I was lucky enough to see the St Petersburg Philharmonic and Yuri Temirkanov perform live in their home city a couple of years back. They’re an absolutely stunning orchestra to see (and hear) in action. Included in tonight’s programme is a short piece by the St Petersburg-born composer, Anatoli Liadov. Poor old Liadov was the composer who, unwittingly, changed the course of musical history by not writing something. It was he who was first approached by the maestro, Sergei Diaghilev, to write the score for a new ballet called The Firebird. Unfortunately for Liadov, he couldn’t get the score done in time and so the job went to one Igor Stravinsky instead._ "Classic FM":http://www.classicfm.co.uk 6.15pm pre-concert talk £5-£37.50 *We regret that due to illness Maestro Yuri Temerikanov has cancelled his engagements and is unable to appear with the St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra at SH on Tuesday 14 October. We are delighted that Yan Pascal Tortelier, Conductor Laureate of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, has agreed to stand in at short notice. The orchestra, programme and soloist remain unchanged*
  *St Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra* *Yan Pascal Tortelier* conductor *Quirine Viersen* cello
  *Liadov* Kikimora 6’ *Elgar* Cello Concerto 28’ *Tchaikovsky* Symphony no 6, Pathetique 46’ *Please note that the NIA car park will be particularly busy tonight as Oasis are playing there, so please allow extra time if travelling by car.*
  

• Russian Pictures: University of Warwick Symphony Orchestra and Chorus  

  Fri 6 Mar Town Hall

  The University of Warwick Symphony Orchestra join forces with the University Chorus for this glorious concert of Russian music. The Symphony Orchestra welcomes spectacular pianist Warren Mailley-Smith to join them for the performance of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No 2.
  *Lucy Griffiths and Paul McGrath* Conductors *Warren Mailley-Smith* piano
  *Mussorgsky* Pictures at an Exhibition *Stravinsky* Symphony of Psalms *Rachmaninov* Piano Concerto No. 2
  

• Proms Night Spectacular! British Police Symphony Orchestra 

  Sat 6 Dec Symphony Hall

  The British Police Symphony Orchestra return once more for their annual Last Night celebration. This year's programme includes Bernstein's Candide Overture and a selection from West Side Story, before launching into their traditional Last Night Spectacular complete with fireworks! Singing voices compulsory at one of Birmingham's best-loved concerts.
  
  
  

• Saregama & the CBSO present Rafi Resurrected with Sonu Niigaam  

  Tue 15 Jul Symphony Hall

  *A Tribute to Mohammad Rafi* Sonu Niigaam, the most popular playback singer in India today, and famous as the presenter of hit talent show _SaReGaMa_, teams up with Birmingham’s world-renowned orchestra, to perform 18 legendary hits by Mohammad Rafi, the radiant and nostalgic voice of Bollywood’s golden era. Songs performed will include tracks from the forthcoming _Rafi Resurrected album_, plus several extra tracks specially arranged for the spectacular sounds of a 75-piece orchestra amplified by state of the art audio equipment. Presented by SaReGaMa in association with the CBSO. VIP tickets available from SaReGaMa on 020 8961 3344. Please note that the concert starts promptly at 7.45pm.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• Rodgers & Hammerstein Gala  

  Sun 24 Jun Symphony Hall

  A fantastic evening of classic showstoppers and hits from the world's favourite musicals including _South Pacific_, _The Sound of Music_, _State Fair_, _The King I_, _Carousel_, and _Oklahoma_. Featuring West End star soloists Claire Moore and Graham Bickley.
  Richard Balcombe Conductor Capital Voices London Concert Orchestra
  
  

• Mahler’s Resurrection  

  Sun 31 May 2009 Symphony Hall

  Andris Nelsons is the latest CBSO music director to bring us his interpretation of Mahler’s huge, all-embracing Resurrection symphony, long a CBSO speciality. Featuring a gigantic orchestra - on and offstage - as well as vocalists and chorus, this is one of the biggest statements in late-romantic art. Mahler’s emotional intensity, his echoing trumpet calls and his way of dividing the orchestra into different groups all find a contemporary echo in a recent work by leading German composer Jörg Widmann.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Sarah Fox - soprano Mihoko Fujimura - mezzo-soprano City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Mahler: Symphony No. 2 (Resurrection) 77’
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra  

  Sun 1 Nov Symphony Hall

  Premiered amidst the gunfire of wartime Moscow, Prokofiev declared that his Fifth Symphony celebrated “the greatness of the human spirit”. Ernö Dohnányi, meanwhile was simply out to poke fun - his irresistible Nursery Tune Variations gleefully parody everyone from Mozart to Mahler! But both pieces could have been written for the energy and verve of the CBSO’s Youth Orchestra. This new work from the rising British star Luke Bedford, meanwhile, actually was. Hopefully tonight’s premiere will go off more peacefully than Prokofiev’s - though with the young Danish maestro Thomas Søndergård at the helm, expect some serious thrills from our superb young players. 5.45pm Free pre-concert talk: *Premiere! - Luke Bedford* Young British composer Luke Bedford introduces his new work for the CBSO Youth Orchestra, in conversation with Simon Webb. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *CBSO Youth Orchestra* *Thomas Søndergård* _conductor_ *Martin Roscoe* _piano_
  *Bedford* New Work (world premiere) 10’ *Dohnányi* Variations on a Nursery Tune 25’ *Prokofiev* Symphony No 5 44’
  

• Orchestra of the Swan: Tasmin Little plays Mendelssohn  

  Sun 10 May Town Hall

  In 2009 we celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Mendelssohn and the death of Haydn with two of their most iconic works. Composed at the height of his powers, Haydn’s _Surprise_ Symphony is full of wit, humour and of course, surprises - and like all the best jokes, it can be told again and again. In contrast, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto is elegant and refined: for many music lovers it is the ‘perfect’ concerto. We are delighted to have Tasmin Little, one of the UK’s most outstanding violinists, as soloist for this afternoon’s concert. _'... a bravura performance from both soloist and orchestra which moved forward to a frenetic and breathtaking climax.'_ MusicWeb on Tasmin Little with Orchestra of the Swan "Full review":http://www.musicweb-international.com/SandH/2009/jan-jun09/ots0105.htm _'Tasmin Little's warm personality and evident joy in engaging with music and her audience made her an excellent partner with David Curtis in this happy occasion, with a packed house and a family atmosphere... Mendelssohn's Violin concerto received a beautiful performance from Tasmin Little, balanced between the romantic and the classical, delicate and sweetly voiced in the second movement, bubbling with vitality in the finale. Like the whole evening, a delight from start to finish.'_ Birmingham Post on Tasmin Little with Orchestra of the Swan *Join Tasmin and David in conversation with Chris Morley at 1.30pm*
  *Orchestra of the Swan* *David Curtis* conductor *Tasmin Little* violin
  *Mendelssohn* Music from a Midsummer Night's Dream *Haydn* Symphony No 94, _Surprise_ *Roxanna Panufnik* Indian Summer *Mendelssohn* Violin Concerto
  

• Rachmaninov from Dallas  

  Tue 2 Mar 2010 Symphony Hall

  With typical Texan tenacity, no orchestra has accelerated quicker into the international fast lane than the Dallas Symphony Orchestra. Expect sparks to fly in Prokofiev’s Third Piano Concerto in the hands of Simon Trpceski - one of today’s hottest young pianists. And there’s the heartfelt lyricism and inexhaustible melody of Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony. BBC Music magazine’s Editor Oliver Condy explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert: _“One of the fi nest American orchestras at last makes another pilgrimage to Symphony Hall, a venue created by the same acoustician as Dallas’s very own Meyerson Symphony Center.”_
  *Dallas Symphony Orchestra* *Jaap van Zweden* _conductor_ *Simon Trpceski* _piano_
  *Barber* Medea’s Meditation and Dance of Vengeance 13’ *Prokofiev* Piano Concerto No 3 27’ *Rachmaninov* Symphony No 2 60’
  

• The British Police Symphony Orchestra - Last Night of the Proms Spectacular  

  Sat 8 Dec Symphony Hall

  The British Police Symphony Orchestra return for their annual Last Night Of The Proms Spectacular! This year's concert will feature the magnificent Tchaikovsky's Symphony No.4 which will be followed in the second half by hits from Broadway and the movies plus our traditional Last Night celebration complete with firework display!
  
  
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra  

  Sun 22 Feb 2009 Symphony Hall

  Andris Nelsons demonstrates his commitment to Birmingham’s young musicians in this, his debut appearance with the CBSO’s acclaimed Youth Orchestra. And it’s all about colour. Whether in the gorgeous oriental fantasies of Ravel’s impressionist song-cycle Shéhérazade, the brilliant sunrise that opens his Daphnis and Chloé suite or the glittering Russian jewel-box of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, this is a programme to dazzle the ears. Expect our superb young players to give it their all, as Andris Nelsons celebrates the start of what we hope will be a very special relationship.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Christine Rice - mezzo-soprano
  Ravel: Daphnis et Chloé - Suite No. 2 16’ Ravel: Shéhérazade 19’ Mussorgsky (orch. Ravel): Pictures at an Exhibition 30’
  

• The National Children's Orchestra 30th Anniversary Concert  

  Sun 31 Aug Symphony Hall

  
  
  2008 is NCO's 30th anniversary year and this is being celebrated with this spectacular concert with all five of NCO's orchestra's performing. NCO's members are provided with high class musical tuition on residential courses. This concert is the perfect opportunity for you to see the UK's most talented under 14 year olds performing.
  

• The Scottish Fiddle Orchestra  

  Sat 27 Dec Town Hall

  The Scottish Fiddle Orchestra returns to Town Hall, following last year’s sold-out concert, with a lively concert for the festive season. The unique arrangements of traditional items, mixed with John Mmason’s original compositions, are performed by an orchestra of fiddles, flutes, cellos, basses, accordions, piano and pipes, and augmented by the incomparable organ of Town Hall. Jigs, reels, marches, songs and other dance music will keep your feet tapping and have you joining in with the performers. Programme will also feature some poignant slow airs and the orchestra’s unique and stirring rendition of Highland Cathedral. This will be a night to remember for all the family, and especially for anyone with Scots connections. £10, £14, £18, £22.50, Choir benches £7.5
  *John Mason MBE* conductor/musical director *Colette Ruddy* soprano *Dennis Haggerty* tenor *Jim McColl* compere
  
  

• Fireworks for Two Freiburg Baroque & OAE 

  Sun 29 Apr Symphony Hall

  Oliver Condy, Editor of BBC Music Magazine, explains why he has recommended tonight's concert "Britain�s greatest period orchestra gets together with one of Germany�s most exciting baroque bands for a concert of famous and less well-known baroque masterpieces. If you don�t know the work of Zelenka, you�ll leave this concert wondering why. Is he as good as Bach? That�s for you to decide!" _International Concert Season discounts available for 60plus, disabled patrons, Birmingham Passport to Leisure, students and young people and groups. Plus our 'Kids go free' scheme. Please contact the box office for more details._
  Freiburg Baroque Orchestra Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment Gottfried Von Der Goltz and Rachel Podger Directors
  Corelli Concerto Grosso Op 6 No 1 in D Zelenka Overture � 7 concertante in F Purcell Suite from Abdelazerand The Gordian Knot Untied (arr. Catherine Mackintosh) Handel Music for the Royal Fireworks
  

• CBSO Family Concert: Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra - Matinee  

  Sun 16 May 2010 Symphony Hall

  This is your chance to discover all you wanted to know about a symphony orchestra! What are all those instruments and the amazing sounds they make? Travel through time on this magical musical journey as the CBSO’s top conductor, Andris Nelsons, and musicians Catherine Arlidge and Peter Hill let you into lots of musical secrets, with _The Sorcerer’s Apprentice_, The Elephant (from _The Carnival of the Animals_), Britten’s _Young Person’s Guide to the Orchestra_ and more. FREE CRAFT WORKSHOPS AND MUSIC in the foyers from 1.30pm. Why not come dressed up in a musicinspired costume? Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Catherine Arlidge* _presenter_ *Peter Hill* _presenter_
  
  

• Russian Romantics  

  Wed 7 Oct Symphony Hall

  Three sumptuous Russian works performed by an orchestra which has this music firmly implanted in its DNA. Tchaikovsky’s unforgettable ballet music complements his First Piano Concerto, which opens with one of the world’s best-known melodies, whilst Rachmaninov’s Third Symphony is suffused with glowing autumnal colours and nostalgic passion. Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall, says of tonight’s recommended concert: _“Two giants of Russian Romanticism dominate proceedings tonight, neither afraid to wear their hearts on their sleeves. Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto still packs out concert halls around the world.”_
  *St Petersburg Symphony Orchestra* *Alexander Dmitriev* _conductor_ *Barry Douglas* _piano_
  *Tchaikovsky* Excerpts from _Sleeping Beauty_ *Tchaikovsky* Piano Concerto No 1 *Rachmaninov* Symphony No 3
  

• Here Come the Classics Royal Philharmonic Orchestra 

  Sun 6 May Symphony Hall

  Join the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for a spectacular evening of classical favourites - the best of the best! Programme to include classic gems from the most popular orchestral and opera works ever written.
  Conductor - Nick Davies Piano - Lucy Parham Tenor - Wynne Evans
  MUSSORGSKY - Night on the Bare Mountain COATES - Knightsbridge March BARBER - Adagio for Strings GRIEG - In the Hall of the Mountain King (from Peer Gynt) DI CAPUA - O Sole Mio RACHMANINOV - Adagio (from Piano Concerto No.2) ELGAR - Pomp and Circumstances March No.1 SUPPÉ - Light Cavalry Overture TCHAIKOVSKY - Allegro (from Piano Concerto No.1) KHACHATURIAN - Sabre Dance ELGAR - Nimrod (from Enigma Variations) MASCAGNI - Intermezzo (from Cavalleria Rusticana) PUCCINI - Nessun Dorma (from Turandot) RAVEL - Boléro
  

• Birmingham Festival Choral Society ELIJAH 

  Sun 13 Apr 2008 Town Hall

  BFCS presents Elijah with the English Haydn Orchestra on period instruments, capturing a time when the newly formed BFCS participated in Elijah's premiere - here in Town Hall in 1846 - and performed it again in 1847 with Mendelssohn himself conducting. As Birmingham’s longest established chorus, this will be our 392nd performance in Town Hall, but the first since its refurbishment. BFCS continues to make history and this is one such occasion not to be missed. "BFCS Website":http://bfcs.org.uk
  
  Birmingham Festival Choral Society *Patrick Larley* conductor / MD for BFCS *English Haydn Orchestra* leader John Reid *Elizabeth Cragg* soprano *Harriet Goodwin* mezzo-soprano *Jon English* tenor *Mark Rowlinson* baritone *Kevin Gill* organist
  

• Mozart from Salzburg Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra 

  Thu 1 May 2008 Town Hall

  Few orchestras can claim such close links to Mozart as the Salzburg Mozarteum Orchestra. Mozart's widow, Constanza, formed the orchestra in 1841 to mark the 50th anniversary of Mozart's death and since then it has celebrated his genius. Their programme includes two concertos in one concert, as well as two great symphonies, the youthful, high-spirited No 34 and the tragic No 40. Classic FM's Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight's recommended concert: _"Symphony No 34 was written by Mozart during a difficult period in his life. His mother had died, he'd been spurned by the woman he loved and he was working in Salzburg for an Archbishop who didn't really appreciate the genius he had under his roof."_
  *Ivor Bolton* Conductor *Johannes Hinterholzer* Horn *Bernhard Krabatsch* Flute
  *Mozart* Symphony No 34 24' *Mozart* Flute Concerto No 1 26' *Mozart* Horn Concerto No 4 15' *Mozart* Symphony No 40 30'
  

• King Edward VI Camp Hill Schools' Christmas Concert  

  Mon 8 Dec Town Hall

  Featuring the schools' main music ensembles, including the Concert Orchestra, Concert Band, Intermediate Orchestra, Intermediate Wind Band, Training Strings and Training Wind Band, in a seasonal feast of music.
  
  
  

• Vengerov plays Mozart UBS Verbier Festival Orchestra 

  Wed 9 May Symphony Hall

  Mozart Violin Concerto No 4 in D K218 Mozart Sinfonia Concertante in E flat K364 Mozart Violin Concerto No 5 in A K219, Turkish Shostakovich Chamber Symphony for Strings Op 110a Annie-Marie Minhall, news reader and presenter of Classic FM's Newsnight, says of tonight's Classic FM recommended concert "Don't miss one of the world's leading violinists live in action. Maxim Vengerov will not only be playing, but also directing both nights. The UBS Verbier Festival Orchestra is made up of around one hundred youngsters from 37 different countries. The orchestra performs each year at the prestigious Verbier Festival in Switzerland. There they get the chance to not only work with leading musicians like Vengerov, but also get to take part in masterclasses and workshops with them too.
  Maxim Vengerov, Violin/Director
  Violin Concerto No 2 in D K211 Violin Concerto No 4 in D K218
  

• Fabulous Fables  

  Fri 1 Feb Town Hall

  South Birmingham Sinfonia is a Bournville based amateur orchestra. Founded 30 years ago, the orchestra has recently grown and developed a high standard of performance under its inspired conductor, Lee Differ. Playing regularly to packed houses, the orchestra makes its first appearance at Town Hall. The premiere in this evening's performance _The Magic Jigsaw_ was written by Lindsay Lucas (and arranged for SBS by Lee Differ). It is based upon a poem by Edward Dent, a 7 year old Birmingham boy who died of cancer in 1989. It was in his memory that the Edwards Trust was founded. All seats £8.50 In aid of the Edwards Trust and St Mary’s Hospice.
  *South Birmingham Sinfonia* *Blue Coat School Choir* *Lee Differ* Conductor
  *Mendelssohn* Overture, the Hebrides *Vaughan Williams* English Folk Songs Suite *L. Lucas* The Magic Jigsaw *Dvorák* Symphony No. 7
  

• Blockbusters! Music from the Movies 

  Mon 29 Dec Symphony Hall

  _Music From The Movies_ *ROBERT POWELL* introduces an evening of unforgettable musical themes from award-winning films including
  Paul Bateman _conductor_ London Concert Orchestra
  BATMAN *BEN-HUR* *PLATOON* *GLADIATOR* *JAMES BOND* *JURASSIC PARK* *INDIANA JONES* *HARRY POTTER* *DOCTOR ZHIVAGO* *THE DAM BUSTERS* *CHARIOTS OF FIRE* *THE DEER HUNTER* *LORD OF THE RINGS* *MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE* *DANCES WITH WOLVES* *THOSE MAGNIFICENT MEN IN THEIR FLYING MACHINES*
  

• National Youth Wind Orchestra of Great Britain  

  Sat 8 Aug Town Hall

  The National Youth Wind Orchestra of Great Britain presents some of the finest young wind, brass and percussionists in the country, performing music by English composers.
  *Glenn Price* conductor *David Campbell* clarinet
  *Kenneth Hesketh* _Masque_ *Holst* _Hammersmith_ *Malcolm Arnold* _Solitaire_ *Edward Gregson* _Sword and the Crown_ *Woolfenden* _Gallimaufrey_ *Turnbull* _African Dances_ *Philip Sparke* _Year of the Dragon_
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics Film and TV Classics 

  Fri 8 Jun Symphony Hall

  Sit back and enjoy music from _Philadelphia_, _A Room with a View_ and _Fantasia_, along with much-loved tunes from musicals _Porgy and Bess_, _West Side Story_ and _My Fair Lady_. You'll recognise ads including Hamlet Cigars and TV themes from the Ashes ( _Jerusalem_ ), the Grand National and Torvill and Dean's signature skating tune, _Bolero_. Sposored by IMI.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Carl Davis* Conductor *Claire Rutter* Soprano
  
  

• Dvorák’s New World Symphony  

  Fri 8 May Symphony Hall

  Libor Pešek is one of a long line of Czech conductors who have the music of Dvorák firmly in their blood. He visits Symphony Hall with the Prague Symphony Orchestra in two of Dvorák’s best-loved works: the Cello Concerto, packed with superb melodies that tug at the heart-strings, and the evocative _New World_ Symphony, one of the most enduringly popular of all symphonies. *Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight’s recommended concert:* _I interviewed the cellist Steven Isserlis for The Guest List on Classic FM before he was due to give a series of performances of Dvorak’s Cello Concerto and he had this insight into the work: “I think recordings distort it because actually although the cello is of course the most important instrument, it's really like a big symphony in that there are so many important parts in the orchestra as well. The solo flute part is very, very important, (as is) the solo clarinet part, and there's lots of duets and there's lots of bits where the cello is accompanying the orchestra, so I like to think of it as chamber music on a huge scale." Tonight Nina Kotova is the soloist for the Concerto written by a love-struck and homesick Dvorak._ "Classic FM":http://www.classicfm.co.uk
  *Prague Symphony Orchestra* *Libor Pešek* conductor *Nina Kotova* cello
  *Dvorák* Prague Waltzes 9’ *Dvorák* Cello Concerto 40’ *Dvorák* Symphony No 9, From the New World 40’
  

• Sing the Ultimate Movies with Sing Live Central 

  Sun 20 Jan 2008 Symphony Hall

  Sing Live Central are back with an unforgettable vocal extravaganza. Over 250 local singers hit the Symphony Hall Stage performing songs from _Fame_, _Dirty Dancing_, _Star Wars_, and _The Lion King_ to name just a few. Kevin Miles ‘the voice of Disney’ guides the audience through an evening celebrating some of the biggest and latest hits from the movies.
  
  *Barry Todd* Musical Director *National Festival Orchestra*
  

• Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra 

  Sat 1 Dec Symphony Hall

  With its velvet strings, golden brass and exceptional woodwind, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam has been a byword for the highest quality for well over a hundred years. They return to Birmingham with the fiery passion of Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony and with violinist Vadim Repin in Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto. A concert to cherish. Classic FM's Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight's recommended concert: _" This is an early Christmas stocking of a concert to start the month, what a great musical line-up from start to finish. Vadim Repin playing the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto promises to be sensational, this is the musician described by Yehudi Menuhin as 'simply the best, the most perfect violinist I have ever heard'."_
  *Daniele Gatti* Conductor *Vadim Repin* Violin
  *Schumann* Manfred Overture 12' *Mendelssohn* Violin Concerto 30' *Tchaikovsky* Symphony No 5 45'
  

• CBSO Pictures at an Exhibition  

  Wed 14 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  When Maurice Ravel arranged Mussorgsky’s _Pictures at an Exhibition_ for orchestra, he created one of the few adaptations that’s better than the original! From its famous opening _Promenade_ to the roof-raising final _Great Gate of Kiev_, it’s one of the all-time great orchestral showpieces, a glittering Russian jewel-box full of spicy tunes and unforgettable images. It’s a real CBSO favourite - and Dvorák's riotous _Carnival Overture_ is every bit as colourful. The great open spaces of Beethoven’s noble violin concerto will be like an oasis of calm - especially in the masterly hands of the young German virtuoso Isabelle Faust.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andrew Grams* _conductor_ *Isabelle Faust* _violin_
  *Dvořák* _Carnival_ Overture 8’ *Beethoven* Violin Concerto 42’ *Mussorgsky (orch. Ravel)* _Pictures at an Exhibition_ 32’
  

• CBSO Pictures at an Exhibition  

  Sat 17 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  When Maurice Ravel arranged Mussorgsky’s _Pictures at an Exhibition_ for orchestra, he created one of the few adaptations that’s better than the original! From its famous opening _Promenade_ to the roof-raising final _Great Gate of Kiev_, it’s one of the all-time great orchestral showpieces, a glittering Russian jewel-box full of spicy tunes and unforgettable images. It’s a real CBSO favourite - and Dvorák’s riotous _Carnival Overture_ is every bit as colourful. The great open spaces of Beethoven’s noble violin concerto will be like an oasis of calm - especially in the masterly hands of the young German virtuoso Isabelle Faust.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andrew Grams* _conductor_ *Isabelle Faust* _violin_
  *Dvořák* _Carnival_ Overture 8’ *Beethoven* Violin Concerto 42’ *Mussorgsky (orch. Ravel)* _Pictures at an Exhibition_ 32’
  

• resonance presents The Heritage Orchestra  

  Fri 3 Oct Town Hall

  The May launch of resonance events was a fresh and funky affair, as London beat maniacs The Herbaliser kicked off a regular night of groundbreaking hip hop, jazz, broken beat and leftfield electronica at Town Hall Birmingham. This time around, expect the spectacular with a packed programme featuring jaw dropping 45 piece ensemble The Heritage Orchestra playing the music of Amon Tobin, album launch for the very brilliant singer and musician Lizzy Parks, giveaways plus a whole host of Birmingham based DJ and MC talent, presented by DJ Cro. Special guests to be announced very soon! Standing £15 "www.myspace.com/resonanceevents":http://www.myspace.com/resonanceevents Presented in association with "Birmingham Jazz":http://www.birminghamjazz.co.uk/
  
  The Heritage Orchestra play the music of Amon Tobin Lizzy Parks album launch DJ Cro and special guest DJs and MCs
  

• Ultimate Romantics 1: Mahler and Wagner  

  Wed 10 Dec Symphony Hall

  In two concerts this winter, some of the most extravagant and passionate music of the late romantic era comes to Symphony Hall. The second act of Wagner’s Tristan contains one of music’s greatest love scenes. The adagio from mahler’s unfinished tenth Symphony is similarly in love with life, but it is the heartfelt last testament of a man about to be torn from the world. Few young conductors have received the plaudits that have been awarded to Vladimir Jurowski, new Principal Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra and music Director of Glyndebourne Opera, who conducts the first concert in this series. 6.15pm pre-concert talk Tickets £5-£37.50
  *London Philharmonic Orchestra* *Vladimir Jurowski* conductor *Anja Kampe* Isolde *Robert Dean Smith* Tristan *Sarah Connolly* Brangaene *Laszlo Polgar* Marke *Stephen Gadd* Melot/Kurnewal
  *Mahler* Adagio from Symphony No 10 22’ *Wagner* Act II from Tristan and Isolde 75’
  

• Bach's Musical Offering  

  Sat 24 Apr 2010 Town Hall

  For thirty years, Ton Koopman has been an inspirational force in Bach performance, joyfully rejecting anything but the instruments and performing techniques that Bach himself would have known. Together with his Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, Koopman brings his unique passion to one of the jewels of Bach’s old age - the great Musical Offering.
  *Soloists of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra* *Ton Koopman* _harpsichord/director_ *Tini Mathot* _harpsichord_
  *J S Bach* _A Musical Offering_ 39’ Ricercare a 6 for two harpsichords, BWV1079 9’ Concerto for two harpsichords in C, BWV1061 18’
  

• Mahler’s Resurrection  

  Wed 27 May 2009 Symphony Hall

  Andris Nelsons is the latest CBSO music director to bring us his interpretation of Mahler’s huge, all-embracing Resurrection symphony, long a CBSO speciality. Featuring a gigantic orchestra - on and offstage - as well as vocalists and chorus, this is one of the biggest statements in late-romantic art. Mahler’s emotional intensity, his echoing trumpet calls and his way of dividing the orchestra into different groups all find a contemporary echo in a recent work by leading German composer Jörg Widmann. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Premiere! - Jorg Widmann Eminent German composer Jörg Widmann talks to Stephen Maddock about his Antiphon - which receives its UK premiere tonight.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Sarah Fox - soprano Mihoko Fujimura - mezzo-soprano City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Widmann: Antiphon (UK premiere) 15’ Mahler: Symphony No. 2 (Resurrection) 77’
  

• CBSO - Viennese Masterpieces  

  Thu 24 May Symphony Hall

  The CBSO are delighted to welcome back one of the world's greatest violinists for a programme of Viennese classics. Beethoven's Fourth is one of his wittiest creations and there is also plenty of humour in this Haydn symphony, one of a set of six composed to please the elegant tastes of Parisian audiences. The last of Mozart's five Violin Concertos is full of dazzling display for the soloist, not least in the ever-surprising finale with its 'Turkish' episodes. Today's programme offers music of elegance, charm and sophistication in abundance! Please Note this concert is being performed on Wednesday 23 May, 2.15pm and Thursday 24 May, 7.30pm *Pre-Concert Talk* Wednesday 23 May, 1.15pm & Thursday 24 May, 6.15pm Beethoven's brightest symphony - as seen from inside the orchestra by violinist David Gregory.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Leonidas Kavakos* Conductor/Violin
  *Haydn* Symphony No 82, The Bear 26' *Mozart* Violin Concerto No 5 31' *Beethoven* Symphony No 4 34'
  

• CBSO The Planets  

  Tue 10 Nov Symphony Hall

  Midland composers have always aimed high. Worcestershire lad Edward Elgar dreamed of making it big in the capital, and it shows: his Cockaigne overture positively glitters with the pageantry and bustle of Edwardian London. Gustav Holst, meanwhile, headed for the stars! His Planets suite isn’t just famous for great tunes like Jupiter and Mars; it’s a tremendous musical odyssey towards the infinite, written for a super-size orchestra and filled with sounds of jaw-dropping strangeness and beauty. Amidst all this grandeur, Grieg’s ever-popular Piano Concerto offers gentler charms - but with Leon McCawley at the keyboard, it will be every bit as spectacular.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *John Wilson* _conductor_ *Leon McCawley* _piano_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Chorus (Seniors)*
  *Elgar* _Cockaigne_ 15' *Grieg* Piano Concerto 30' *Holst* _The Planets_ 48'
  

• Nelson Riddle Orchestra Direct from the USA! 

  Tue 25 Nov Symphony Hall

  The music of Nelson Riddle is legendary. His music set the mood for a generation and helped to make the careers of artists like Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole and Ella Fitzgerald ‘cool’. He also arranged the soundtracks of many Hollywood movies and was nominated for seven Academy Awards, winning twice. His son Christopher Riddle now conducts and leads the orchestra in the same tradition and style set by his father, using all the original charts and arrangements to give you the most wonderful evening of music. Also featured in the show are the vocal talents of Bryan Anthony, who like Francis Albert, hails from New Jersey and on his first visit to the UK is going to thrill the audiences just like he’s done stateside.
  
  
  

• CBSO - Viennese Masterpieces (matinee)  

  Wed 23 May Symphony Hall

  The CBSO are delighted to welcome back one of the world's greatest violinists for a programme of Viennese classics. Beethoven's Fourth is one of his wittiest creations and there is also plenty of humour in this Haydn symphony, one of a set of six composed to please the elegant tastes of Parisian audiences. The last of Mozart's five Violin Concertos is full of dazzling display for the soloist, not least in the ever-surprising finale with its 'Turkish' episodes. Today's programme offers music of elegance, charm and sophistication in abundance! Please Note this concert is being performed on Wednesday 23 May, 2.15pm and Thursday 24 May, 7.30pm Pre-Concert Talk Wednesday 23 May, 1.15pm & Thursday 24 May, 6.15pm Beethoven's brightest symphony - as seen from inside the orchestra by violinist David Gregory.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Leonidas Kavakos* Conductor/Violin
  *Haydn* Symphony No 82, The Bear 26' *Mozart* Violin Concerto No 5 31' *Beethoven* Symphony No 4 34'
  

• CBSO The Planets - Matinee  

  Thu 12 Nov Symphony Hall

  Midland composers have always aimed high. Worcestershire lad Edward Elgar dreamed of making it big in the capital, and it shows: his Cockaigne overture positively glitters with the pageantry and bustle of Edwardian London. Gustav Holst, meanwhile, headed for the stars! His Planets suite isn’t just famous for great tunes like Jupiter and Mars; it’s a tremendous musical odyssey towards the infinite, written for a super-size orchestra and filled with sounds of jaw-dropping strangeness and beauty. Amidst all this grandeur, Grieg’s ever-popular Piano Concerto offers gentler charms - but with Leon McCawley at the keyboard, it will be every bit as spectacular.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *John Wilson* _conductor_ *Leon McCawley* _piano_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Chorus (Seniors)*
  *Elgar* _Cockaigne_ 15' *Grieg* Piano Concerto 30' *Holst* _The Planets_ 48'
  

• Glenn Miller Orchestra In the New Year Mood 

  Sat 5 Jan 2008 Symphony Hall

  The legendary Glenn Miller sounds and style return to Symphony Hall as Ray McVay directs nostalgic forties hits and wartime chart toppers that will have you dancing in the aisles. The orchestra will perform the second half of the concert in the World War II uniforms of the US Army Air Force.
  *Jan Messeder, Colin Anthony,The Uptown Hall Gang & The Moonlight Serenaders* Plus Special Guests *The Jiving Lindy Hoppers*
  *Moonlight Serenade Pennsylvania 65000 String Of Pearls American Patrol Tuxedo Junction In The Mood* As well as: *Joy to the World Let it Snow Winter Wonderland*
  

• National Youth Wind Orchestra  

  Sat 5 Apr 2008 Book through our ticket office for CBSO Centre

  
  
  
  

• Birmingham Schools' Symphony Orchestra  

  Sun 11 May Town Hall

  
  
  
  

• Resurrection Symphony Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra and City of Birmingham Choir 

  Sun 20 Apr Town Hall

  A single work forms this programme, Mahler’s Second Symphony, with its journey from the graveside in the opening movement to the resurrection to eternal life of the close, a truly life-affirming experience. £6.50, £10, £15, £20
  *Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra* *Michael Lloyd* Conductor *Amanda Winfield* Soprano *Anne Marie Gibbons* Mezzo-soprano *City of Birmingham Choir*
  *Mahler* Symphony No. 2 in C Minor, _Resurrection_
  

• Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra  

  Sat 8 Dec Town Hall

  
  
  
  

• Birmingham Conservatoire Symphony Orchestra: Messiaen  

  Fri 20 Jun Town Hall

  
  
  
  

• English Landscapes Classical Encounters with Orchestra of the Swan 

  Tue 18 Mar 2008 Town Hall

  In the 19th century Britain was known as a ‘land without music’ but the last century, led by Edward Elgar, saw an astonishing renaissance in the musical life of the country, conducting many times in Town Hall Birmingham, so it is fitting to programme his great masterpiece for strings, the Introduction & Allegro. Birmingham composer John Joubert’s 80th birthday is celebrated with a performance of oboe concerto, an OOTS commission and the concert concludes with Britten’s virtuoso showpiece, the Variations on a theme of Frank Bridge '...Orchestra of the Swan really showed its mettle in Britten’s Frank Bridge Variations...all the work’s parodying humour surfaced with a genuine exuberance...' Musical Opinion Supported by KPMG and Arts Council England "www.orchestraoftheswan.org":http://www.orchestraoftheswan.org
  Conductor - David Curtis
  Holst - St Paul's Suite John Joubert - Oboe concerto* Elgar - Introduction & Allegro David Matthews - Adagio for string orchestra Britten - Frank Bridge variations * Orchestra of the Swan commission Pre-concert talk taking place in the auditorium at 6.30pm Post-concert Conversation Club taking place in the Circle Bar 15 minutes after the end of the performance. Entrance free to concert ticket holders
  

• Uchida Plays Mozart  

  Sun 23 Nov Symphony Hall

  Few pianists today command the respect and awe accorded to Mitsuko Uchida. “One of today’s great pianists,” wrote The Times, while The Independent summed her up as simply “sublime”. In this concert she directs two of Mozart’s greatest concertos from the keyboard-the serenity and poise of the A major Concerto contrasting with the tragedy of the C minor. Uchida’s lucid Mozart playing is ideally suited to the perfect acoustic of Symphony Hall, uniting performer and audience in an experience of crystal-clear intensity. *Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight’s recommended concert:* _Tonight the pianist Mitsuko Uchida joins forces with the orchestra formed in in 1981 and made up of fifty players from fifteen countries-The Chamber Orchestra of Europe. A chance for you to enjoy two of Mozart’s Piano Concertos written at the same time, but in very distinct moods. Mitsuko Uchida gained her international reputation by playing and recording the music of Mozart-there’s nothing she doesn’t know about the composer’s best-loved works for keyboard._ "Classic FM":http://www.classicfm.co.uk Tickets £5-£37.50
  *Chamber Orchestra of Europe* *Mitsuko Uchida* piano/director *Alexander Janiczek* director
  *Stravinsky* Apollon Musagète 30’ *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 23 in A Major, K488 24’ *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 24 in C minor, K491 30’
  

• Grand Organ Gala London Concert Orchestra 

  Sat 28 Jun Symphony Hall

  A magnificent evening of favourite orchestral classics celebrating the power and splendour of the King of Instruments presented by Phillp Scriven. *Philip Scriven* Organ/Presenter *Adrian Partington* Conductor *Fanfare Trumpeters of the Band of the Welsh Guards* *London Concert Orchestra*
  *STRAUSS* Sunrise from Also Sprach Zarathustra *BACH* Toccata and Fugue *SAINT-SAENS* Organ Symphony *WALTON* Crown Imperial *CLARKE* Trumper Voluntary *MASCAGNI* Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana *ALBINONI* Adagio *WIDOR* Toccata *ELGAR* Cockaigne Overture Pomp and Circumstance March No.1
  
  

• Orchestra of the Swan: The English Romantic  

  Wed 15 Apr Town Hall

  A perfect afternoon classical treat in the beautiful setting of Town Hall. The renaissance of English music, led by Elgar, saw an astonishing flowering of talent which continues today. Ireland's Piano Concerto is on a large scale, firmly based on the 19th century Romantic model. It provides an ideal counterpart to Brahms's sublime D major symphony, perhaps the most intimate of all his symphonic masterpieces. Orchestra of the Swan is a Town Hall Associate Artist. Please note that the choir area is bench seating, the benches are behind the stage area, and there is limited legroom and no back support. The view of the stage from this area is limited. Book 3 or more OOTS concerts in one transaction and receive a 10% reduction. Book all 6 in one transaction and receive a 20% reduction. Please call the Box Office direct on 0121 780 3333 to take advantage of these offer
  *Mark Bebbington* Piano
  *Vaughan Williams* The Wasps *John Ireland* Piano concerto No 1 *Brahms* Symphony No 2
  

• Barbie (TM) at the Symphony Matinee Concert 

  Sat 5 Jan 2008 Symphony Hall

  Learn about classical music with Barbie™ ! Featuring the Barbie™ Princess movies on screen with the world’s best-loved classical music including selections from Barbie™ in The Nutcracker, Barbie™ of Swan Lake, Barbie™ as The Princess and the Pauper, Barbie™ in the 12 Dancing Princesses and the All-New Barbie™ as The Island Princess And many more. . . Performed by a live orchestra LONDON CONCERT ORCHESTRA This concert lasts 90 minutes including interval www.barbie.com/arts
  
  
  

• Mahler's First  

  Tue 20 Nov Symphony Hall

  Mahler may have gone on to write nine more symphonies, but it’s all there in his First: a complete musical world that veers from triumph to tragedy and back again, expressed through the supercharged sounds of a gigantic orchestra at full tilt. The Orchestra is directed by an outstanding British conductor in this titan of a symphony, and for Tchaikovsky’s equally emotional concerto he’s joined by a superb violinist making a welcome return to Birmingham. Beethoven’s fiery overture completes a dramatic programme. Free Pre-Concert Talk 6.15pm
  *Edward Gardner* Conductor *Christian Tetzlaff* Violin
  *Beethoven*: Overture, Coriolan *Tchaikovsky*: Violin Concerto *Mahler*: Symphony No. 1
  

• CBSO Schools Concert: Tales of the Arabian Nights  

  Fri 25 Jun 2010 Symphony Hall

  Rimsky-Korsakov’s most popular work is the music for today’s Schools Concert, specially devised for Key Stage 2 (Years 3 & 4) students. Based around the ancient tales of the Arabian Nights, the colourful sounds of the full symphony orchestra will transport young imaginations to far-off lands. We conjure up the world of a skilful storyteller - the clever and beautiful Sultana Scheherazade - for adventures at sea with Sinbad the sailor, festivals in Baghdad, and young Princes and Princesses falling in love. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• CBSO Schools Concert: Tales of the Arabian Nights  

  Fri 25 Jun 2010 Symphony Hall

  Rimsky-Korsakov’s most popular work is the music for today’s Schools Concert, specially devised for Key Stage 2 (Years 3 & 4) students. Based around the ancient tales of the Arabian Nights, the colourful sounds of the full symphony orchestra will transport young imaginations to far-off lands. We conjure up the world of a skilful storyteller - the clever and beautiful Sultana Scheherazade - for adventures at sea with Sinbad the sailor, festivals in Baghdad, and young Princes and Princesses falling in love. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• Johann Strauss Gala Afternoon Concert 

  Tue 1 Jan 2008 Symphony Hall

  All the romance and excitement of the ballrooms of 19th century Vienna is brought to life in this magical show filled with glorious music, dance and song from the Strauss family. With complimentary interval drink.
  *Daniel Rowland* Directer/Violin *Martene Grimson* Soprano *Johann Strauss Orchestra* *Christopher Hampson* Choreography
  *Programme to include* Blue Danube Waltz Radetzky March Pizzicato Polka Perpetuum Mobile Tritsch Tratsch Polka Tales from the Vienna Woods Music of the Spheres Thunder & Lightning Polka and many more.
  

• Summer Serenade with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra 

  Wed 15 Aug Symphony Hall

  This concert brings an opportunity to hear Grieg's evergreen Piano Concerto, played by the distinguished pianist Boris Berezovsky with the orchestra from Edvard Grieg's native city of which he was once conductor, the famous Bergen Philharmonic. Tickets are at the very special price of £10 so early booking is advisable.
  *Andrew Litton* Conductor *Boris Berezovsky* Piano
  *Grieg* First Suite from Peer Gynt Op 46 15' *Grieg* Piano Concerto 30' *Walton* Symphony No 1 43'
  

• CBSO Nelsons Conducts Shostakovich  

  Tue 27 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  Muddle or music? If you had just written the loudest, most ambitious, most terrifying symphony since Mahler, and found your music criticised in the national press on behalf of a leader who enjoyed killing anyone who got in his way, what would you do? Well, Shostakovich decided to withdraw his epic Fourth Symphony in 1936 before its first performance, only for it to resurface decades later and be recognised as one of his greatest masterpieces. An outstanding German violinist joins the Orchestra for a more optimistic 1930s classic.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Frank Peter Zimmermann* _violin_
  *Bartók* Violin Concerto No 2 36’ *Shostakovich* Symphony No 4 60’
  

• Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra  

  Mon 17 Mar Town Hall

  Comprised of traditional Chinese string, wind and percussion instruments, this 85-strong ensemble has gained an outstanding international reputation for its powerful and evocative performances of music both ancient and modern. The Orchestra's visit forms part of CHINA NOW, a nationwide showcase of the very best of modern China. The orchestra have chosen a programme to display the national spirit of China with different ethnic flavours from different areas of the country. They will play pieces of music inspired by aspects of Chinese culture, including traditional feast days and Chinese calligraphy. Two types of Chinese lutes will have solos during the concert, and musicians and world music fans will be intrigued to see these fantastical looking instruments in action. Having been established over thirty years ago, the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra is one of the foremost exponents of traditional Chinese music. _“The subtle beginning bordered on impressionism and, bolstered by Yan Huichang’s mellifluous and coherent direction of the 88-member group, the music was cinematic.”_ Washington Post _“Musical precision and charm just defined the conductor of the orchestra, Yan Huichang”_ Vancouver Sun _“Yan Huichang, the artistic director and principal conductor, uses a baton. His technique is Western and strong,[…] and a group of players stood in aisles of the auditorium, involving us in their individuality.”_ Los Angeles Times £10, £15, £20, £25
  *Yan Huichang* Conductor *Wong Chi-ching* Pipa *Feng Shaoxian* Sanxian and vocals
  *Wang Ning* Festivities *Zhao Jiping* Tracing our roots with the Old Pagoda Tree *Sui Lijun* Song of the Black Earth *Law Wing-fai* A Thousand Brushstrokes *Peng Xiuwen* Terracotta Warriors Fantasia
  

• Gergiev, Mariinsky and the CBSO  

  Wed 14 Oct Symphony Hall

  Two great orchestras and choruses come together for a once-in-a lifetime event when East meets West under conductor Valery Gergiev - memorably described as “so highly charged that you could probably run the National Grid from a cable attached to his baton” (The Times). Berlioz’s Requiem is one of the most gigantic works in the repertoire, with four extra brass bands; and Prokofiev’s Cantata includes an accordion ensemble, alarm bells, cannon-shots, sirens and a speaker with megaphone who is the voice of Lenin. BBC Music magazine’s Editor Oliver Condy explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert: _“Concert-goers who spy Russian conductor Valery Gergiev on the programme need never hesitate, particularly if repertoire like this is involved! This concert is sure to be the ultimate roof-raiser.”_
  *Orchestra and Chorus of the Mariinsky Theatre* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Chorus* *Valery Gergiev* _conductor_ *Sergei Semishkur* _tenor_
  *Prokofiev* Cantata for the 20th Anniversary of the October Revolution *Berlioz* _Grande messe des morts_ (Requiem)
  

• Gergiev, Mariinsky and the CBSO  

  Thu 15 Oct Symphony Hall

  Two great orchestras and choruses come together for a once-in-a lifetime event when East meets West under conductor Valery Gergiev - memorably described as “so highly charged that you could probably run the National Grid from a cable attached to his baton” (The Times). Berlioz’s Requiem is one of the most gigantic works in the repertoire, with four extra brass bands; and Prokofiev’s Cantata includes an accordion ensemble, alarm bells, cannon-shots, sirens and a speaker with megaphone who is the voice of Lenin. BBC Music magazine’s Editor Oliver Condy explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert: _“Concert-goers who spy Russian conductor Valery Gergiev on the programme need never hesitate, particularly if repertoire like this is involved! This concert is sure to be the ultimate roof-raiser.”_
  *Orchestra and Chorus of the Mariinsky Theatre* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Chorus* *Valery Gergiev* _conductor_ *Sergei Semishkur* _tenor_
  *Prokofiev* Cantata for the 20th Anniversary of the October Revolution *Berlioz* _Grande messe des morts_ (Requiem)
  

• A Boy Was Born Britten at Christmas 

  Sun 7 Dec Town Hall

  Britten is widely regarded as the leading British composer of the 20th century. Ex Cathedra begins its festive celebrations with a performance of his best-loved Christmas repertoire - A Boy Was Born, St Nicolas and A Ceremony of Carols - in collaboration with Ex Cathedra's fellow Town Hall Associate Artist, the Orchestra of the Swan. The concert also features Ex Cathedra's Academy of Vocal Music. £30, £23.50, £15, £8.50 60plus, unwaged, groups of 11 or more, £27.50, £21, £13, £7 _“Textures glittered throughout”_ *The Birmingham Post* Visit Ex Cathedra's website by clicking "here":http://www.ex-cathedra.org/
  *Ex Cathedra Choir* *Orchestra of the Swan* *Jeffrey Skidmore* conductor * Benjamin Hulett* tenor
  
  

• Igorfest Orchestra Miniatures  

  Sat 18 Apr Book through our ticket office for CBSO Centre

  £15
  
  PLEASE NOTE THAT TICKETS ARE NOW AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY.
  

• Orchestra of the Swan: Bach's Brandenburg  

  Wed 18 Feb Town Hall

  Few musical works are as loved by audiences and musicians �" and as often performed �" as the six Brandenburg concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach, each concerto requiring a different combination of instruments and highly skilled soloists. The concertos performed today have demanding roles for violin, harpsichord, flute and recorder. Bach’s music transcends time and place, speaking as directly to performer and listener now as it did 250 years ago.
  *Christine Whiffen* harpsichord *David Le Page* violin *Diane Clark* flute
  *Handel* Concerto Grosso Op 6 No 9 *Bach* Suite in B minor *Bach* Brandenburg concerto No 4 *Bach* Brandenburg concerto No 5
  

• CBSO - Elgar's 150th The Dream of Gerontius 

  Fri 1 Jun Symphony Hall

  A worldwide reputation, made in Birmingham, Edward Elgar was a Midlander through and through. Over the weekend of Elgar's 150th birthday, Sakari Oramo conducts three great choruses, ten world-class soloists and the Orchestra Elgar helped found, in the great choral triptych that Elgar wrote for Birmingham. This remarkable anniversary weekend begins with the work that many consider to be Elgar's masterpiece, The Dream of Gerontius. One critic described Oramo's 2000 Centenary performance of Gerontius as one of the most moving experiences in his career. Be sure to book early this time. *Pre-Concert Talk @ 6.15pm* CBSC tenor Michael Foster, author of _Plotting Gigantic Worx - The Story of Elgar's Apostles Trilogy explores the genesis of Elgar's Dream of Gerontius._
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Sakari Oramo* Conductor *Jane Irwin* Mezzo soprano *Anthony Dean Griffey* Tenor *Clive Bayley* Bass *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus* *BBC National Chorus of Wales*
  *Elgar* The Dream of Gerontius 95'
  

• Glenn Miller Orchestra  

  Sat 2 Jan 2010 Symphony Hall

  More details to follow.
  
  
  

• CBSO Schools Concert: The Firebird  

  Cancelled

  Thu 15 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  Stravinsky’s music transports you to a world of glittering colours, enchanted melodies and nightmarish, bloodcurdling thrills. Discover the orchestra from the inside out with one of the best-loved pieces of music in the classical repertoire, which shows off the full symphony orchestra in all its brilliance and splendour. The ballet score is based on a Russian folk tale telling the story of Prince Ivan who enters the garden of the evil Kastchei and rescues 13 princesses with the help of the magical firebird. 11.30am performance: specially devised for Key Stage 2 (Years 5 & 6); 1.30pm performance: for Key Stages 3 & 4. *Special prices apply: £4 per ticket for children and teachers, and home-schooling* children and parents. To book please call Group Bookings on 0800 358 7070.* For information on pre-concert support packages and other opportunities available for schools with the CBSO, please contact the CBSO’s Education Department by email (education@cbso.co.uk) or telephone (0121 616 6546). *proof of eligibility, eg registration with your Local Authority, required
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* _conductor_ *Tommy Pearson* _presenter_
  
  

• CBSO Schools Concert: The Firebird  

  Cancelled

  Thu 15 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  Stravinsky’s music transports you to a world of glittering colours, enchanted melodies and nightmarish, bloodcurdling thrills. Discover the orchestra from the inside out with one of the best-loved pieces of music in the classical repertoire, which shows off the full symphony orchestra in all its brilliance and splendour. The ballet score is based on a Russian folk tale telling the story of Prince Ivan who enters the garden of the evil Kastchei and rescues 13 princesses with the help of the magical firebird. 11.30am performance: specially devised for Key Stage 2 (Years 5 & 6); 1.30pm performance: for Key Stages 3 & 4. *Special prices apply: £4 per ticket for children and teachers, and home-schooling* children and parents. To book please call Group Bookings on 0800 358 7070.* For information on pre-concert support packages and other opportunities available for schools with the CBSO, please contact the CBSO’s Education Department by email (education@cbso.co.uk) or telephone (0121 616 6546). *proof of eligibility, eg registration with your Local Authority, required
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* _conductor_ *Tommy Pearson* _presenter_
  
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics: John Williams' Heroes  

  Fri 30 Oct Symphony Hall

  From blockbuster to blockbuster, tonight’s concert is a celebration of great film themes with live symphony orchestra, as you’ve never heard them before. Travel across the stars with an unbeatable line-up featuring the music of John Williams and the amazing film-score writers that influenced him. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *John Wilson* _conductor_
  Including music from: _Star Wars_ - _The Sea Hawk_ - _The Philadelphia Story_ - _Jaws_ - _Taxi Driver_ - _E.T_. - _Airport_ - _Ben Hur_ - _Catch Me If You Can_ - _Schindler’s List_ - _Close Encounters of the Third Kind_ - _Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone_
  

• Birmingham Jazz Season - Stan Sulzmann's 60th Birthday Celebration with The Heritage Orchestra 

  Sat 29 Nov Book through our ticket office for CBSO Centre

  
  
  
  

• Prom Praise  

  Sat 17 Oct Symphony Hall

  *Prom Praise* is a delightful blend of sacred and concert music, a unique and joyful fusion of performance with worship, combining the spirit of _Songs of Praise_ with the world-famous _Last Night of the Proms_. Presented by the All Souls Orchestra under the energetic and inimitable direction of Principal Conductor and Artistic Director, Noël Tredinnick, *Prom Praise* is a feast of orchestral and vocal music. There is an element of celebration too, when Noel and the Orchestra invite the audience to stand and join in to sing some favourite hymns and worship songs. On this return to Symphony Hall the Orchstra is thrilled to be joined by a host of exciting guests, including Dudley-born international Gospel singer Chris Eaton and worship-leader and songwriter Geraldine Latty. We are particularly delighted that former Bishop of Birmingham, Archbishop John Sentamu, will be able to join the evening and co-host the event.
  *Noël Tredinnick* conductor *All Souls Orchestra* *Prom Praise Birmingham Choir* *Chris Eaton* soloist *Geraldine Latty* soloist *Archbishop John Sentamu* guest speaker
  
  

• White Christmas  

  Wed 19 Dec Symphony Hall

  From Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire …to Silent Night… Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas JUST LIKE THE ONES WE USED TO KNOW! The perfect way to swing into Christmas with unforgettable seasonal songs.
  *John Rigby* Conductor *Jacinta Whyte* Vocal *Gary Williams* Vocal *Capital Voices* *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Programme to include;* Santa Claus is Coming to Town Winter Wonderland Let it snow We need a little Christmas Jingle Bell Rock I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus Baby it's cold outside Mistletoe and Wine The twelve days of Christmas Santa Baby Mistletoe and Holly Carol of the Bells We Three Kings Silent Night
  

• Spanish for Beginners! Classical Encounters with Orchestra of the Swan 

  Sun 21 Oct Town Hall

  The final concert of our Re-opening Festival is your first chance to enjoy a _Classical Encounter with Orchestra of the Swan_. _Spanish for Beginners_ is the first in a series of friendly and informal afternoon concerts hosted by conductor David Curtis. The centrepiece of the programme is Rodrigo's Guitar Concerto, its haunting slow movement the epitome of Spanish melancholy. "www.orchestraoftheswan.org":http://www.orchestraoftheswan.org
  *David Curtis* Conductor *David Le Page* Violin *Morgan Szymanski* Guitar
  *Elgar*: Suite, _The Spanish Lady_ *Piazzolla*: Four Seasons of Buenos Aires *Rossini*: Overture, _The Barber of Seville_ *Rodrigo*: Concierto de Aranjuez
  

• CBSO Symphonic Dances: I  

  Thu 24 Sep Symphony Hall

  It may be his last work, but Rachmaninov’s orchestral showpiece is bursting with energy and great melodies, a tribute to the glamour of Ormandy’s Philadelphia Orchestra. Ravel was also fascinated by recreating dance forms in his orchestral music, and his 1920 ballet La Valse is the most extreme example, the point at which the old Viennese waltz eats itself. Ravel’s love of orchestral colour owes a huge debt to Berlioz, whose beautiful song-cycle completes the programme. Sung in French, with English surtitles. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Charlotte Hellekant* _mezzo soprano_
  *Ravel* _La Valse_ 13’ *Berlioz* _Les Nuits d’Été_ 32’ *Rachmaninov* _Symphonic Dances_ 36’
  

• Mass in B Minor  

  Sat 1 May 2010 Town Hall

  Please visit www.excathedra.co.uk for more information
  Ex Cathedra Choir and Baroque Orchestra Conductor - Jeffrey Skidmore
  
  

• The Salsa Ball in association with SalsaFever.com 

  Sat 8 Nov Town Hall

  Go Latin in Birmingham at one of the finest music halls in the country. An evening of salsa grooves from the UK’s hottest salsa band. Award-winning Alex Wilson is at the helm of his renowned 12-piece Salsa Orchestra, a scintillating line-up of the best contemporary salsa rhythm, brass and vocal musicians, for the Midlands launch of his new album. Before the full salsa showdown, loosen up those Latino limbs in the hands of our host Rohan Brown and expert instructors from Salsafever.com, with free classes and salsa DJs from 8pm onwards. _‘Alex Wilson has been slaying ‘em with his authentic, exciting Afro-Cuban’_ *Mojo* _‘It’s tempting to wear a hat to his gigs just to be able to throw it up in the air!’_ *Guardian* £18.50 Dress to impress - black tie preferred but not essential. *Tickets also available from www.salsafever.com*
  Alex Wilson Salsa Orchestra
  
  

• Baroque Fireworks City of Birmingham Choir 

  Sat 17 Nov Town Hall

  The City of Birmingham Choir has had a long and distinguished relationship with the Town Hall. It is celebrating its return to this historic musical venue with a programme of sparkling baroque classics, including two of Handel’s ever popular Coronation Anthems. We welcome the outstanding Orchestra of the Swan to join us for what is sure to be a dazzling display of choral and orchestral fireworks. The concert will end at approximately 9.30pm
  *David Newsholme* Organ *Adrian Lucas* Conductor *James Bowman* Counter-tenor *City of Birmingham Choir* *Orchestra of the Swan*
  *Charpentier* Te Deum in D *Handel* Music for the Royal Fireworks *Handel* The King Shall Rejoice *Purcell* Come ye Sons of Art, Away *Purcell* O Sing Unto the Lord *Handel* Zadok the Priest
  

• Benedetti Plays Sibelius Vienna Tonkunstler Orchestra 

  Fri 15 Feb 2008 Symphony Hall

  Not yet twenty, Nicola Benedetti's reputation has risen meteorically since she won the BBC Young Musician of the Year Award in 2004. Her performance of the Sibelius Violin Concerto with the dynamic young firebrand Kristjan Jarvi, Principal Conductor of the Vienna Tonkustler Orchestra, is sure to create an irresistible frisson. Alongside the Concerto's slow-burning, brooding intensity we have the vivacious hi-tech energy of John Adams's music and the most famous of all symphonies, Beethoven's Fifth, with its intense heroic struggle, culminating in a blaze of joy.
  *Kristjan Jarvi* Conductor *Nicola Benedetti* Violin
  *Adams* Slonimsky's Earbox 13' *Sibelius* Violin Concerto 33' *Beethoven* Symphony No 5 35'
  

• Beethoven's Missa Solemnis  

  Sat 15 Nov Symphony Hall

  There is no genuine choral possibility undeveloped in the Mass. Beethoven imagines everything humanly possible - and then adds more! Join us as we scale the majestic heights of Beethoven’s late, great dramatic Mass in a glorious musical tour de force bursting with exuberance and exhilaration. “Adrian Lucas draws fine responses from the Choir with impressive dynamic contrasts, refined inner tuning and impeccable blending of parts resulting in a greatly satisfying performance”. £10, £12.50, £16, £21.50, £26.50, £31.50, £35.50. Discounts available.
  *City of Birmingham Choir* *Bristol Choral Society* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Adrian Lucas* Conductor *Lee Bissett* Soprano *Hannah Pedley* Mezzo soprano *Ben Segal* Tenor *David Soar* Bass
  
  

• The Verdi Requiem with Making Music West Midlands  

  Sun 8 Jun Symphony Hall

  The thrilling trumpet call to judgement accompanies the spectacular choir of massed voices from across the Midlands region, in this gala performance of Verdi's intensely operatic Requiem. Making Music's trienniel event is conducted by Michael Lloyd with a cracking line-up of soloists supported by the remarkable Chandos Symphony Orchestra. _'A chorus singing out of its socks'_ Christopher Morley, The Birmingham Post
  *Michael Lloyd* Conductor *Kathyrn Rutland* Leader *Julie Unwin* Soprano *Anne Marie Owens* Mezzo-soprano *Rhys Meirion* Tenor *Andrew Greenan* Bass *Chandos Symphony Orchestra* *Massed Choirs of Making Music West Midlands*
  *Verdi* Requiem 80'
  

• CBSO Tuned In: Shostakovich Symphony No 4  

  Thu 29 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  Shostakovich’s massive Fourth Symphony is a devastating portrait of the most turbulent years in 20th-century history. In this concert with a difference, broadcaster Stephen Johnson explains the many stories behind this extraordinary work, and shows how Shostakovich uses his huge orchestra to such unforgettable effect - with live illustrations from Andris Nelsons and the 110-piece CBSO! Then there’s a chance to hear the whole symphony. Whether you know and love the Fourth - or you’re new to Shostakovich - this concert will help you hear it with new ears.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Stephen Johnson* _presenter_
  Introduction to Shostakovich’s Fourth Symphony, with live orchestral examples 45’ _interval_ *Shostakovich* Symphony No 4 60’
  

• Festival of Young Musicians with Aled Jones  

  Sat 22 Nov Symphony Hall

  Marking 120 years of Child Protection, the NSPCC Birmingham Branch proudly presents a festival of young musicians. Broadcaster and singer Aled Jones will be presenting an exciting and varied programme of some of the city’s most gifted and talented young musicians • including The Birmingham Schools Symphony Orchestra, Jazz Ensemble, the highly acclaimed Azaad Dhol Group, Training Wind Orchestra, Steel Band and Gospel Choir. Plus solo performance by Aled Jones. Produced and directed by Jeremy Blunt of Birmingham Schools Service. Organised by the NSPCC’s Birmingham Branch of Volunteers all the profits raised from this event will support the NSPCC’s vital work with local children • the goal is to raise £25,000. £15, Discounts available
  
  
  

• Rachmaninov’s Second  

  Tue 23 Sep Symphony Hall

  For his second programme as music director, Andris Nelsons has chosen another grand romantic symphony - Rachmaninov’s sweeping, passionate second, which the composer premiered exactly a century ago in 1908. In the first half, the brilliant young Macedonian pianist Simon Trpceski will join the Orchestra for Saint-Saëns’ most popular concerto, and the concert begins with another French favourite, Debussy’s sensuous miniature ballet. Pre concert talk 6.15pm - The Players’ Perspective - Rachmaninov’s Second Violinist David Gregory and fellow CBSO musicians present an insider’s angle on Rachmaninov’s best-loved symphony.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Simon Trpceski - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Debussy: Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune 10’ Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2 23’ Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 2 55’
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra  

  Fri 31 Oct Symphony Hall

  Even by Mahler’s own standards, his Seventh Symphony is extraordinary. He called it a “song of the night”, though it ends in roof-raising jubilation. But first comes a fantastic journey through a world of dreams, nightmares, moonlit lovesongs and romance. It’s a whole new musical world - so who better to play it than our renowned Youth Orchestra, under the brilliant Dutch maestro Jac van Steen? If you heard the CBSO Youth Orchestra’s stunning performances of Nielsen and Bartók last season, you’ll know to expect an unforgettable evening as our superb young players tackle their most challenging programme yet. bq.These committed and gifted youngsters produced performances which would put many professional bodies to shame, with crisp articulation, impressively accurate intonation, but, above all, a depth of tone and confidence of phrasing which really denotes an ensemble of the highest class.bq. Musical Opinion
  Jac van Steen - conductor
  Mahler: Symphony No. 7 80’
  

• Birmingham Music Service  

  Sat 9 May Town Hall

  
  *Birmingham Schools' Concert Orchestra* *Bob Vivian* conductor
  
  

• CBSO One Thousand and One Nights  

  Tue 18 May 2010 Symphony Hall

  Soaring violin solos, drama on the high seas and a total mastery of the orchestra: it’s no surprise that Rimsky-Korsakov’s _Scheherazade_ has become one of the most played and best-loved of all Russian pieces. After his thrilling CBSO debut two seasons ago, dynamic Czech conductor Jakub Hrůša returns with this and another Russian masterpiece, Tchaikovsky’s charming _Rococo_ Variations. Tchaikovsky was inspired by his lifelong love of Mozart, and the concert begins with one of the greatest of Mozart’s symphonies, written for a visit to Hrůšas home city. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *Jakub Hrůša* conductor *Johannes Moser* cello *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  *Mozart* Symphony No38 (Prague) 25' *Tchaikovsky* Rococo Variations 18' *Rimsky-Korsakov* Scheherazade 47'
  

• Muti Conducts Beethoven  

  Tue 23 Mar 2010 Symphony Hall

  There have been few more glamorous conducting careers than that of Riccardo Muti, who has conducted the world’s greatest orchestras and spent nearly twenty years as director of La Scala, Milan. Tonight he appears at Symphony Hall for the first time, conducting two towering Beethoven masterpieces: the majestic Eroica Symphony and the timeless Violin Concerto, played by one of the finest violinists of his generation, Joshua Bell. Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall, says of tonight’s recommended concert: _“Riccardo Muti and Joshua Bell go back a long way. When the violinist was just fourteen years old it was with Maestro Muti and the Philadelphia Orchestra that he made his debut.”_
  *Philharmonia Orchestra* *Riccardo Muti* _conductor_ *Joshua Bell* _violin_
  *Beethoven* Violin Concerto 42’ *Beethoven* Symphony No 3, _Eroica_ 50’
  

• Tavener's The Beautiful Names  

  Sat 15 Mar 2008 Town Hall

  The direct melodic simplicity and rapt beauty of Sir John Tavener's music has spoken to an extraordinary cross-section of the public, from aficionados through to the many who were moved by his Song of Athene at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales. His music shares the soulful spirituality of Rachmaninov's Vespers and the slow-burning intensity of Barber's Agnus Dei (an arrangement of his Adagio for strings). In his latest work, which takes its name from the ninety-nine names of Allah according to Islamic tradition, he reaches out to a new universalism, embracing the many religions of the world.
  *David Hill* Conductor *Andrew Kennedy* Tenor *BBC Symphony Orchestra* *BBC Symphony Chorus*
  *Rachmaninov* Excerpts from Vespers 15' *Tavener* Song of Athene 4' *Barber* Agnus Dei 7' *Tavener* The Beautiful Names of Allah: A Vision 75'
  

• The Great American Songbook  

  Sun 14 Jun 2009 Book through our ticket office for CBSO Centre

  The Berkley Street Dance Orchestra plays vintage dance band favourites from the 30s and 40s.
  
  
  

• The Four Seasons By Candlelight  

  Sun 30 Dec Symphony Hall

  Vivaldi’s masterpiece is a fitting finale to this superb concert of beautiful 18th Century classics performed in full period costume in an evocative candle-lit style setting.
  *Steven Devine* Director/Harpsichord *Nicola Stonehouse* Soprano *David Juritz* Violin *Crispian Steele-Perkins* Trumpet *Tom Rainer* Trumpet *Mozart Festival Orchestra* In full period costume
  *Handel* I know that my redeemer liveth, Let the bright Seraphim *Purcell* Trumpet Suite *Bach* Air on the G String *Vivaldi* Concerto for Two Trumpets *Albinoni* Adagio *Pachelbel* Canon *Vivaldi* The Four Seasons
  

• Rachmaninov's Second Symphony Russian State Symphony Orchestra 

  Thu 15 May Symphony Hall

  In its heart-felt lyricism and inexhaustible stream of melody, the Second Symphony is one of the most emotionally charged of all Rachmaninov's works. It is heard next to the youthful fire of his First Piano Concerto and Prokofiev's dazzling suite from the opera The Love for Three Oranges. The Russian State Symphony Orchestra have this music in their blood and bring a truly authentic passion to their performances. Classic FM's Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight's recommended concert: _" Expect some musical fireworks as Dmitri Alexeev takes on Rachmaninov's earliest work. The composer produced his First Piano Concerto when he was still a teenager training at the Conservatoire in Moscow, but he altered it radically nearly thirty years later and this is the version we hear today."_
  *Mark Gorenstein* Conductor *Dmitri Alexeev* Piano
  *Tchaikovsky* The Snow Maiden (excerpts) *Rachmaninov* Piano Concerto No 1 27' *Rachmaninov* Symphony No 2 60'
  

• CBSO Rattle's Bach  

  Sat 6 Mar 2010 Symphony Hall

  In the whole of music there’s nothing else quite like it: Bach’s dramatic re-telling of the events of Holy Week has a power and expressive beauty that add up to an overwhelming experience. Returning to the CBSO for the first time in four years, our former music director Sir Simon Rattle leads an outstanding international cast and our own acclaimed choruses in what is sure to be one of the hottest tickets of this or any season - be sure to book early!
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Sir Simon Rattle* _conductor_ *Camilla Tilling* _soprano_ *Magdalena Kožená* _mezzo soprano_ *Mark Padmore* _tenor_ *Topi Lehtipuu* _tenor_ *Christian Gerhaher* _baritone_ *Thomas Quasthoff* _baritone_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus (Juniors)*
  *Bach* _St Matthew Passion_ (sung in German with English surtitles)
  

• CBSO Rattle's Bach  

  Sun 7 Mar 2010 Symphony Hall

  In the whole of music there’s nothing else quite like it: Bach’s dramatic re-telling of the events of Holy Week has a power and expressive beauty that add up to an overwhelming experience. Returning to the CBSO for the first time in four years, our former music director Sir Simon Rattle leads an outstanding international cast and our own acclaimed choruses in what is sure to be one of the hottest tickets of this or any season - be sure to book early!
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Sir Simon Rattle* _conductor_ *Camilla Tilling* _soprano_ *Magdalena Kožená* _mezzo soprano_ *Mark Padmore* _tenor_ *Topi Lehtipuu* _tenor_ *Christian Gerhaher* _baritone_ *Thomas Quasthoff* _baritone_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus (Juniors)*
  *Bach* _St Matthew Passion_ (sung in German with English surtitles)
  

• CBSO Tuned In: The Firebird  

  Thu 25 Mar 2010 Symphony Hall

  The CBSO presents a performance of _The Firebird_ with a difference, as broadcaster Stephen Johnson gives a guided tour of Stravinsky’s famous score. Discover how the composer creates his astonishing sounds, hear how the music works, and learn the story of how Stravinsky only got the gig because his teacher Liadov was too lazy! - all illustrated with live music from Andris Nelsons and the full CBSO. Then, after the interval, enjoy a complete performance of _The Firebird_. A real eye (and ear) opener - perfect for aficionado and novice alike.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Stephen Johnson* _presenter_
  *Liadov* Baba Yaga 3’ Introduction to _The Firebird_ - with live orchestral examples 45’ _interval_ *Stravinsky* _The Firebird_ (1910 version) 44’
  

• New Year's Eve Concert  

  Wed 31 Dec Town Hall

  A musical feast in the heart of Birmingham. Start your New Year’s celebrations early with this rousing concert of Proms favourites in the distinctive setting of Birmingham’s Town Hall. *CELEBRATE THE NEW YEAR!*
  _And all your Proms favourites_ *Fantasia on Greensleeves* *Rule, Britannia!* *Nessun dorma* *Land of Hope and Glory* John Hudson _tenor_ Richard Morrison _baritone_ Anthony Inglis _conductor_ London Concert Orchestra
  *Rossini* Galop from William Tell *Sousa* Liberty Bell March *Mussorgsky* Great Gate of Kiev *Waldteufel* The Skaters’ Waltz *Mendelssohn* The Hebrides Overture *Bizet* The Pearl Fishers Duet *Walton* Crown Imperial *Di Capua* O sole Mio *Suppé* Light Cavalry Overture *Rossini* Largo al factotum *Strauss* Radetzky March
  

• University of Birmingham Choir and Philharmonic Orchestra  

  Sun 16 Mar Town Hall

  
  
  *Paul Rodmell* Conductor *Beethoven* Meerestille undglückliche Fahrt Op 112 *Schumann* Symphony No. 3 in E flat, Rhenish *Puccini* Messa di Gloria
  

• New Year's Eve Matinee Gala  

  Mon 31 Dec Town Hall

  Avoid the crowds of the city centre on New Year's Eve evening and celebrate earlier in the glorious surroundings of Town Hall. The London Concert Orchestra will mark the New Year with a feast of popular classics. Please note that this performance does not include complimentary interval refreshments.
  *Anthony Inglis* Conductor *Paul O'Neill* Tenor *Grant Doyle* Baritone *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Strauss* Die Fledermaus Overture *Sousa* Stars and Stripes Forever *Elgar* Nimrod *Tchaikovsky* Swan Lake Finale *Bizet* The Pearl Fishers Duet *Porter* Brush up your Shakespeare *Ponchielli* Dance of the Hours *Rossini* William Tell Overture *Mascagni* Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana *Sibelius* Finlandia *Mozart* Champagne Aria *Denza* Funiculi, funicula *Arne* Rule Britannia *Parry* Jerusalem *Puccini* Nessun dorma *Elgar* Pomp & Circumstance March No 1
  

• A Hero’s Life  

  Wed 24 Jun Symphony Hall

  *We are sorry to announce that Andrew Kennedy has withdrawn from the concerts on 24 & 27 June due to changes in his contracted opera work. We are very grateful to Ed Lyon for replacing him.* To close his first season, Andris Nelsons returns to his love of Richard Strauss, with the epic, semi-autobiographical tone poem in which the composer charts his marriage, his battles with his critics and his own earlier artistic creations. Haydn’s most famous mass - named for a great hero - also incorporates the sounds of war, and like Strauss, the composer pleads for a peace - Dona Nobis Pacem - that eventually arrives.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Claire Booth - soprano Hilary Summers - mezzo-soprano Ed Lyon - tenor Graeme Broadbent - bass City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  *Haydn* Nelson Mass 43’ *Strauss* Ein Heldenleben 46’
  

• Celebrating Sibelius:II  

  Sat 22 Sep Symphony Hall

  The second instalment in Sakari Oramo’s Sibelius cycle consists of the final three works which set the seal on the composer’s reputation as arguably the greatest symphonist of the 20th century. From the popular Fifth, with its exhilarating forward momentum and shattering final chords, via the cooler Sixth which the composer described as ‘pure spring water’, to the spacious trombone solos and concentrated beauties of the single-movement Seventh, these works chart a journey towards perfection that has been the envy of composers ever since. The concert begins with one of his best-loved works. “…[Symphony No. 6] sounds so natural and sensitive… this orchestra is also quick to catch the composer's innermost thoughts.” Finnish Music Quarterly 4/2003, on Oramo/CBSO/Sibelius Cycle, Erato label 5.45pm FREE Pre-concert talk
  *Sakari Oramo* conductor
  Sibelius: Karelia Suite Sibelius: Symphony No. 5 Sibelius: Symphony No. 6 Sibelius: Symphony No. 7
  

• Town Hall 175TH Birthday Concert: Handel's Messiah  

  Sat 3 Oct Town Hall

  Handel’s Messiah - the setting of the greatest of all stories - has been at the heart of Town Hall’s programme throughout its 175 years of existence. Harry Christophers and The Sixteen’s subtle yet energetic CD of _Messiah_ was one of the great successes of 2008, and tonight’s performance of the most popular oratorio ever composed has a vintage line-up of British soloists. Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall, says of tonight’s recommended concert: _“In an interview for Classic FM Harry Christophers said that he never tires of conducting the work, ‘It’s such a wonderful masterpiece... you can never destroy Messiah’.”_
  *The Sixteen Choir and Orchestra* *Harry Christophers* _conductor_ *Gillian Keith* _soprano_ *Catherine Wyn-Rogers* _mezzo soprano_ *John Mark Ainsley* _tenor_ *Chris Purves* _baritone_
  *Handel* _The Messiah_
  

• Birmingham Music Service Gala - 1st July 2008  

  Tue 1 Jul Town Hall

  Birmingham Schools': Brass Band, Recorder Sinfonia, Percussion Ensemble, Flute Choir and Training Wind Orchestra
  
  
  

• Christmas Gala  

  Fri 14 Dec Symphony Hall

  Angela Rippon introduces a delightful assortment of festive music and merriment for this special time of year.
  *Angela Rippon* Presenter *Fraser Goulding* Conductor *Stephanie Corley* Soprano *Luke Bowen* Treble *Paul O’Neill* Tenor *London Concert Orchestra*
  *RIMSKY-KORSAKOV* Christmas Eve Polonaise *HUMPERDINCK* Evening Prayer Hansel and Gretel *PUCCINI* Christmas Love Duet La bohème *STRAUSS* Die Fledermaus Overture *TCHAIKOVSKY* The Nutcracker Suite *BACH* Ave Maria *FRANCK* Panis Angelicus *ANDERSON* A Christmas Festival, Sleigh Ride, The Typewriter, Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer, Jingle Bells, White Christmas, *CAROLS FOR ALL* including Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, God Rest You Merry Gentlemen, The First Nowell, Away In A manger
  

• The Royal Opera: Verdi's Requiem PLEASE NOTE TICKETS ARE NOW AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY 

  Fri 20 Mar Symphony Hall

  The Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House take up residence at Symphony Hall for two nights, with a glittering line-up of soloists and their Music Director, Antonio Pappano. _“ Everything Pappano conducts has high octane energy, and that quality radiates off the podium as strongly as it does on it”_ *Daily Telegraph* Verdi’s Requiem is one of the greatest choral masterpieces of all time, and often described as an opera in all but name. Charged with passion, terrifying force, tenderness and consolation, this music comes straight from the composer’s heart. His sumptuous and dramatic choral writing gives us the chance to hear one of the world’s great opera choruses in full voice, in what promises to be a searing performance of this great score. *Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight’s recommended concert:* _The first of two performances in Symphony Hall for the Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House under Antonio Pappano. It’s seven years since the London-born Italian-American conductor became the music director at Covent Garden. Then 42, he was also the youngest to hold the post and since taking over the musical reins, he’s been acclaimed both by the public and critics alike. Pappano even had a premonition he’d be in the top job at Covent Garden as he read the former music director Sir Georg Solti’s autobiography._ *6.15pm pre-concert talk* *A REQUIEM FOR THE TIMES* Verdi's Requiem began as part of a memorial for Rossini but became one for the author Manzoni. It was also the start of Verdi’s retirement, which never happened. Yet it remains a document of what Verdi wished to leave behind, as well as a insight into what he valued. Tickets £5-£50 _please note there is no interval_
  *The Royal Opera Chorus* *The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House* *Antonio Pappano* conductor *Barbara Frittoli* soprano *Olga Borodina* mezzo-soprano *Piotr Beczala* tenor *Ildar Abdrazakov* bass
  *Verdi* Requiem 90’
  

• Mahler's First  

  Wed 21 Nov Symphony Hall

  Mahler may have gone on to write nine more symphonies, but it’s all there in his First: a complete musical world that veers from triumph to tragedy and back again, expressed through the supercharged sounds of a gigantic orchestra at full tilt. The Orchestra is directed by an outstanding British conductor in this titan of a symphony, and for Tchaikovsky’s equally emotional concerto he’s joined by a superb violinist making a welcome return to Birmingham. Beethoven’s fiery overture completes a dramatic programme. Free Pre-Concert Talk 21st November 1.15pm The concert is followed by a Members’ Afternoon Tea with conductor Edward Gardner as guest speaker, in conversation with Christopher Morley of The Birmingham Post. For information on how to support the CBSO through one of our membership schemes, please contact Gill Powell on 0121 616 6514, or email gpowell@cbso.co.uk
  *Edward Gardner* Conductor *Christian Tetzlaff* Violin
  *Beethoven*: Overture, Coriolan *Tchaikovsky*: Violin Concerto *Mahler*: Symphony No. 1
  

• Rush Hour Blues WALSALL JAZZ ORCHESTRA 

  Fri 11 Jul Symphony Hall

  Level 3 Bar. Admission FREE. Presented in association with "Birmingham Jazz":http://birminghamjazz.co.uk
  
  
  

• Tchaikovsky and Philip Glass  

  Wed 5 May 2010 Symphony Hall

  The Moscow State Symphony Orchestra is one of Russia’s leading orchestras. At the very heart of its repertoire lies Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony - a journey from dark and brooding tragedy to an overwhelming sense of energy and fulfilment. Young British violinist Chloë Hanslip takes centre stage for the clean, pulsating lines of Philip Glass’s unforgettable Violin Concerto. Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall, says of tonight’s recommended concert: _“Philip Glass is one of America’s best-known living composers. His Violin Concerto is a Classic FM favourite. The second movement in particular manages to be both haunting and moving at the same time.”_ 6.15pm Pre-concert talk with Lyndon Jenkins
  *Moscow State Symphony Orchestra* *Pavel Kogan* _conductor_ *Chloë Hanslip* _violin_
  *Borodin* Overture, _Prince Igor_ 11’ *Philip Glass* Violin Concerto 30’ *Tchaikovsky* Symphony No 5 50’
  

• Tchaikovsky's Sixth  

  Wed 7 Nov Symphony Hall

  Talented young French conductor Ludovic Morlot makes a quick return to the CBSO following his debut in May, for two performances of Tchaikovsky’s tumultuous final symphony. Never out of fashion since its premiere just a few days before the composer’s death, the Pathétique is one of music’s most personal utterances, a vivid portrayal of the composer’s state of mind that offers a rollercoaster emotional journey from elation to despair. Bartók’s music is altogether less unhinged, though his energetic Second Piano Concerto is an equally thrilling experience in concert. Dvorák’s tuneful overture begins the programme in exuberant style. There will be a Bequest Patrons' reception prior to the concert on 7 November.
  *Ludovic Morlot* Conductor *Steven Osborne* Piano *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  *Dvorák*: Carnival Overture *Mozart Piano Concerto No. 27, K.595* *Tchaikovsky*: Symphony No. 6 (Pathétique)
  

• London Philharmonic Orchestra Classic FM recommended 

  Wed 25 Apr Symphony Hall

  Annie-Marie Minhall, news reader and presenter of Classic FM's Newsnight, introduces tonight's Classic FM recommended concert "Two great violinists in fewer than seven days at Symphony Hall � Christmas has come early! On Thursday it was Joshua Bell and this evening it�s the turn of Vadim Repin. We have a double bill of music by Brahms. The concert begins with his Violin Concerto in D. Just like his hero Beethoven, Brahms, whose natural home was sat at the piano, wrote just the one concerto for the violin. But if you came up with the masterpiece that Brahms did � why would you attempt another one? Expect some fiery passion from the Siberian violinist. The second half is devoted to Brahms Symphony No 1 � sometimes called Beethoven�s 10th. Brahms felt so much in Beethoven�s shadow that he destroyed many of his own symphonic attempts before finally producing his first in his forties. As the man himself said: �a symphony is no joke.�
  *Vladamir Jurowski* Conductor *Vadim Repin* Violin
  *Brahms* Violin Concerto *Brahms* Symphony No 1
  

• Rush Hour Blues: Walsall Jazz Orchestra  

  Fri 5 Jun Symphony Hall Foyer Bars

  A return for the winners of the Audience Poll for 2008.
  
  
  

• Good Friday St Matthew Passion  

  Fri 10 Apr Symphony Hall

  Ex Cathedra’s trailblazing performances and critically acclaimed recordings have put them at the forefront of the international early music movement. So we can expect them to bring searching new insights to this season’s traditional Good Friday performance of Bach’s St Matthew Passion. It is the largest, most elaborate and most affecting of all Bach’s works, telling the story of the last days of Christ in music of great dignity and emotional intensity. *Please not there has been a change to the previously advertsied solosits list.*
  *Ex Cathedra Soloists, Choir & Baroque Orchestra* *Jeffrey Skidmore* conductor *Grace Davidson* soprano I *Mark Chambers* alto I *Jeremy Budd* tenor I & _Evangelist_ *Eamonn Dougan* bass I & _Christus_ *Natalie Clifton-Griffith* soprano II *Matthew Venner* alto II *Christopher Watson* tenor II *James Birchall* & *Greg Skidmore* bass II
  *J S Bach* St Matthew Passion 180’
  

• Birmingham Music Service Christmas Concert  

  Sun 14 Dec Town Hall

  Performers are Birmingham Schools' Guitar Ensemble, Recorder Sinfonia, Training Brass Band, Wind Orchestra, and the City of Birmingham Young Voices.
  
  
  

• Celebrating Sibelius: I  

  Thu 20 Sep Symphony Hall

  The seven symphonies of Sibelius have been absolutely central to Sakari Oramo's ten seasons in Birmingham. His performances with the CBSO have been acclaimed around the world in concert and on CD, but it is more than seven years since Birmingham audiences have had a chance to hear a complete cycle. So, to open his final season as Music Director, and to mark the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death (which falls today), here is another opportunity to hear these magnificent works, alongside some of Sibelius's lesser-known music. We begin with a symphony that has a significant Birmingham history - the Fourth, which received its UK premiere at the last-ever Birmingham Triennial Festival in 1912. We also welcome a Finnish cellist to play the music that was the closest Sibelius came to writing a concerto for that instrument. 6.15pm FREE Pre-concert talk
  *Sakari Oramo* conductor *Martti Rousi* cello
  Sibelius: _The Swan of Tuonela_ Sibelius: Symphony No. 4 Sibelius: Three Symphonic Pieces for Cello and Orchestra (UK Premiere) Sibelius: Symphony No. 1
  

• CBSO - Elgar's 150th The Kingdom (matinee) 

  Sun 3 Jun Symphony Hall

  Over the last decade, Sakari Oramo has conducted the Centenary performances of all three of Elgar's choral masterpieces for the Birmingham Triennial Festival - Gerontius, The Apostles and, just last year, The Kingdom. Now Sakari reaches journey's end and concludes this Elgar Anniversary weekend with a second performance of Elgar's final oratorio. Elgar never finished his New Testament Trilogy but this second instalment finds his inspiration in full flight. Opening with a majestic orchestral prelude and painted in glowing orchestral colours, this stirring choral setting of the Acts of Jesus' disciples is the closest he ever got to writing an opera. *Pre-Concert Talk @ 2pm* Elgar's The Kingdom by Michael Foster.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Sakari Oramo* Conductor *Amanda Roocroft* Soprano *Jane Irwin* Mezzo-soprano *Anthony Dean Griffey* Tenor *James Rutherford* Baritone *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus* City of Birmingham Choir
  *Elgar* The Kingdom 96'
  

• Cecilia Bartoli: La Rivoluzone Romantica Basel Chamber Orchestra 

  Cancelled

  Thu 5 Jun Symphony Hall

  Unfortunately this event has been cancelled due to illness. We apologise for any inconvenience caused. Please contact the Box Office for a full refund on 0121 780 3333.
  
  
  

• Fantastic Symphony  

  Sat 20 Sep Symphony Hall

  A new conductor, a new era - three youthful orchestral showpieces launch Andris Nelsons’ first concert as music director of the CBSO. And they couldn’t be more appropriate. Like Andris Nelsons himself, Berlioz was still in his twenties when he wrote his outrageous symphony, and the young Wagner actually wrote his Rienzi overture in Nelsons’ home city of Riga! Bartók’s thrilling ballet score comes from the composer’s mid-thirties. The CBSO’s new music director has already won widespread praise for his exciting performances with the Orchestra, and tonight’s programme has plenty to set pulses racing so make sure you don’t miss the start of something really special! The concert on 17 September is sponsored by Mitchells and Butlers 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Welcome to the Season Meet Andris Nelsons, as he prepares to conduct his first concerts as music director of the CBSO. In conversation with Stephen Maddock.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Wagner: Overture, Rienzi 13’ Bartók: Miraculous Mandarin Suite 21’ Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique 55’
  

• CBSO One Thousand and One Nights - Matinee  

  Wed 19 May 2010 Symphony Hall

  Soaring violin solos, drama on the high seas and a total mastery of the orchestra: it’s no surprise that Rimsky-Korsakov’s _Scheherazade_ has become one of the most played and best-loved of all Russian pieces. After his thrilling CBSO debut two seasons ago, dynamic Czech conductor Jakub Hrůša returns with this and another Russian masterpiece, Tchaikovsky’s charming _Rococo_ Variations. Tchaikovsky was inspired by his lifelong love of Mozart, and the concert begins with one of the greatest of Mozart’s symphonies, written for a visit to Hrůša’s home city. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk This concert is followed by a Members’ Afternoon Tea with Jakub Hrůša, in conversation with Christopher Morley of The Birmingham Post. For full details contact Eve Smith on 0121 616 6533 or email esmith@cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Jakub Hrůša* conductor *Johannes Moser* cello
  *Mozart* Symphony No38 (Prague) 25' *Tchaikovsky* Rococo Variations 18' *Rimsky-Korsakov* Scheherazade 47'
  

• Igorfest: Persephone  

  Tue 26 Feb Symphony Hall

  In his latest contribution to Birmingham’s unique IgorFest project, performances of Stravinsky’s complete works, CBSO Music Director Sakari Oramo is joined by a favourite British pianist for the Capriccio, the most brilliant and extrovert of his three works for piano and orchestra. One of several pieces Stravinsky wrote for the extraordinary actress-cum-dancer Ida Rubinstein, Perséphone, a story of the Greek Underworld, is among the most ravishing of the composer’s works, and features exquisite writing for adult and children’s choruses. 6.15pm pre-concert talk ***Please note the programme has changed***. Part of the orginal programme will be played at the CBSO Centre 1 Mar 08 at 3pm & 7pm. Original programme includes Stravinsky Pulcinella.
  *Sakari Oramo* Conductor *Peter Donohoe* Piano *Peter Wedd* Tenor *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus*
  *Chopin (orch. Stravinsky)* Nocturne and Grand Valse Brillante 13' *Stravinsky* Capriccio for Piano & Orchestra 17' *Stravinsky* Perséphone 56'
  

• Fantastic Symphony  

  Wed 17 Sep Symphony Hall

  A new conductor, a new era - three youthful orchestral showpieces launch Andris Nelsons’ first concert as music director of the CBSO. And they couldn’t be more appropriate. Like Andris Nelsons himself, Berlioz was still in his twenties when he wrote his outrageous symphony, and the young Wagner actually wrote his Rienzi overture in Nelsons’ home city of Riga! Bartók’s thrilling ballet score comes from the composer’s mid-thirties. The CBSO’s new music director has already won widespread praise for his exciting performances with the Orchestra, and tonight’s programme has plenty to set pulses racing so make sure you don’t miss the start of something really special! The concert on 17 September is sponsored by Mitchells and Butlers 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Welcome to the Season Meet Andris Nelsons, as he prepares to conduct his first concerts as music director of the CBSO. In conversation with Stephen Maddock.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Wagner: Overture, Rienzi 13’ Bartók: Miraculous Mandarin Suite 21’ Berlioz: Symphonie fantastique 55’
  

• CBSO - Seduction and the Sea  

  Tue 15 May Symphony Hall

  The sea has always aroused powerful emotions; and tonight finds the CBSO taking a fantastic voyage with three very different composers. Britten's enchanted song-cycle is performed by the outstanding young British tenor Toby Spence, before the whole orchestra plunges into Sibelius' wave-tossed portrait of a legendary seducer from Finnish myth. But we begin on dry land in the sensuous dream-world of Debussy's famous Faun and finish all at sea, with Debussy's gorgeous impressionist seascape. Young French conductor Ludovic Morlot has an impressive track-record in Debussy, so this is a perfect programme for his CBSO debut. *Pre-Concert Talk @ 6.15pm* Roderic Dunnett of The Independent shares his enthusiasm for Britten's extraordinary song-cycle.
  *Ludovic Morlot* Conductor *Toby Spence* Tenor
  *Debussy* Prélude á l'aprés-midi d'un faune 10' *Britten* Nocturne for Tenor and Chamber Orchestra 27' *Sibelius* Lemminkainen and the Maidens on the Island (opus 22 no1 16' *Debussy* La Mer 25'
  

• National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain Stravinsky's Rite Of Spring 

  Thu 3 Apr Symphony Hall

  Stravinsky's The Rite of Spring is one of the great orchestral showpieces of all time, a searing explosion of energy that evokes the violent arrival of a pre- Christian Russian spring with its rites of fertility and sacrifice. Listening to it over ninety years after its first performance, it's easy to see why Western music has never quite recovered. Energy levels are sure to be high when the cream of Britain's young musicians and Vasily Petrenko perform Stravinsky's masterpiece alongside the autumnal serenity of Strauss's sublime Four Last Songs with stunning soprano soloist Gabriele Fontana. 6pm - FREE pre-concert of music by NYO composers - SWING, 8 pieces inspired by dance rhythms for NYO ensembles.
  *Vasily Petrenko* Conductor *Gabriele Fontana* Soprano
  *Mark Simpson* New Commission 10' *Ravel* Valses Nobles et Sentimentales 16' *Strauss* Four Last Songs 23' *Stravinsky* The Rite of Spring 33'
  

• IDRS 2009 Opening Gala Concert featuring Orchestra of the Swan 

  Tue 21 Jul Town Hall

  *International Double Reed Society* Join us for the opening gala concert of IDRS 2009, a five-day festival celebrating the unique nature of double reed instruments. Tonight’s programme is packed with old favourites and new concertos written for oboe and bassoon performed by a host of world-class artists. Check out "IDRS2009":http://www.idrs2009.org to find out more.
  *David Curtis* conductor *Richard Weigall & Louise Braithwaite* oboe *Fabio Cury* bassoon *Gordon Hunt* oboe *John Miller & Gareth Newman* bassoon *Nancy Ambrose-King* oboe *Ramon Ortega Quero* oboe
  *Handel* _Arrival of the Queen of Sheba_ *Fransisco Mignone* Concertino for bassoon and orchestra *Mozart* Concerto in F *Alec Roth* _Departure of the Queen of Sheba_ *Dietter* Concerto for two bassoons *Jennifer Higdon* Concerto for oboe *Mozart* Concerto in C
  

• Strauss's Four Last Songs  

  Fri 14 Nov Symphony Hall

  Three great masterpieces: the autumnal sweetness of Strauss’s final songs, the gentle Idyll that Wagner presented to his wife on Christmas Day, and Beethoven’s _Eroica_ - a work that changed the course of Western music for ever. The Orchester der KlangVerwaltung Munich is made up of musicians from leading german orchestras including the Berlin and Munich Philharmonics. it was founded in 1997 with the aim of realising the unique musical vision of conductor Enoch zu Guttenberg, who has gained a cult following for radical performances of fierce integrity and depth. *BBC music magazine’s editor, Oliver Condy, explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert:* _"The Four Last Songs are Richard Strauss’s emotional farewell to the world. With Wagner’s exquisite Siegfried Idyll and Beethoven’s groundbreaking Third Symphony, this concert features three of the finest works to have emerged during the last 200 years.”_ "BBC Music Magazine":http://www.bbcmusicmagazine.com Tickets £5-£37.50 *We regret to inform you that Maestro Enoch zu Guttenburg has cancelled his engagements due to a serious riding accident and so is unable to appear with the Orchester der KlangVerwaltung Munich at Symphony Hall on Friday 14 November.* *We are delighted that Heinrich Schiff has agreed to stand in at short notice. Unfortunately, to allow Maestro Schiff adequate rehearsal time, the pre-concert piano recital with Tatiana Dardykina, at 6.15pm, has been postponed to a later date. For the evening’s concert the orchestra, programme and soloist remain unchanged*
  *Orchester der KlangVerwaltung Munich* *Heinrich Schiff* conductor *Solveig Kringelborn* soprano
  *Wagner* Siegfried Idyll 18’ *Strauss* Four Last Songs 20’ *Beethoven* Symphony no 3, Eroica 50’
  

• Schools Concert: New World Symphony 11.30am and 1.30pm 

  Fri 13 Feb Symphony Hall

  Set sail for America with the CBSO, to hear the New World as the Czech Antonín Dvorák experienced it in 1893 - full of promise and new sounds. The slow movement of this most popular of symphonies is renowned for featuring on the Hovis advertisement, and today’s performances - devised especially for Key Stage 2 children (years 5 & 6) - make this a perfect introduction to the sights and sounds of symphony orchestra. “I might be able to play as good as you, if I keep practising.” Child at The Planets Schools Concert, February 2008 Special prices apply: £4 per ticket for children and teachers, and home-schooling* children and parents. To book please call Group Bookings on 0800 358 7070. For information on pre-concert support packages and other opportunities available for schools with the CBSO, please contact the CBSO’s Education Department by email (education@cbso.co.uk) or telephone (0121 616 6530). *proof of eligibility, eg registration with your Local Authority, will be required.
  Michael Seal - conductor Tommy Pearson - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• American Dreams Classical Encounters with Orchestra of the Swan 

  Tue 19 Feb 2008 Town Hall

  What could be more American than a story of pioneering spirit as portrayed in Appalachian Spring or their love affair with the movies…Copland’s music captures both brilliantly. Samuel Barber’s setting of James Agee's remarkable prose poem Knoxville: summer of 1915, depicts a dreamy summer evening as seen through the eyes of a small child, both text and music appear deceptively simple yet are astonishingly beautiful. Based in Birmingham Joanna Lee is establishing a fine reputation with work performed by BCMG among others. One of her key inspiration is Luciano Berio, and his warmth and lightness-of-touch and her new work will be a perfect foil for the Samuel Barber. The soloist for both works is Jane Manning, one of the UK’s most highly regarded and singers. '....Orchestra of the Swan ought to give masterclasses in how to build audiences, a genuine empathy between the musicians and their listeners; programming is an exciting blend....conductor David Curtis can be found mingling with the punters....nothing could be further from the ivory tower....' Birmingham Post Supported by KPMG and Arts Council England "www.orchestraoftheswan.org":http://www.orchestraoftheswan.org
  Conductor - David Curtis Soprano - Jane Manning
  Copland - Music for the Movies Joanna Lee - New work** Barber - Knoxville: summer of 1915 Copland - Appalachian Spring ** Orchestra of the Swan commission and world premiere Pre-concert talk taking place in the auditorium at 6.30pm Post-concert Conversation Club taking place in the Circle Bar 15 minutes after the end of the performance. Entrance free to concert ticket holders
  

• Romantic Idealists Classical Encounters with Orchestra of the Swan 

  Tue 6 Nov Town Hall

  In their second concert of the season Orchestra of the Swan visits the Romantic ideal. Mendelssohn’s depiction of the turbulent seas of the Hebrides is a masterpiece of descriptive writing. Contrast this with the serenity of Mozart’s Piano Concerto and the energy and vitality of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony, ‘the apotheosis of the dance’ and this is a programme you should not miss. Chiao-Ying Chang is another rising star who has performed with Collegium Musicum Basel, Bayerischer Rundfunk, London Soloist Chamber and San Francisco Symphony Orchestras. 'this jewel of an ensemble' _The Guardian_ Supported by Arts Council England "www.orchestraoftheswan.org":http://www.orchestraoftheswan.org
  *David Curtis* - Conductor *Chiao-Ying Chang* - Piano
  *Mendelssohn* - Overture Fingal's Cave *Mozart* - Piano Concerto no 21 Elvira Madigan *Beethoven* - Symphony no 7 Pre-concert talk taking place in the auditorium at 1.30pm Post-concert Conversation Club taking place in the Circle Bar 15 minutes after the end of the performance. Entrance free to concert ticket holders
  

• Farewell, But Not Goodbye  

  Thu 12 Jun Symphony Hall

  The end of a ten-year tenure: Sakari Oramo bows out as Music Director in truly spectacular style, with a thrilling pair of life-affirming masterpieces. This is the last chance to see Sakari conduct the CBSO in Symphony Hall, until he returns in a new guise as Principal Guest Conductor for the 2008/09 season. Janácˇek’s Sinfonietta is one of the greatest of all 20th-century scores, its brassy fanfares (featuring an extra nine trumpets in addition to a large orchestra) surrounding a work of astonishing originality and power. Beethoven’s final Symphony is also a summation of a life’s work, and its culminating vocal setting of Schiller’s ‘Ode to Joy’ has become an anthem for all humanity. A great team of soloists and our own magnificent Chorus join the Orchestra for what is certain to be the hottest ticket of the season • be sure to book early! 6.15pm pre-concert talk
  *Sakari Oramo* conductor *Lisa Milne* Soprano *Jane Irwin* Mezzo-soprano *Gordon Gietz* Tenor *Matthew Rose* Bass *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus*
  *Janácek* Sinfonietta 25' *Beethoven* Symphony No. 9 (Choral) 67'
  

• Birmingham Music Service Gala - 30th June 2008  

  Mon 30 Jun Town Hall

  Birmingham Schools': Junior String Orchestra, Guitar Ensemble, Jazz Ensemble, Training Brass Band and Concert Band.
  
  
  

• We'll Meet Again A Salute to the War Years 

  Thu 3 Sep Symphony Hall

  60 years on, take a Sentimental Journey with Gavin Sutherland and a live orchestra performing commemorative classics to remember the World War II years. _In the Mood_ _A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square_ _Dam Busters March_ _Sing, Sing, Sing_ _One O’clock Jump_ _Moonlight Serenade_ _The White Cliffs of Dover_ _Goodnight Sweetheart_ _Pack Up Your Troubles_ _It’s a long way to Tipperary_ _Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy_ _When I’m Cleaning Windows_ _We’ll Meet Again_ Plus a special Radio Days Medley featuring the popular requests from the day and a traditional singalong to forties favourites such as: _Hang out the Washing on the Siegfried Line_ _Underneath the Arches_ _Run Rabbit Run_
  Introduce by *June Whitfield* Featuring … Guest Singer *Flight Lieutenant Matt Little* Plus a tribute to the Andrews Sisters with *The Swing Cats* *London Concert Orchestra* *Gavin Sutherland* conductor *Chris Marques & Jaclyn Spencer* World Champion Dancers *Mark Walsh* ukelele
  
  

• Arabian Nights  

  Sat 12 Apr 2008 Symphony Hall

  American conductor Robert Spano, Music Director of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, makes a welcome return visit to the CBSO for a programme of colourful showpieces. He marks the centenary this year of Rimsky-Korsakov’s death with a performance of the composer’s most famous work, a ravishing suite based on the Arabian Nights. Ravel was an equally accomplished orchestrator of his own and others’ music, and the concert begins with a set of waltzes which began life as piano pieces. As centrepiece of the concert, the CBSO’s outstanding Flute Section Leader makes her first solo appearance with the Orchestra in the tuneful concerto by French composer Jacques Ibert. Sponsored by Birmingham City University This concert is supported by the Friends of the CBSO. For information on supporting the CBSO through one of our Membership schemes, please call Gill Powell on 0121 616 6514 or email gpowell@cbso.co.uk
  Robert Spano conductor Marie-Christine Zupancic flute
  Ravel: Valses Nobles et Sentimentales 18' Ibert: Flute Concerto 20' Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade 47'
  

• CBSO Remembering Nusrat - A Tribute to Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Saregama presents, in association with the CBSO 

  Fri 2 Oct Symphony Hall

  One of the greatest vocalists of the 20th century, Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan was the undisputed champion of sufi and qawwali music. His virtuosic talent mesmerised audiences from concert halls to cinema theatres and nightclubs worldwide. Today his torch is carried by nephew Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, who teams up with the CBSO on this ambitious project fusing Nusrat’s most loved compositions with the might of the orchestra, and whose last experiment with music from the region was televised in over 100 countries worldwide. With superhits like _Dum Must Qalander_ and _Yeh Jo Halka, Halka_, to stirring love songs like _Afreen, Afreen_ and popular Bollywood tracks like _Zindagi Jhoom Kar_, expect to be astonished by some incredible vocals set against a powerful, hypnotic orchestral backdrop. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* _conductor_ *Ustad Rahat Fateh Ali Khan* _lead vocal_ *Fateh Ali Khan Party* _supporting vocals & percussion_ Music arranged by *Tim Pottier*
  
  

• CBSO Schools' Concert - Enigma Variations  

  Thu 21 Jan 2010 Symphony Hall

  Key Stage 3 and 4 Please note that this replaces the previously advertised schools' concerts on 15 April 2010
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Edward Gardner* _conductor_
  *Elgar* _Enigma Variations_
  

• CBSO Schools' Concert - Enigma Variations  

  Thu 21 Jan 2010 Symphony Hall

  Key Stage 2 Please note that this replaces the previously advertised schools' concerts on 15 April 2010
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Edward Gardner* _conductor_
  *Elgar* _Enigma Variations_
  

• Farewell, But Not Goodbye  

  Wed 11 Jun Symphony Hall

  The end of a ten-year tenure: Sakari Oramo bows out as Music Director in truly spectacular style, with a thrilling pair of life-affirming masterpieces. This is the last chance to see Sakari conduct the CBSO in Symphony Hall, until he returns in a new guise as Principal Guest Conductor for the 2008/09 season. Janácˇek’s Sinfonietta is one of the greatest of all 20th-century scores, its brassy fanfares (featuring an extra nine trumpets in addition to a large orchestra) surrounding a work of astonishing originality and power. Beethoven’s final Symphony is also a summation of a life’s work, and its culminating vocal setting of Schiller’s ‘Ode to Joy’ has become an anthem for all humanity. A great team of soloists and our own magnificent Chorus join the Orchestra for what is certain to be the hottest ticket of the season • be sure to book early! 6.15pm pre-concert talk _Please note there is also a repeat performance on Thursday 12 June_
  *Sakari Oramo* conductor *Lisa Milne* Soprano *Jane Irwin* Mezzo-soprano *Gordon Gietz* Tenor *Matthew Rose* Bass *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus*
  *Janácek* Sinfonietta 25' *Beethoven* Symphony No. 9 (Choral) 67'
  

• Birmingham’s Brightest  

  Sat 11 Oct Symphony Hall

  Everyone knows that Birmingham has the brightest and most vibrant youth music scene in the UK; hear why in this jam-packed gala concert! Feel the sheer visceral thrill of the famous Birmingham Schools’ Azaad Dhol Ensemble, before the acclaimed CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy makes its Symphony Hall debut in Ligeti’s flamboyant Concert Romanesc. Two show-stopping young choirs raise the roof before the CBSO proper takes the stage alongside one of Britain’s best-loved young soloists • teenager clarinettist Julian Bliss • in Malcolm Arnold’s irresistibly jazzy concerto. Throw in a couple of John Williams’ blockbuster movie soundtracks including music from Star Wars, with the CBSO, and you’ve got a concert that celebrates both the young - and the young at heart! This concert coincides with the National Association of Music Educators Conference at the ICC.
  Michael Seal - conductor Tommy Pearson - presenter Julian Bliss - clarinet CBSO Youth Orchestra Academy City of Birmingham Young Voices Birmingham Schools’ Azaad Dhol Ensemble Sing For All Massed Choir
  
  

• CBSO Beethoven's Pastoral  

  Thu 24 Jun 2010 Symphony Hall

  It’s summer - so it must be Beethoven’s _Pastoral_ Symphony. From its dewy-fresh opening to the serene _Shepherd’s Hymn_ with which it closes, no composer has ever captured the healing power of nature more timelessly. Two centuries on, it’s still a candidate for the most relaxing piece of music ever written. Guest conductor Ludovic Morlot brings a uniquely Gallic lightness of touch to Beethoven’s inspiration - and plenty of colour for Bartók’s folk-flavoured miniatures. They’ll stand him in good stead for the amazing sound-world of Ligeti’s Violin Concerto. French virtuoso Renaud Capuçon brings all his skill to bear on the ravishing colours, child-like humour and crackling energy of this true modern classic. Pre-concert talk, 6.15pm: *Ligeti's Violin Concerto* Writer and Broadcaster Anthony Burton on this 20th century masterpiece.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Ludovic Morlot* _conductor_ *Renaud Capuçon* _violin_
  *Bartók* Two Pictures 17' *Ligeti* Violin Concerto 28' *Beethoven* Symphony No 6 (_Pastoral_) 40'
  

• Andsnes Plays Mozart and Beethoven  

  Sun 17 May Town Hall

  The outstanding pianist Leif Ove Andsnes plays and directs a pair of contrasting classical concertos with his native Norwegian musicians: sparkling, sunny Mozart and turbulent Beethoven. Two much-loved works from a later era continue the classical and Norwegian themes - Prokofiev’s dashing Classical Symphony and Grieg’s Holberg Suite. *Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight’s recommended concert:* _Leif Ove Andsnes is one of my favourite musicians. Not only is he one of the best pianists on the planet, he’s also deeply passionate about every project he undertakes from playing Grieg on top of a Norwegian mountain to running his own annual summer music festival in Risor, three hours from Oslo. Andsnes is also a devoted chamber musician and regularly works with the Norwegian Chamber Orchestra as their first guest leader._ "Classic FM":http://www.classicfm.co.uk
  *Norwegian Chamber Orchestra* *Leif Ove Andsnes* _piano/director_ *Terje Tønnesen* _director_
  *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 14 in E flat, K449 22’ *Prokofiev* Classical Symphony 14’ *Grieg* Holberg Suite 21’ *Beethoven* Piano Concerto No 3 in C minor, Op 37 34’
  

• A Hero’s Life  

  Sat 27 Jun Symphony Hall

  *We are sorry to announce that Andrew Kennedy has withdrawn from the concerts on 24 & 27 June due to changes in his contracted opera work. We are very grateful to Ed Lyon for replacing him.* *We are sorry to announce that Claire Booth has unfortunately had to withdraw from the concert on Saturday 27 June as she is unwell. We are very grateful to Carolyn Sampson for stepping in at extremely short notice.* To close his first season, Andris Nelsons returns to his love of Richard Strauss, with the epic, semi-autobiographical tone poem in which the composer charts his marriage, his battles with his critics and his own earlier artistic creations. Haydn’s most famous mass - named for a great hero - also incorporates the sounds of war, and like Strauss, the composer pleads for a peace - Dona Nobis Pacem - that eventually arrives. c.9.15pm Post-concert conversation with Andris Nelsons and Stephen Maddock.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Carolyn Sampson - soprano Hilary Summers - mezzo-soprano Ed Lyon - tenor Graeme Broadbent - bass City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  *Haydn* Nelson Mass 43’ *Strauss* Ein Heldenleben 46’
  

• Mendelssohn’s Elijah  

  Sat 18 Oct Town Hall

  Mendelssohn’s Elijah is one of the mightiest of all choral works, with an heroic grandeur that sweeps all before it. The work runs in Birmingham’s blood since it was commissioned for the 1846 Birmingham Music Festival and premiered at Town Hall. Tonight, to inaugurate Mendelssohn’s bicentenary year of 2009, Elijah is performed by the critically acclaimed Ex Cathedra, in a new edition specially prepared for the occasion. The marriage of hall, history, outstanding singers and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment make this an unmissable concert. *BBC Music magazine’s Editor, Oliver Condy, explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert:* _Beloved by choral societies up and down the country, Mendelssohn’s Elijah is one of the great oratorios, crammed to the brim with superb tunes. And where else to see Elijah than in Birmingham’s newly restored Town Hall? An unbeatable roster of performers should make for an unbeatable evening._ "BBC Music Magazine":http://www.bbcmusicmagazine.com
  *Ex Cathedra XL Anniversary Choir* *Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment* *Jeffrey Skidmore* conductor *Julia Doyle* soprano *Diana Moore* mezzo-soprano *Mark Padmore* tenor *Nicolas Mulroy* tenor *James Rutherford* bass
  *Mendelssohn* Elijah (1846)
  

• Mozart... Plus Classical Encounters with Orchestra of the Swan 

  Tue 5 Feb 2008 Town Hall

  Mozart has inspired audiences, performers and composers for 200 years and Prokofiev’s ‘Classical’ symphony is a touching tribute to the classical style from the perspective of the 20th century. This alternative view combined with Orchestra of the Swan’s energy will give added freshness to two of Mozart’s greatest works that complete this programme, his sublime clarinet concerto and his triumphant final symphony, the aptly titled ‘Jupiter’. Since winning the woodwind section prize of the BBC Young Musician competition Sarah Williamson is greatly in demand as a soloists performing in the USA, Ireland, France, Germany, United Arab Emirates Austria, Belgium, Spain, Portugal and Switzerland 'a radiant lyrical splendour' The Independent Supported by Arts Council England "www.orchestraoftheswan.org":http://www.orchestraoftheswan.org
  Conductor - David Curtis Clarinet - Sarah Williamson
  Prokofiev Classical symphony Mozart Clarinet concerto Mozart Symphony no41 Jupiter Pre-concert talk taking place in the auditorium at 1.30pm Post-concert Conversation Club taking place in the Circle Bar 15 minutes after the end of the performance. Entrance free to concert ticket holders
  

• New Year's Eve Gala  

  Mon 31 Dec Symphony Hall

  See in the hour of midnight at Symphony Hall’s sensational annual celebration with an explosive indoor firework finale.With a wealth of popular classics, complimentary interval refreshments and Britain’s answer to Victor Borge, Rainer Hersch. Enjoy complimentary interval refreshments *Please note this concert is now sold out but we have an earlier performance at Town Hall so you don't have to miss out!* "Matinee performance at Town Hall":http://www.thsh.co.uk/new-years-eve-matinee-gala
  *Paul O’Neill* Tenor *Grant Doyle* Baritone *Anthony Inglis* Conductor *London Concert Orchestra* Lots of fun and laughter from Britain’s answer to Victor Borge RAINER HERSCH
  VERDI The Force of Destiny Overture MASCAGNIi Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana SIBELIUS Finlandia TCHAIKOVSKY Swan Lake Finale BIZET The Pearl Fishers Duet CHABRIER España ROSSINI William Tell Overture All your proms favourites NIMROD JERUSALEM NESSUN DORMA RULE, BRITANNIA LAND OF HOPE AND GLORY
  

• Birmingham Music Service Gala - 3rd July 2008 @ 7pm  

  Thu 3 Jul Town Hall

  Birmingham Schools': Training Jazz Ensemble, Recorder Ensemble, Training Guitar Ensemble, Concert Orchestra and City of Birmingham Young Voices Tickets per performance £5, £10
  
  
  

• A London Symphony  

  Wed 17 Dec Symphony Hall

  For our final tribute to Vaughan Williams in this 50th anniversary year of his death, we are joined by one of his leading interpreters for a rare hearing of the original 1913 version of his ‘London’ Symphony. This extraordinary work was subsequently dedicated to his friend George Butterworth, who unlike Vaughan Wiliams never returned from the trenches of World War I - as a result we only have a few pieces, of which tonight’s is the best known, to remember him by. The dazzling 1920s concerto by Vaughan Williams’ teacher Ravel completes the programme. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - “A Symphony by a Londoner” English music specialist Michael Foster explores the genesis of Vaughan Williams’ colourful symphony. *Following the very sad news of Richard Hickox’s recent death, we are pleased to announce that Michael Seal will conduct the concert on 17 December 2008. We are very grateful to Michael for replacing Richard at short notice.The concert will be dedicated to his memory*
  Michael Seal - conductor Kirill Gerstein - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Butterworth: Banks of Green Willow 6’ Ravel: Piano Concerto in G major 21’ Vaughan Williams: A London Symphony (original version) 61’
  

• The Spirit Of The Triennial Festival Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment 

  Thu 1 Nov Town Hall

  In celebration of the re-opening of Town Hall, we recreate, with period instruments, a concert that might have been heard in the heyday of Birmingham's great Triennial Festival. Between 1834 and 1912 many leading composers came to conduct their own works, ranging from Mendelssohn, Grieg and Dvorak through to Elgar. This unique event reflects the grandeur of the original concerts (note the starting time!) and includes works by Mendelssohn, Sullivan and Grieg, many originally commissioned for Birmingham and first heard in Town Hall. Please note: This concert has two intervals.
  *Richard Hickox* Conductor *Joan Rodgers* Soprano *James Gilchrist* Tenor *Melvyn Tan* Piano *Thomas Trotter* Organ Introduced by *Lyndon Jenkins*
  *Cherubini* Overture, _Anacreon_ *Mozart* Mitradi ( _Don Giovanni_ ) *Haydn* In native worth (The Creation) *Bach* Prelude and Fugue in E flat, St Anne *Mendelssohn* Excerpts from Elijah *Mendelssohn* Piano Concerto No 2 *Elgar* Contrasts (Three Characteristic Pieces) *Gounod* Judex (Mors et Vita) *Grieg* Songs with Orchestra *Sullivan* Overture di Ballo
  

• Rachmaninov’s Second  

  Wed 24 Sep Symphony Hall

  For his second programme as music director, Andris Nelsons has chosen another grand romantic symphony - Rachmaninov’s sweeping, passionate second, which the composer premiered exactly a century ago in 1908. In the first half, the brilliant young Macedonian pianist Simon Trpceski will join the Orchestra for Saint-Saëns’ most popular concerto, and the concert begins with another French favourite, Debussy’s sensuous miniature ballet. The concert on 24 September is followed by a Members’ Afternoon Tea with Andris Nelsons as guest speaker, in conversation with Christopher Morley of The Birmingham Post. Find out how you can support the CBSO through membership by contacting Gill Powell on 0121 616 6514, or email gpowell@cbso.co.uk Pre concert talk 1.15pm - The Players’ Perspective - Rachmaninov’s Second Violinist David Gregory and fellow CBSO musicians present an insider’s angle on Rachmaninov’s best-loved symphony. bq.'PASSION from Birmingham’ is the motto for the CBSO’s current season. And Andris Nelsons, here making his first official appearance before becoming music director in the autumn, is the living incarnation of these words.bq. David Fanning, Daily Telegraph 7 March 2008
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Simon Trpceski - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Debussy: Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune 10’ Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No. 2 23’ Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 2 55’
  

• Ultimate Romantics 2: Gurrelieder  

  Fri 27 Feb Symphony Hall

  In the second of our ‘Ultimate Romantics’ concerts, the high-voltage combination of Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Philharmonia Orchestra unleash one of the ultimate and most gorgeous of all romantic experiences. Schoenberg’s lavish _Gurrelieder_ is the epic and supernatural tale of King Waldemar and his love for Tove, resident of castle Gurre. From the sumptuous love music of the opening to the fantastical Wild Hunt of spectres, this thrilling, kaleidoscopic score never lets the listener go. This is the only performance of this unmissable event outside London: we promise that you will love it! *BBC Music magazine’s Editor, Oliver Condy, explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert:* _"Before Schoenberg experimented with the atonal composing system that has given him a certain reputation among audiences, he wrote several highly romantic, lush works including Gurrelieder. Think Wagner, Mahler and a hint of Bruckner and you get the idea. It’s one of the most OTT works of the 20th century - and wonderful for it!”_ "BBC Music Magazine":http://www.bbcmusicmagazine.com "Philharmonia Orchestra: City Of Dreams":http://www.philharmonia.co.uk/city_of_dreams/ *Satisfaction Guaranteed or Your Money Back* We are so confident that you will enjoy this wonderful concert, that we will give you your money back if you don’t! To take up the money back guarantee, simply book your tickets in the usual way. In the unlikely event that you decide you would like a refund, once you have attended the concert, please pick up a refund form from one of our stewards on the night. Forms will also be available from the Box Office from Saturday 28 February 2009 in person or by phone. _Please Note: the money back guarantee does not apply to tickets already purchased and applies only to the face value of tickets._ *6.15pm pre-concert talk*
  *Philharmonia Orchestra* *Esa-Pekka Salonen* conductor *Ladies of the City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus* *Men of the Philharmonia Voices* *Soile Isokoski* Tove *Monica Groop* _Waldtaube_ *Stig Andersen* _Waldemar_ *Andreas Conrad* _ Klaus-Narr_ *Ralf Lukas* _Bauer_ *Barbara Sukowa* _Speaker_
  *Schoenberg* Gurrelieder 100’
  

• Staffordshire Sings 2009  

  Sun 8 Mar Symphony Hall

  A celebration of singing presented by Staffordshire Performing Arts Service, in partnership with national Sing Up. The concert is sponsored by the Friends of Staffordshire Young Musicians.
  *Staffordshire Songbirds* *Staffordshire Primary Schools Massed Choir* *Staffordshire 'Mind the Gap' Sing Up projects* with Staffordshire Youth Orchestra East and Guest artists and conductors
  
  

• Bryan Corbett Quartet  

  Fri 28 Sep Symphony Hall

  Bryan Corbett’s career continues to grow with great appearances at Cheltenham Jazz festival, firstly as soloist with the BBC Concert Orchestra in the ‘Michael Parkinson Presents’ concert and then with his own quartet. This event will take place in the level 3 Bar. Presented in association with Birmingham Jazz.
  
  
  

• Staffordshire Sings 2008  

  Sun 9 Mar Symphony Hall

  A celebration of singing featuring performers aged 7 to 70, presented by Staffordshire Performing Arts Service. £6, £10, £12, £15, £16 60 plus/full-time-students/under 16’s/ unwaged £4, £7, £8, £10, £17
  *David Lawrence & Nigel M. Taylor* Conductors *Staffordshire ‘Songbirds’, Primary Schools Massed Choir, Festival Youth Choir, County Chorus & Youth Orchestra Central*
  
  

• Music and Stories!  

  Sat 6 Jun Town Hall

  Town Hall Associate Artists, Orchestra of the Swan team up with one of the nation's most successful storytellers, Clive Dennis Cole, to present a interactive music and storytelling experience like no other. Bring bells and your shaker to help make music, your singing voice for nursery rhymes and your creative imagination for storytelling as we go on a magical journey through music and stories.
  
  
  

• Bryn Terfel  

  Wed 18 Nov Symphony Hall

  Bryn Terfel returns to Symphony Hall to perform a devilish selection of arias from the greatest villains in the worlds of opera and musicals. Accompanied by full orchestra and choir, from _Scarpia_ (Tosca) to _Méphistofélès_ (Faust), _Iago_ (Otello) to _Sporting Life_ (Porgy and Bess), no other baritone today brings to life these sinister roles so compellingly on the concert platform
  
  
  

• Bach... by Arrangement Classical Encounters with Orchestra of the Swan 

  Tue 29 Apr 2008 Town Hall

  Bach has been an inspiration for 250 years, influencing composers from Mozart to Martland, and this concert opens with a remarkable arrangement of one of Bach’s most well known works, his Toccata and Fugue in d minor for organ. Alexander Goehr is one of the UK’s most distinguished composers and this evening’s world premiere, commissioned by OOTS is inspired by music from China and Bach. The relentless energy of Bach’s Brandenburg concerto no3 was a clear inspiration to Stravinsky and the concert concludes with Dumbarton Oaks, his engaging and witty tribute to the Baroque master 'Curtis directed with style and understanding, dreaming up a fascinating menu of offerings, chatting to the audience as if among friends, drawing colourfully communicative readings' Birmingham Post Supported by KPMG and Arts Council England "www.orchestraoftheswan.org":http://www.orchestraoftheswan.org
  Conductor - David Curtis
  Bach arr.Steve Martland - Toccata and Fugue in d min Copland - Nonet Alexander Goehr - New work** Bach - Brandenburg concerto no3 Stravinsky - Dumbarton Oaks ** Orchestra of the Swan commission and world premiere Pre-concert talk taking place in the auditorium at 6.30pm Post-concert Conversation Club taking place in the Circle Bar 15 minutes after the end of the performance. Entrance free to concert ticket holders
  

• Open Hall!  

  Sun 14 Sep Town Hall

  We’re throwing the doors open to everyone, with: Orchestra of the Swan showcase (2pm - 3pm), children’s Heritage trail, Organ demonstrations, foyer music, Town Hall exhibition, refreshments from the foyer café, and a prize draw for free concert tickets. Admission FREE
  
  
  

• Birmingham Schools Celebration  

  Thu 18 Oct Town Hall

  A celebration of our musical future drawn from the immense talent of Birmingham schools all over the city. Over 300 talented musicians aged 6-18 will perform programme of music from many styles, periods and cultures - from the acclaimed Birmingham Schools' Symphony Orchestra to a tin whistle ensemble.
  *Jamie Crick* (Classic FM) Compere
  
  

• The Royal Opera: Britten's War Requiem  

  Sat 21 Mar Symphony Hall

  The War requiem is one of Britten’s most powerful works, born out of his fiercely held pacifism. Composed at the height of the Cold War, it spoke directly to a nation living under the threat of nuclear war. The work mixes powerful settings of the poems of Wilfred Owen, describing the horrors of war, with the words of the Requiem mass, and ultimately offers the hope of reconciliation. No tenor is more associated with Britten’s music at the moment than Ian Bostridge, heard here alongside the warm baritone of Simon Keenlyside and leading young soprano Emma Bell. *BBC music magazine’s editor, Oliver Condy, explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert:* _"This unsettling work is a powerful anti-war oratorio, written for the re-consecration of nearby Coventry Cathedral in 1962. Bringing this searing piece to life are three of the most gifted British singers alive today accompanied by Covent Garden’s orchestra - an ensemble currently at the height of its powers. This will be a highly emotional, haunting concert - full of drama and pathos.”_ "BBC Music Magazine":http://www.bbcmusicmagazine.com *5.45pm pre-concert talk*
  *The Royal Opera Chorus* *The Orchestra of the Royal Opera House* *Antonio Pappano* conductor *Emma Bell* soprano *Ian Bostridge* tenor *Simon Keenlyside* baritone *Tiffin Boys’ Choir*
  *Britten* War Requiem 90’
  

• Roy Wood Rock & Roll Band Christmas Special with Support 

  Sat 22 Dec Town Hall

  Birmingham born Roy enjoyed huge success as a member of The Move, Electric Light Orchestra and Wizzard and is forever linked to the festive season thanks to the mammoth hit I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday. Come join the party and kick off Christmas in style with Roy and his Rock and Roll Band!
  
  
  

• University of Birmingham Choir & Orchestra  

  Sat 6 Dec Town Hall

  The power of music to move human passion is the subject of this ode in praise of Cecilia, music's patron saint. Handel's setting of Dryden's words, which refer to Alexander the Great, explores the whole gamut of emotion in truly thrilling style.
  *Colin Timms* conductor *Jenny Carson*, *Hannah McFarland* sopranos *Robert Gardiner* tenor *George Humphreys* bass
  *Handel* Alexander’s Feast
  

• Beethoven - Mahler Weekend  

  Sun 17 Jun Symphony Hall

  
  *Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra* *Jaap van Zweden* Conductor
  *Beethoven* Symphony No 6, Pastoral *Mahler* Symphony No 6
  

• Beethoven - Mahler Weekend  

  Sat 16 Jun Symphony Hall

  
  *Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra* *Jaap van Zweden* Conductor
  *Beethoven* Symphony No 5 *Mahler* Symphony No 5
  

• The National Youth Wind Orchestra of Great Britain  

  Wed 8 Apr Town Hall

  *Bernstein* Profanation (from Symphony No 1, _Jeremiah_) arr. Bencriscutto *Bruce Fraser* Tuba Concerto. *Martin Ellerby* Elgar Variations. Band version - World Premiere *Hudson Noguiera* Senzalas, Maracutus e Qolumbus *Rolf Rudin* Out Of Nowhere *John Williams* Star Wars Trilogy arr. Hunsberger £12, £15 (Stalls only) Under16s/ students £5
  *Matthew George* conductor *James Gourlay* tuba
  
  

• Town Hall 175TH Anniversary A short series of events celebrating Town Hall's heritage 

  Sat 3 Oct Town Hall

  2009 marks the 175th Anniversary of Town Hall, which has been at the centre of British musical life since the day it opened in October 1834. Join us in celebrating the Hall's magnificent heritage.
  
  
  

• Birmingham Schools Gala Concert  

  Symphony Hall

  
  *Birmingham Schools' Percussion Ensemble* *Birmingham Schools' Jazz Ensemble* *Birmingham Schools' Concert Band* *Birmingham Schools' Gala Choir* *Birmingham Schools' Symphony Orchestra* *Jamie Crick* Compere
  
  

• The Birmingham Philharmonic Environment Prom  

  Sun 26 Apr Symphony Hall

  The Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra goes green in this concert celebrating the wonders of the environment. Hear how our chosen composers depict mountains, sunrises, rainstorms and soaring larks. Be prepared to be overawed by the majesty of Respighi’s _Pines of Rome_ and feel the ground tremble under the footsteps of Roman Armies marching past the glorious Pine Trees that line Rome’s Appian Way. Our prom also features the world premier of the orchestral version of _Ballads for a Living Planet_, a new choral work by composer Ian Barnett, orchestrated by Ivor McGregor. And to end our joyous evening, bring your flags and hooters for all of the usual prom favourites, and celebrate our 'Green and Pleasant Land'. During the day there will be a free exhibition by Midlands Schools who have gained "Eco School" status and the good work that they are doing to protect our environment. Details will be published nearer the time.
  *Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra* *City of Birmingham Choir and guests* *Michael Lloyd* conductor *Anna Ovsyanikova* violin Concert promoted by the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) and the Birmingham Community Foundation
  *Mussorgsky* Night on Bare Mountain *Grofé* Sunrise, On the Trail, Rainstorm (Grand Canyon Suite) *Respighi* Pines of Rome *Vaughan Williams* Lark Ascending *Barnet* Ballad of a Living Planet *Falla* Ritual Fire Dance *H Wood* British Sea Songs *Elgar* Pomp & Circumstance March No 1 *Parry* Jerusalem *J Strauss II* Thunder and Lightning Polka
  

• Drumvoice!  

  Sat 4 Jul Town Hall

  The African Djembe drum has that distinctive sound like no other in this world. Sarah Westwood conducts the Drumvoice Orchestra, who will play traditional West African and Latin-American rhythms for children to clap, sing and dance along to. A special orchestrated composition will invite very young ears to appreciate the magical texture and richness that give you the feel good factor from beginning to end. So bring along your rhythmical hands, your singing voice and stomping feet to Sarah Westwood's magical moment.
  
  
  

• Space Classics A Light and Laser Extravaganza 

  Tue 30 Dec Symphony Hall

  _A Light and Laser Extravaganza_ A fantastic voyage in a galaxy of sight and sound through deep space and beyond! *WITH A DAZZLING LASER DISPLAY*
  Anthony Inglis _conductor_ London Concert Orchestra
  *E.T.* *Star Trek* *Star Wars* *Superman* *Return of the Jedi * *Attack of The Clones * *The Phantom Menace* *Thunderbirds are Go!* *Mars, Jupiter and Mercury from The Planets* *The Empire Strikes Back* *Close Encounters of the Third Kind* *Sunrise from Also Sprach Zarathustra*
  

• Sinatra - 8pm The West End Smash comes to Birmingham! 

  Fri 2 May Symphony Hall

  Legendary performer Frank Sinatra's latest, greatest and most ambitious comeback, captured at the peak of his career, singing his greatest hit songs direct to the audience in ultra-rare and some never-before seen footage. Ground-breaking creative use of cutting-edge technology puts him centre stage, larger than life on multiple moving screens, and lets him perform with a brilliant company of dancers and singers, supported by a live orchestra- together performing some of the greatest music ever recorded.
  
  
  

• Sinatra - 8pm The West End Smash comes to Birmingham! 

  Sat 3 May Symphony Hall

  Legendary performer Frank Sinatra's latest, greatest and most ambitious comeback, captured at the peak of his career, singing his greatest hit songs direct to the audience in ultra-rare and some never-before seen footage. Ground-breaking creative use of cutting-edge technology puts him centre stage, larger than life on multiple moving screens, and lets him perform with a brilliant company of dancers and singers, supported by a live orchestra- together performing some of the greatest music ever recorded.
  
  
  

• Sinatra - 8pm The West End Smash comes to Birmingham! 

  Sun 4 May Symphony Hall

  Legendary performer Frank Sinatra's latest, greatest and most ambitious comeback, captured at the peak of his career, singing his greatest hit songs direct to the audience in ultra-rare and some never-before seen footage. Ground-breaking creative use of cutting-edge technology puts him centre stage, larger than life on multiple moving screens, and lets him perform with a brilliant company of dancers and singers, supported by a live orchestra- together performing some of the greatest music ever recorded.
  
  
  

• BBC Big Band - Radio Days with Clare Teal  

  Fri 20 Feb Town Hall

  The BBC Big Band recalls the golden age of radio when dance bands and big bands ruled the airwaves. Join them as they recreate the music of Ted Heath, Ambrose, Henry Hall, the BBC Northern Dance Orchestra and many, many more. £12.50, £16.50, £19.50 In association with BBC Radio 2 BBC Big Band is a Town Hall Associate Artist
  *BBC Big Band* *Barry Forgie* Conductor Presented by and featuring the vocal talents of *Clare Teal*
  
  

• Boxing Day Classics  

  Fri 26 Dec Symphony Hall

  Two giant keyboard masterpieces in one superb programme of rousing classics. _A complimentary glass of champagne for everyone_
  Edward Warren _conductor_ Malcolm Hicks _organ_ Martin Cousin _piano_ London Concert Orchestra
  *Rossini* William Tell Overture *Mascagni* Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana *Tchaikovsky* Piano Concerto No.1 *Wagner* Prelude Act III from Lohengrin *Strauss* Emperor Waltz *Saint-Saëns* Symphony No.3 ‘Organ Symphony’ Featuring the majestic *Symphony Hall Organ*
  

• Sinatra - 2.30pm The West End Smash comes to Birmingham! 

  Sat 3 May Symphony Hall

  Legendary performer Frank Sinatra's latest, greatest and most ambitious comeback, captured at the peak of his career, singing his greatest hit songs direct to the audience in ultra-rare and some never-before seen footage. Ground-breaking creative use of cutting-edge technology puts him centre stage, larger than life on multiple moving screens, and lets him perform with a brilliant company of dancers and singers, supported by a live orchestra- together performing some of the greatest music ever recorded.
  
  
  

• Summer Serenade with Orchestra of the Swan  

  Sun 1 Jun Town Hall

  A seasonally flavoured programme of some of the most delightful music for strings by Vivaldi, Mozart, Tchaikovsky and Elgar - four of the greatest melodists of all time! *1.30pm Free pre-concert talk and post-concert conversation*
  
  *David Curtis* Conductor *David Le Page* Violin *Mozart Divertimento* in D K136 13' *Elgar Serenade* for Strings 12' *Vivaldi* Summer from The Four Seasons 10' *Tchaikovsky* Serenade for Strings 28'
  

• Birmingham Community Foundation Christmas Carol Concert  

  Wed 3 Dec Town Hall

  Following last year's sell out event at Town Hall, this year's Christmas Carol Concert will include _The Snowman Suite_, exctracts from Thcaikovsky's _Nutcracker_ Suite and _Deck the Halls_ plus much more. Held in aid of the Birmingham Community Foundation. For further information please visit www.bhamfoundation.co.uk/newsfs.html £20, £25
  *Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra* *Adrian Goldberg* compere *Michael Lloyd* conductor *Choir of St Peter's Collegiate Church, Wolverhampton*
  
  

• Sinatra - 2.30pm The West End Smash comes to Birmingham! 

  Sun 4 May Symphony Hall

  Legendary performer Frank Sinatra's latest, greatest and most ambitious comeback, captured at the peak of his career, singing his greatest hit songs direct to the audience in ultra-rare and some never-before seen footage. Ground-breaking creative use of cutting-edge technology puts him centre stage, larger than life on multiple moving screens, and lets him perform with a brilliant company of dancers and singers, supported by a live orchestra- together performing some of the greatest music ever recorded.
  
  
  

• Let's Sing the Musicals  

  Sun 8 Jul Symphony Hall

  An evening of popular entertainment for all the family with a programme consisting of music and dance from many well-loved musicals including _Phantom of the Opera_, _Fiddler on the Roof_, _Miss Saigon_, _Jesus Christ Superstar_, _Copocabana_, and many, many more.
  *Nigel Hopkins* Conductor *Let's Sing Chorus* *Let's Sing Youth* *Firebox Dance Company* *Midlands Festival Orchestra*
  
  

• Dream Futures Elmhurst School for Dance 

  Symphony Hall

  500 talented instrumentalists, singers and dancers from Elmhurst School for Dance (in Association with Birmingham Royal Ballet and Hallfield School) combine with the talents of the King Edward's School Orchestra and the City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Chorus to raise money for the Save the Children Fund's Re-write the Future campaign to aid the education of children in war-torn lands. Tickets available from 14 May from the shool on 0121 415 2831
  
  
  

• Friday Night Classics: A Night at the Oscars  

  Fri 6 Feb 2009 Symphony Hall

  Put the champagne on ice and roll out the red carpet as silver-screen showman Carl Davis hosts this evening of Oscar-winning movie soundtracks. With themes that include The Lord of the Rings, Dr Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia, Dances with Wolves, Titanic, Robin Hood, The Godfather and much more, join us for a night that celebrates the soundtrack to all our lives.
  
  Carl Davis- conductor City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  

• The Armed Man Phoenix Singers Charity Concert in aid of Action for Children 

  Sun 28 Jun Town Hall

  The Phoenix Singers Birmingham present Karl Jenkins _The Armed Man: A Mass For Peace_, in aid of the national children’s charity *Action for Children*. A massed chorus of over 170 will be joined by a full symphony orchestra for Jenkins’ inspiring work, alongside a programme of light and entertaining music. With influences from Brazilian percussion to Renaissance plainsong, _The Armed Man_, performed here with its original video footage on large screen, guarantees an evening to remember
  
  
  

• Handel's Messiah City Of Birmingham Choir 

  Fri 7 Dec Symphony Hall

  Birmingham’s renowned annual performances of this greatest of all oratorios with another outstanding quartet of the finest of our up and coming soloists. The performances will end at approximately 10.15pm
  *Rebecca Outram* Soprano *Wendy Dawn Thompson* Mezzo Soprano *Simon Wall* Tenor *James Birchall* Bass *Thomas Trotter* Harpsichord *David Newsholme* Organ *City of Birmingham Choir* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Adrian Lucas* Conductor
  
  

• Handel's Messiah City Of Birmingham Choir 

  Tue 11 Dec Symphony Hall

  Birmingham’s renowned annual performances of this greatest of all oratorios with another outstanding quartet of the finest of our up and coming soloists. The performances will end at approximately 10.15pm
  *Rebecca Outram* Soprano *Wendy Dawn Thompson* Mezzo Soprano *Simon Wall* Tenor *James Birchall* Bass *Thomas Trotter* Harpsichord *David Newsholme* Organ *City of Birmingham Choir* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Adrian Lucas* Conductor
  
  

• The Best of Gilbert and Sullivan  

  Sat 27 Dec Symphony Hall

  Here’s a first rate opportunity to hear all the most familiar toe-tapping songs from the delectable Savoy Operas presented in a brand new show with favourite stars from the world of Gilbert & Sullivan.
  Charlotte Page _soprano_ Victoria Byron _mezzo soprano_ Jill Pert _contralto_ Stephen Brown _tenor_ Bruce Graham _baritone_ Donald Maxwell _baritone_ Alistair Donkin _bass_ The Gilbert & Sullivan Chorus & Orchestra Fraser Goulding _conductor_
  *The Mikado* *The Pirates of Penzance* *HMS Pinafore* *Iolanthe* *Yeomen of the Guard* *The Gondoliers*
  

• Boxing Day Classics  

  Wed 26 Dec Symphony Hall

  The majestic power of the Great Symphony Hall Organ crowns this wonderful concert of great orchestral classics. There will be a complimentary interval glass of champagne for everyone.
  *Robert Dean* Conductor *Tamsin Waley-Cohen* Violin *Jonathan Scott* Organ *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Saint-Saens* Symphony No.3 ‘Organ Symphony’ *Rossini* The Barber of Seville Overture *Mendelssohn* The Hebrides Overture *Tchaikovsky* Swan Lake Suite *Bruch* Violin Concerto *Sibelius* Finlandia *Widor* Toccata
  

• Handel's Israel in Egypt Birmingham Festival Choral Society 

  Sun 25 Oct Town Hall

  Based on the Book of Exodus, Handel's forgotten gem features virtuosic double choruses depicting plagues of hailstones, blood and fire, with the eventual triumph of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt. This dramatic oratorio is surely a genuine delight for Handel devotees.
  *Philippa Hyde* soprano *David Allsopp* counter-tenor *Joshua Ellicott* tenor *James Birchall* bass *Andrew Kidd* bass *Patrick Larley* conductor *ESO Chamber Orchestra*
  
  

• Symphony Ballroom!  

  Fri 15 May Symphony Hall

  Dust off those sequins, put on your dancing shoes... after last year’s sell-out performances, Symphony Ballroom is back! The CBSO’s symphonic big band, together with inspirational arranger/conductor John Wilson, will once again be joined by dancers from BBC1’s _Strictly Come Dancing_ for a show that combines great music, great dancing and is bound to get your toes tapping.
  *John Wilson* conductor *Camilla Dallerup* dancer *Ian Waite* dancer *Matthew Ford* vocalist *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• CBSO Family Concert: Water World - Matinee  

  Sun 28 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  Set sail with the CBSO as we dive into an adventure on the ocean waves. This afternoon will include plenty of splashing good fun, from fish to fishermen, boats to beaches, and sandcastles to starfish. Expect lots of water music such as _Fingal’s Cave, The Sailor’s Hornpipe_, music from _Pirates of the Caribbean_ and much more. Keep a watch out for mermaids, creatures of the deep, pirates, sharks and shipwrecks!
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* _conductor_ *Michael Collie* _presenter_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Chorus (Juniors)*
  
  

• Birmingham International Concert Season 2009/10  

  Wed 7 Oct to Sat 12 June 2010 Town Hall & Symphony Hall

  h2. See the world’s greatest artists perform on the UK’s finest stages In the 2009/10 season, you can expect thrilling performances from Daniel Barenboim and the Berlin Staatskapelle, Riccardo Muti and Joshua Bell with the Philharmonia, the Dallas Symphony Orchestra, Murray Perahia, Lang Lang, Renée Fleming, Ian Bostridge and Sir James Galway, amongst many others. Just two years after its magnificent re-opening, we celebrate 175 years of Town Hall’s musical heritage with a series of anniversary concerts. And we cement our special relationship with the CBSO with three events, including a unique and epic collaboration with the Orchestra and Chorus of the Mariinsky Theatre under Valery Gergiev. From the unrivalled acoustic of Symphony Hall to the historic ambience of Town Hall, there are no better platforms for such outstanding talents. We hope you will cherish these special evenings of music making with us. *Concert Packages: Book six or more concerts and save up to 30%!* Book a concert package and guarantee those special musical experiences. And, the more concerts you book for, the more money you’ll save: * Book 6 to 8 concerts and save 10% * Book 9 to 10 concerts and save 15% * Book 11 to 16 concerts and save 20% * Book 17 or more concerts and save 30% You will also receive these exclusive benefits: * First choice of seats in Town Hall and Symphony Hall * Ticket exchange scheme * Free concert programme * Discounts on selected additional concerts throughout the year * 6 months interest free credit if you book by 30 June 2008 * Car parking for just £3.80 at Brindleyplace * 12½% discount THe SHop, our classical music shop at Symphony Hall * 10% discount on Town Hall and Symphony Hall merchandise * 30% discount on additional Birmingham International Concert Season concert tickets if you book 17 or more concerts in your package * Exclusive booking period for additional concerts included in this brochure *How to Book* Postal booking of concert packages is open now. Or download an order form from the top right hand side of this webpage.
  
  
  

• Roy Wood Rock & Roll Band: Christmas Special plus support 

  Wed 17 Dec Town Hall

  *PLEASE NOTE: due to high demand for reserved seating, the Stalls area will now be seated for this performance, and tickets are available to book now!* Birmingham born Roy enjoyed huge success as a member of The Move, Electric Light Orchestra and Wizzard and is forever linked to the festive season thanks to the hit _I Wish it Could be Christmas Everyday_. Following last year's sell-out performance at Town Hall, Wood returns with his band to kick off Christmas in style.
  
  
  

• Handel's Messiah City of Birmingham Choir 

  Tue 9 Dec Symphony Hall

  Christmas would not be Christmas without the City of Birmingham Choir’s highly acclaimed performances of Messiah. Birmingham’s festive season gets underway with our two inspiring performances of Handel’s epic, moving _Oratorio_ - as fresh today as it was in Handel’s time.
  *City of Birmingham Choir* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Adrian Lucas* conductor *Thomas Trotter* harpsichord *David Newsholme* organ
  *Handel* Messiah 120'
  

• Family Concert: Pirate Party  

  Sun 4 Nov Symphony Hall

  Set sail with the CBSO for a swashbuckling adventure, as we fly the skull and cross-bones to go in search of treasure chests, shiny pieces of eight and faraway lands. A fun-packed maritime-themed concert including music from _Pirates of the Caribbean_ is in store, but keep watch - climbing the crows’ nest and walking the plank could be just over the horizon! Please feel free to come dressed up in your favourite sea-faring finery. FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS AND MUSIC in the foyers from 1.30pm
  *Michael Seal* conductor *Alasdair Malloy* presenter *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• Johann Strauss Gala Evening Concert 

  Tue 1 Jan 2008 Symphony Hall

  All the romance and excitement of the ballrooms of 19th century Vienna is brought to life in this magical show filled with glorious music, dance and song from the Strauss family.
  *Daniel Rowland* Directer/Violin *Martene Grimson* Soprano *Johann Strauss Orchestra* *Christopher Hampson* Choreography
  *Programme to include* Blue Danube Waltz Radetzky March Pizzicato Polka Perpetuum Mobile Tritsch Tratsch Polka Tales from the Vienna Woods Music of the Spheres Thunder & Lightning Polka and many more.
  

• Silver Screen Classics  

  Sat 29 Dec Symphony Hall

  Honor Blackman presents the greatest movie hits of all time from the best of British cinema to Hollywood Blockbusters including selections from _Star Wars_, _Harry Potter_, _Gone With the Wind_, _Gladiator_ and many more.
  *Paul Bateman* Conductor *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Programme to include selections from:* Star Wars Harry Potter Lord of the Rings E.T. The Godfather Star Trek Out of Africa Born Free Superman The Magnificent Seven Lawrence of Arabia Schindler's List Gladiator James Bond Murder on the Orient Express Pirates of the Caribbean The Big Country Indiana Jones
  

• CBSO Family Concert Classics for Kids 

  Sun 29 Apr Symphony Hall

  BBC Midlands Today presenter Michael Collie will guide you through this special concert, designed to introduce kids, parents and grandparents to the classics. FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS in foyer areas from 1.30pm.
  Michael Seal, Conductor Michael Collie, Presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Features Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf, Mozart's Marriage of Figaro Overture, the Star Wars theme, and many more.
  

• New English Orchestra and Singers Introduce RECREATIO!  

  Sat 17 Jan Town Hall

  A kaleidoscope of music to refresh and inspire from an ensemble which specializes in spiritual music This multi-faceted presentation includes music and dance from Africa, Latin America, Israel and Russia plus Scottish Fiddle Music, whilst also featuring the following classics: African: spiritual music from Uganda including In Tongues of Living Flame and Alleluia! Jesus is alive today! Cuban: Boliviana by Chucho Valdes Israeli: Great and Wonderful by Stuart Dauerman Russian: O Praise the name of the Lord from Vespers by Rachmaninoff
  
  *Monteverdi* ‘Laetatus Sum’ *Vivaldi* Concerto for Two Trumpets *Bach* Wachet Auf
  

• Last Night of the Spring Proms  

  Sat 8 Mar Symphony Hall

  All your Proms favourites including The Dam Busters March, Jerusalem, Nessun Dorma, Rule, Britannia! and Land of Hope and Glory. Don’t miss this wonderful feast of all your favourite classics crowned with an uplifting British finale. £11, £15, £20, £23.50, £27.50, £31.50
  *John Pryce-Jones* Conductor *Philip O’Brien* Tenor *Andrew Rupp* Baritone *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Programme includes:* *Grieg* Morning and in the Hall of the Mountain King *Strauss* Radetzky March *Delibes* Prelude and Mazurka from Coppélia *Elgar* Nimrod *Tchaikovsky* The Sleeping Beauty Waltz
  

• Russian Spectacular  

  Sat 27 Dec Symphony Hall

  The passion, warmth and romance of Russia is vividly brought to life in this programme of timeless classics with the fiery 1812 Overture as a stunning finale. *1812 OVERTURE - A TRULY EXPLOSIVE FINALE*
  Alexander Sitkovetsky _violin_ Stephen Bell _conductor_ London Concert Orchestra The Guards of the Moscow Militia
  *Glinka* Ruslan and Ludmilla Overture *Borodin* Polovtsian Dances from Prince Igor *Tchaikovsky* Polonaise and Waltz from Eugene Onegin *Khachaturian* Adagio from Spartacus *Mussorgsky* Great Gate of Kiev *Tchaikovsky* Violin Concerto
  

• Handel's Messiah City of Birmingham Choir 

  Fri 5 Dec Symphony Hall

  Christmas would not be Christmas without the City of Birmingham Choir’s highly acclaimed performances of Messiah. Birmingham’s festive season gets underway with our two inspiring performances of Handel’s epic, moving _Oratorio_ - as fresh today as it was in Handel’s time.
  *City of Birmingham Choir* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Adrian Lucas* conductor *Thomas Trotter* harpsichord *David Newsholme* organ
  *Handel* Messiah 120'
  

• Family Concert: Action Stations!  

  Sun 1 Jun Symphony Hall

  Sound the trumpets, beat the drums, and CHARGE! The CBSO swings into action with a whole concert of action and adventure. Don your armour and draw your sword, as Prokofiev’s Alexander Nevsky sends the orchestra hurtling into a thunderous battle on the ice. Duck for cover as Tchaikovsky lets fly with bells and cannons in the roof-raising 1812 Overture! And that’s just for starters. Anything could happen in this thriller of a concert. So come ready for bangs, crashes and some seriously loud musical fun. FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS AND MUSIC in the foyers from 1.30pm
  *Jakub Hru°sa* conductor *Tommy Pearson* presenter *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus*
  
  

• Christmas Carol Singalong  

  Sun 23 Dec Symphony Hall

  Direct from the Royal Albert Hall following 10 years of sell-out shows. Clap your hands, Stamp your feet and sing...sing...along.
  *Jonathon Cohen* *Sophie-Louise Dann* Vocalist *Birmingham Festival Choral Society* *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Programme includes;* Hark! The Herald Angels Sing White Christmas Merry Christmas Everyone Silent Night I Wish it could be Christmas Everyday While Shepherds Watched O Holy Night The Twelve days of Christmas O come, all ye faithful Santa Claus is coming to town Winter Wonderland O little town of Bethlehem
  

• Birmingham Bach Choir: Bach Mass in B Minor Brandenburg Baroque Soloists 

  Sat 29 Nov Town Hall

  Completed in the last year of his life, the Mass in B Minor is the consummate expression of Bach’s genius. With masterful interplay between chorus, orchestra, and soloists from the beseeching spirals of the opening Kyrie to the final climactic Dona nobis pacem this is choral music at its greatest.
  *Birmingham Bach Choir* *Brandenburg Baroque Soloists* *Paul Spicer* Conductor *Celeste Lazarenko* Soprano *Christopher Ainslie* Counter Tenor *Sean Clayton* Tenor *Vojteh Safarik* Bass
  
  

• Valentine's Day Love Classics  

  Thu 14 Feb Symphony Hall

  A perfect evening of enchanting music for the most romantic night of the year. With a free rose for every couple in the audience. £20, £23.50, £27.50, £31.50 Choir £11, £15
  *Stephen Bell* Conductor *Roger Owens* Piano *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Tchaikovsky* The Sleeping Beauty Waltz and Rose Adagio *Debussy* Clair de Lune *Grieg* Piano Concerto *Verdi* Force of Destiny Overture *Tchaikovsky* Romeo & Juliet Fantasy Overture *Delius* The Walk to the Paradise Garden *Elgar* Salut d’amour *Strauss* The Blue Danube Waltz
  

• Singalong with the CBSO: Mozart's Requiem  

  Sun 5 Apr Symphony Hall

  Join the CBSO with its world-renowned chorus director, Simon Halsey, and young professional soloists to sing Mozart’s Requiem, which he was famously still working upon at his untimely death. If you enjoy singing, the unique experience of performing such a powerful work in Birmingham’s magnificent Symphony Hall, with over 1000 singers, is surely not to be missed.
  Simon Halsey - conductor City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Please Note: Only Audience tickets for this event can be purchased online. Please contact the venue Box Office to purchase singer tickets on 0121 780 3333
  

• Messiah  

  Sat 5 Apr Symphony Hall

  Ex Cathedra celebrates the beginning of its 40th Anniversary Project by recreating a landmark concert in Birmingham’s cultural history, the 1784 ‘Commemoration of Handel’ performance of Messiah which launched the Birmingham Triennial Festival. Ex Cathedra will bring together the best large-scale chorus of its size ever assembled, featuring its unique blend of professional, professionally-trained amateur and student singers, a chorus for the 21st century. £7, £14, £21, £28, £35
  *Ex Cathedra XL Anniversary Choir* *Jeffrey Skidmore* Conducter *Orchestra Of The Age Of Enlightenment* *Carolyn Sampson* Soprano *Iestyn Davies* Counter Tenor *James Gilchrist* Tenor *Peter Harvey* Bass
  
  

• The Sound of the Musicals  

  Fri 28 Dec Symphony Hall

  World famous hits from the greatest Broadway and West End Shows.
  *Richard Balcombe* Conductor London's West End stage vocalists; *Maria Kesselman* *Sally Ann Triplett* *Martin Crewes* *James Graeme* *London Concert Chorus* *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Programme to include hits from;* Evita Chicargo The Sound of Music Barnum Jesus Christ Superstar Guys and Dolls West Side Story Les Miserables A Chorus Line The Phantom of the Opera Annie Get you Gun My Fair Lady Kiss Me Kate Caberet Mack and Mable Chess High Society Oklahoma
  

• Friday Night Classics: The Gershwins in Hollywood  

  Fri 23 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  No-one wrote a hit-tune like George and Ira Gershwin. And when the brothers left Manhattan for the bright lights of Hollywood, the results were bound to be showstopping! Conductor John Wilson loves the great movie musicals of the 1930s; join him and star West End vocalists Kim Criswell and Gary Williams for an evening of pure jazz-age glamour. Featuring I Got Rhythm, ’Swonderful, The Man I Love, An American in Paris, Strike Up The Band, Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off, They All Laughed and many more, it’s just hit after hit after hit!
  *John Wilson* conductor *Kim Criswell* vocalist *Gary Williams* vocalist *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• Ex Cathedra - Bach St John Passion  

  Sat 1 Mar 2008 Town Hall

  The Town Hall once again resonates to the sound of Bach’s dramatic setting of the Passion story. Ex Cathedra’s highly acclaimed team of young soloists join the country’s leading period instrumentalists to create Ex Cathedra’s distinctive approach to one of the great pieces in the choral repertoire.
  Ex Cathedra Soloists, Choir & Baroque Orchestra Conductor Jeffrey Skidmore Evangelist Nicholas Mulroy Christus James Birchall Pilate Greg Skidmore Natalie Clifton-Griffi th Julia Doyle, Matthew Venner Chris Watson Leader Nicolette Moonen
  
  

• Christmas Carol Singalong  

  Tue 23 Dec Symphony Hall

  Back by popular demand *JONATHAN COHEN* invites you to join the fun with favourite Christmas songs and carols galore. _Clap your hands, stamp your feet and sing your heart out!_
  _Special Guest Singer_ *Sophie-Louise Dann* Birmingham Festival Choral Society London Concert Orchestra
  Jingle Bells Ding dong! Merrily on high Winter Wonderland The Twelve Days of Christmas O come, all ye faithful Once in royal David’s city God rest you merry, gentlemen O little town of Bethlehem Away in a manger Let it snow Santa Claus is coming to town Hark! the herald angels sing Frosty the Snowman The first Nowell
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics: Film Music For Lovers  

  Fri 12 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  The perfect treat for your Valentine, or simply the chance to snuggle up with the CBSO and enjoy a night of romantic music from some of the most heart-rending moments from the big screen. Featuring soundtracks by Arnold, Barry, Herrmann and others, this evening surely won’t leave a dry eye in the house. Chocolates and hankies not supplied!
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* _conductor_ *Tommy Pearson* _presenter_
  Including music from: _Gone With The Wind_ _Titanic_ _Dr Zhivago_ _Out Of Africa_ _Love Actually_ _Shakespeare in Love_ _Independence Day_ _Casino Royale_ _Vertigo_ _Sense And Sensibility_ _Much Ado About Nothing_ and more
  

• Brodsky Quartet  

  Sun 16 Nov Town Hall

  Without a doubt, the Brodsky is Britain’s best-known string quartet. With a repertoire stretching from the classics to collaborations with pop artists, this remarkable ensemble is at the very top of its game. The players visit the intimate space of Town Hall with four outright classics of the string quartet repertoire - a masterpiece from Beethoven’s fiery youth, Shostakovich’s most intense and best-known Quartet, Stravinsky’s three ground-breaking miniatures, and the quiet melancholy of Tchaikovsky’s Third and last Quartet. Tickets £5-£20
  
  *Beethoven* Quartet in D Major, op 18, no 3 25’ *Shostakovich* Quartet No 8 in C Minor, op 110 20’ *Stravinsky* Three Pieces for String Quartet 8’ *Tchaikovsky* Quartet No 1 in D Major, op 11
  

• The Sound of the Musicals  

  Sun 28 Dec Symphony Hall

  _Following last year’s huge success!_ Another selection of greatest hits from some of the most colourful shows from Broadway and the West End.
  With dazzling stars from London’s West End Stage *Deborah Myers* *James Graeme* *Sally Ann Triplett* *Mike Sterling* Richard Balcombe _conductor_ Metro Voices London Concert Orchestra
  Jesus Christ Superstar Phantom of the Opera The Sound of Music Annie Get Yer Gun Mack and Mabel West Side Story Guys and Dolls Les Miserables A Chorus Line Kiss Me Kate My Fair Lady High Society Oklahoma Carousel Cabaret Chicago Barnum Joseph Chess Evita
  

• Rush Hour Blues  

  Symphony Hall

  After a long week at work come along and unwind in the intimate, relaxing atmosphere of Symphony Hall's Level 3 Bar and let the sensational sounds of Rush Hour Blues help you find that Friday feeling. It's all FREE - and you deserve it! _"It's free and it really is the place to be"_ Birmingham Post
  *UPCOMING CONCERTS:* *18 MAY Walsall Jazz Orchestra* *25 MAY Anna Brooks Quintet* *1 JUN Ryan Trebilcock Trio* *8 JUN TG Collective* *15 JUN John-Paul Gard and Pedal Mania* *22 JUN Adam Jakson Quartet and Rob Anstey Quartet* *29 JUN Corey Mwamba Quintet* *6 JUL Sarvar Sabri and the Sabri Ensemble* *13 JUL Steve Palmer Trio and Muvuca* *20 JUL Percy Pursglove Band*
  
  

• White Christmas  

  Thu 18 Dec Symphony Hall

  Christmas glitz and Yuletide nostalgia in a wonderful show of all-time favourites. From _Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire_…to _Silent Night_… _Have yourself a Merry Little Christmas_ Just like the ones we used to know! _Winter Wonderland_ _We need a little Christmas_ _Santa Claus is coming to town_ _Frosty the Snowman_ _It’s the most wonderful time of the year_ _Santa Baby_ _Blue Christmas_ _Jingle Bell Rock_ _Let it snow_ _I saw Mommy kissing Santa Claus_ _All I want for Christmas is you_ _The Little Drummer Boy_
  *Capital Voices* *John Rigby* conductor *London Concert Orchestra* Star Soloists *Jacinta Whyte* and *David Habbin*
  
  

• The Damnation of Faust  

  Thu 12 Mar 2009 Symphony Hall

  A pact with the devil, a chorus of drunken students, unfulfilled love and a final, terrifying ride to the abyss - Berlioz’s most successful dramatic work has it all! Long famous for its Hungarian March and Dance of the Sylphs, tonight’s performance with the full CBSO forces led by an outstanding French conductor provides a welcome opportunity for Birmingham audiences to hear the whole work, and revel in Berlioz’s outlandish imagination.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Jean-Pierre Furlan* Faust *Ruxandra Dunose* Marguerite *Nicholas Cavallier* Mephistopheles *Jonathan Lemalu* Brander *Ludovic Morlot* conductor
  *Berlioz* The Damnation of Faust 125’
  

• Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony Philharmonia Orchestra 

  Tue 3 Jun 2008 Symphony Hall

  Gustavo Dudamel's sensational debut at the 2005 Proms came just one day after his UK debut at Symphony Hall. The critics raved and, at the age of just 24, he became one of the most hotly-tipped young conductors of his generation. He returns to Birmingham with Brahms's epic First Piano Concerto and Shostakovich's defiant Fifth Symphony, a passionate affirmation of individual liberty against totalitarian oppression. *_The most astonishingly gifted conductor I’ve ever come across._* Sir Simon Rattle, from the Telegraph 6.15pm Pre-concert talk with Lyndon Jenkins
  *Gustavo Dudamel* Conductor *Piotr Anderszewski* Piano
  *Brahms* Piano Concerto No 1 45' *Shostakovich* Symphony No 5 50'
  

• A Christmas Carol  

  Sun 21 Dec Symphony Hall

  It simply wouldn’t be Christmas without the CBSO’s celebrations, hosted this year by presenter Carol Smillie and featuring the CBSO and its massed choirs. Packed with festive music and your favourite carols, plus stories, readings and plenty of audience participation, these concerts are the perfect way to kick-start your Christmas holidays and put you in the festive spirit.
  Simon Halsey - conductor Carol Smillie - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus City of Birmingham Young Voices City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• A Christmas Carol  

  Mon 22 Dec Symphony Hall

  It simply wouldn’t be Christmas without the CBSO’s celebrations, hosted this year by presenter Carol Smillie and featuring the CBSO and its massed choirs. Packed with festive music and your favourite carols, plus stories, readings and plenty of audience participation, these concerts are the perfect way to kick-start your Christmas holidays and put you in the festive spirit.
  Simon Halsey - conductor Carol Smillie - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus City of Birmingham Young Voices City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• A Christmas Carol  

  Mon 22 Dec Symphony Hall

  It simply wouldn’t be Christmas without the CBSO’s celebrations, hosted this year by presenter Carol Smillie and featuring the CBSO and its massed choirs. Packed with festive music and your favourite carols, plus stories, readings and plenty of audience participation, these concerts are the perfect way to kick-start your Christmas holidays and put you in the festive spirit.
  Simon Halsey - conductor Carol Smillie - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus City of Birmingham Young Voices City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• Schools Concert: The Planets  

  Fri 1 Feb 2008 Symphony Hall

  Head for the stars in this concert with some of the best moments from Holst’s The Planets Suite, including Mars: The Bringer of War, Jupiter: The Bringer of Jollity and Mercury: The Winged Messenger. Today’s performances are devised especially to introduce Key Stage 2 students (years 5 and 6) to the spectacular sights and sounds of a symphony orchestra. For information on pre-concert support packages for schools, please contact the CBSO’s Education Department by email (education@cbso.co.uk) or telephone (0121 616 6500). Teachers are also invited to contact the CBSO for details of other opportunities for schools available under our Education and Community programme.
  Michael Seal conductor Tommy Pearson presenter
  
  

• Schools Concert: The Planets  

  Fri 1 Feb 2008 Symphony Hall

  Head for the stars in this concert with some of the best moments from Holst’s The Planets Suite, including Mars: The Bringer of War, Jupiter: The Bringer of Jollity and Mercury: The Winged Messenger. Today’s performances are devised especially to introduce Key Stage 2 students (years 5 and 6) to the spectacular sights and sounds of a symphony orchestra. For information on pre-concert support packages for schools, please contact the CBSO’s Education Department by email (education@cbso.co.uk) or telephone (0121 616 6500). Teachers are also invited to contact the CBSO for details of other opportunities for schools available under our Education and Community programme.
  Michael Seal conductor Tommy Pearson presenter
  
  

• Viennese Masters with Mackerras  

  Wed 4 Mar Symphony Hall

  Still leading a vigorous musical life well into his eighties, Sir Charles Mackerras is a living legend, and in tonight’s programme he brings his wealth of experience to three of his favourite composers. Our first contribution to the Haydn bicentenary celebrations comes in the smiling form of one of the composer’s ‘Paris’ symphonies, while a distinguished pianist joins Sir Charles for one of Mozart’s most delectable piano concertos. Beethoven’s energetic Seventh completes a splendidly cheerful programme.
  Sir Charles Mackerras- conductor Imogen Cooper - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Haydn: Symphony No. 85 (La Reine) 21’ Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 22 K.482 33’ Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 36’
  

• Viennese Masters with Mackerras  

  Sat 7 Mar Symphony Hall

  Still leading a vigorous musical life well into his eighties, Sir Charles Mackerras is a living legend, and in tonight’s programme he brings his wealth of experience to three of his favourite composers. Our first contribution to the Haydn bicentenary celebrations comes in the smiling form of one of the composer’s ‘Paris’ symphonies, while a distinguished pianist joins Sir Charles for one of Mozart’s most delectable piano concertos. Beethoven’s energetic Seventh completes a splendidly cheerful programme.
  Sir Charles Mackerras- conductor Imogen Cooper - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Haydn: Symphony No. 85 (La Reine) 21’ Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 22 K.482 33’ Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 36’
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics: The Best of the West End  

  Fri 9 Oct Symphony Hall

  Roll out the red carpet for this indulgent evening featuring some of the best-loved numbers in showbiz from across the decades, as the CBSO treads the boards with top West End artists. Produced in association with West End International Ltd. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Martin Yates* _conductor_ *Rachel Barrell* _vocalist_ *Jacqui Scott* _vocalist_ *Simon Bowman* _vocalist_ *Tim Rogers* _vocalist_
  Including hits from: _Les Misérables_ - _The Lion King_ - _Cats_ _Phantom of the Opera_ - _Guys and Dolls_ _Oklahoma!_ - _Miss Saigon_ - _South Pacific_ _Oliver!_ - _Carousel_ - _Sunset Boulevard_ and more!
  

• Schools Concert: Pictures At An Exhibition  

  Thu 26 Jun 2008 Symphony Hall

  Mussorgsky’s epic tour through a Russian picture gallery provides the inspiration for this introduction to the symphony orchestra, specially devised for Key Stage 2 students (years 3 and 4). From old castles and catacombs, through farm carts and bustling markets, to the Great Gate of Kiev, this colourful music should set young imaginations on fire. For information on pre-concert support packages for schools, please contact the CBSO’s Education Department by emai(education@cbso.co.uk) or telephone (0121 616 6500). Teachers are also invited to contact the CBSO for details of other opportunities available to schools under our Education and Community programme.
  Xian Zhang conductor Tommy Pearson presenter
  
  

• Schools Concert: Pictures At An Exhibition  

  Thu 26 Jun 2008 Symphony Hall

  Mussorgsky’s epic tour through a Russian picture gallery provides the inspiration for this introduction to the symphony orchestra, specially devised for Key Stage 2 students (years 3 and 4). From old castles and catacombs, through farm carts and bustling markets, to the Great Gate of Kiev, this colourful music should set young imaginations on fire. For information on pre-concert support packages for schools, please contact the CBSO’s Education Department by emai(education@cbso.co.uk) or telephone (0121 616 6500). Teachers are also invited to contact the CBSO for details of other opportunities available to schools under our Education and Community programme.
  Xian Zhang conductor Tommy Pearson presenter
  
  

• Strictly Strauss  

  Thu 1 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  Superb music, enchanting dance and delightful songs from the Strauss family and friends will transport you back in time to the magnificent Viennese ballrooms of the 19th Century.
  JOHANN STRAUSS ORCHESTRA directed from the violin in the traditional Viennese manner by *Daniel Rowland* with beautiful soprano *Elena Xanthoudakis* *JOHANN STRAUSS DANCERS* _in wonderful costumes of the period_ Choreography Christopher Hampson
  _A host of great Strauss favourites from the original JOHANN STRAUSS GALA includes_ * Voices of Spring, Emperor Waltz, Radetzky March, Roses From The South, Anvil Polka, The Laughing Song from Die Fledermaus, Tritsch Tratsch Polka and the glorious Blue Danube Waltz*
  

• My First Carol Concert With Milkshake Live! 

  Sat 13 Dec Symphony Hall

  This Christmas treat your little ones to a unique yuletide concert hosted by their favorite Milkshake TV characters and presenters. For the first time ever, Milkshake Live brings together classic Christmas songs and festive fun in an enchanting concert for the whole family to enjoy. The popular Milkshake TV characters and presenters are joined by a fantastic 30 piece orchestra LIVE on stage! This is a magical opportunity to introduce your children to their first live Christmas concert hosted by one of the most successful children’s TV experiences ever • Milkshake! Including classic Christmas music such as Nutcracker to sing-a-long fun Frosty The Snowman, Jingle Bells, Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer and many more….
  
  
  

• Rush Hour Blues  

  Symphony Hall

  After a long week at work come along and unwind in the intimate, relaxing atmosphere of Symphony Hall's Level 3 Bar and let the sensational sounds of Rush Hour Blues help you find that Friday feeling. It's all FREE - and you deserve it! _"It's free and it really is the place to be"_ Birmingham Post
  *UPCOMING CONCERTS:* *11 MAY Trevor Emeny Quintet* *18 MAY Walsall Jazz Orchestra* *25 MAY Anna Brooks Quintet* *1 JUN Ryan Trebilcock Trio* *8 JUN TG Collective* *15 JUN John-Paul Gard and Pedal Mania* *22 JUN Adam Jakson Quartet and Rob Anstey Quartet* *29 JUN Corey Mwamba Quintet* *6 JUL Sarvar Sabri and the Sabri Ensemble* *13 JUL Steve Palmer Trio and Muvuca* *20 JUL Percy Pursglove Band*
  
  

• Friday Night Classics: Silent Heroes Rudolph Valentino stars in The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse 

  Fri 22 Feb 2008 Symphony Hall

  For that authentic Hollywood thrill, nothing beats a classic silent movie accompanied by a live symphony orchestra. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is the real deal a tear-jerking saga of love and war spanning continents and generations, it’s the film that made Rudolph Valentino a star. Inspired by the music of Franz Liszt, Carl Davis has written a vibrant new orchestral score for this silent masterpiece. And once you’ve seen Symphony Hall turn into Birmingham’s largest cinema, with the CBSO providing the ultimate in surround-sound, DVDs will never seem the same again!
  Carl Davis conductor
  
  

• The Magic of Gilbert & Sullivan  

  Sat 29 Dec Symphony Hall

  Stars from the original D’Oyly Carte continue their splendid tradition with an afternoon of the wittiest, funniest and most memorable moments from Gilbert & Sullivan’s Savoy Operas.
  *Fraser Goulding* Conductor *Jill Washington* Soprano *Lorraine Daniels* Mezzo Soprano *Patricia Leonard* Contralto *Barry Clark* Tenor *Bruce Graham* Baritone *Alistair Donkin* Baritone *John Ayldon* Bass *The Magic of Gilbert & Sullivan Chorus and Orchestra*
  *Programme to include highlights from* The Yeomen of the Guard The Gondoliers Patience H.M.S. Pinafore The Sorcerer The Mikado Princess Ida The Grand Duke Utopia Limited Iolanthe Ruddigore The Pirates of Penzance
  

• CBSO Summer Concert - Benevolent Fund Concert  

  Fri 18 Jul Symphony Hall

  Carl Davis treats you to his favourite selection of popular classics for the CBSO Benevolent Fund’s annual fundraising event. Join the CBSO’s musicians for a wonderful evening of much-loved music including Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, Beethoven’s Romance in F for violin, Debussy’s Clair de Lune, Fauré’s Pavane and Grainger’s arrangement of Danny Boy. The music for the BBC’s hugely successful period-drama Cranford was composed by Carl Davis, and you can enjoy a sparkling performance of this Suite in Symphony Hall tonight.
  *Carl Davis* Conductor *Laurence Jackson* Violin
  
  

• CBSO Chopin 200 - Matinee  

  Thu 25 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  Next week the musical world celebrates the 200th birthday of its favourite composer of piano music, and the CBSO gets in early with performances of his dazzling and lyrical second concerto, played by a leading American pianist. This is gloriously romantic music, and Tchaikovsky’s famous Shakespearean overture is even more so. Regular guest conductor Andrew Litton is renowned for his commitment to English music, and here he conducts Vaughan Williams’ most dramatic symphony.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andrew Litton* _conductor_ *William Wolfram* _piano_
  *Tchaikovsky* _Romeo and Juliet_ 21’ *Chopin* Piano Concerto No 2 30’ *Vaughan Williams* Symphony No 4 34’
  

• Masekela and the CBSO  

  Fri 7 May 2010 Symphony Hall

  Hugh Masekela is a legend. Born in South Africa seventy years ago, he quickly emerged as one of his country’s leading musicians, his music reflecting its struggles, sorrows, joys and passions. He returns to Symphony Hall for a unique collaboration with the CBSO and the Town Hall Gospel Choir, for whom he has written a new work, as well as performing Jason Yarde’s Trumpet Concerto. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* conductor *Hugh Masekela* _trumpet_ *Town Hall Gospel Choir* *City of Birmingham Young Voices*
  
  

• CBSO Chopin 200  

  Wed 24 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  Next week the musical world celebrates the 200th birthday of its favourite composer of piano music, and the CBSO gets in early with performances of his dazzling and lyrical second concerto, played by a leading American pianist. This is gloriously romantic music, and Tchaikovsky’s famous Shakespearean overture is even more so. Regular guest conductor Andrew Litton is renowned for his commitment to English music, and here he conducts Vaughan Williams’ most dramatic symphony.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andrew Litton* _conductor_ *William Wolfram* _piano_
  *Tchaikovsky* _Romeo and Juliet_ 21’ *Chopin* Piano Concerto No 2 30’ *Vaughan Williams* Symphony No 4 34’
  

• Last Night of the Christmas Proms Please note this performance is exactly the same as the previously named Christmas Festival Proms 

  Sun 28 Dec Symphony Hall

  _Classic…after Classic…after Classic_
  Wynne Evans _tenor_ Camilla Roberts _soprano_ John Pryce-Jones _conductor_ London Concert Orchestra
  *Rossini* The Thieving Magpie Overture *Sousa* Semper Fidelis *Khatchaturian* Masquerade Waltz *Grieg* Morning and In The Hall Of The Mountain King *Mussorgsky* Great Gate of Kiev *Suppé* Light Cavalry Overture *Strauss* Radetzky March *Elgar* Chanson de Matin *Puccini* O soave fanciulla *and all your proms favourites* _Those Magnificent Men In Their Flying Machines_ _Hornpipe_ _Land of Hope and Glory_ _Nessun Dorma_ _Rule, Britannia_
  

• Viennese Classics  

  Wed 19 Nov Symphony Hall

  Schubert and Brahms: their music epitomises all that was best in the Viennese tradition between the death of Beethoven and the arrival of Mahler. Olari Elts has chosen to couple one of Schubert’s sunniest symphonies with Brahms’ supremely dramatic violin concerto, played by an exceptional Norwegian soloist making his first appearance in Birmingham. Shorter works show a different side to both composers' amazingly varied talents.
  Olari Elts - conductor Henning Kraggerud - violin City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Brahms: Variations on a theme by Haydn 19’ Brahms: Violin Concerto 36’ Schubert (orch. Webern): German Dances 8’ Schubert: Symphony No. 5 26’
  

• We Are The Music Makers  

  Mon 8 Oct Town Hall

  An emotional moment as the CBSO returns to the Hall in which Edward Elgar conducted its very first concert. His _Music Makers_ was premiered here in October 1912 at the very last Triennial Festival. Its text captures the spirit of our own times as well as looking back to the past, a time of the end of empire and a society in transition towards a very different world. The black British composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's Violin Concerto had its UK premiere in 1912, on this very day, just weeks before his premature death.
  City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus
  Parry: I Was Glad Elgar: The Music Makers Coleridge-Taylor: Violin Concerto
  

• Masur Conducts Bruckner Orchestre National de France 

  Tue 13 Nov Symphony Hall

  France's premier orchestra visits Birmingham with Kurt Masur, one of the last generation of authoritative conductors rooted in the great tradition of Austro-German classics. Bruckner's Seventh Symphony opens like the hazy dawn of a hot summer's day, gradually moving towards the searing heat of midday. Its slow movement concludes with a moving tribute to Wagner, who died in Venice whilst it was being composed. Hear it next to the haunting serenity of Mozart's Twenty-third Piano Concerto with Louis Lortie as the soloist.
  *Kurt Masur* Conductor *Louis Lortie* Piano
  *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 23 *Bruckner* Symphony No 7
  

• Dvorák’s New World  

  Sat 7 Feb Symphony Hall

  Was there ever a more evocative, nostalgic work than the New World Symphony? Right from the opening bars it is clear that the composer’s thoughts were more of his beloved Bohemia than of the exciting city of New York in which he found himself. Rachmaninov also had his moments of homesickness after he moved to the USA, but the bubbly brilliance of his ever-popular Paganini Rhapsody makes it one of his most extrovert works. Sometimes musicians simply choose to ignore their surroundings: Prokofiev’s equally brilliant first symphony was composed, amazingly, against the stormy background of the Russian Revolution!
  Michal Dworzynski - conductor Alexander Kobrin - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Prokofiev: Symphony No. 1 (Classical) 15’ Rachmaninov: Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini 25’ Dvorák: Symphony No. 9 (From the New World) 40’
  

• Viennese Masters  

  Wed 26 Mar 2008 Symphony Hall

  For his second CBSO programme this season, Yannick Nézet-Séguin is joined by the great Russian pianist whose performances of Tchaikovsky’s Second Concerto created such an impression last season. Brahms’s great D minor Concerto is a work on a similarly epic scale, and is famous for its powerful exchanges between orchestra and soloist. In a similarly dramatic first half, Mozart’s best-known symphony is preceded by the Overture Beethoven wrote for Goethe’s play Egmont.
  Yannick Nézet-Séguin conductor Elisabeth Leonskaja piano
  Beethoven: Egmont • Overture 8' Mozart: Symphony No. 40 30' Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 42'
  

• Viennese Masters  

  Sat 29 Mar 2008 Symphony Hall

  For his second CBSO programme this season, Yannick Nézet-Séguin is joined by the great Russian pianist whose performances of Tchaikovsky’s Second Concerto created such an impression last season. Brahms’s great D minor Concerto is a work on a similarly epic scale, and is famous for its powerful exchanges between orchestra and soloist. In a similarly dramatic first half, Mozart’s best-known symphony is preceded by the Overture Beethoven wrote for Goethe’s play Egmont.
  Yannick Nézet-Séguin conductor Elisabeth Leonskaja piano
  Beethoven: Egmont Overture 8' Mozart: Symphony No. 40 30' Brahms: Piano Concerto No. 1 42'
  

• A Christmas Carol  

  Sat 20 Dec Symphony Hall

  It simply wouldn’t be Christmas without the CBSO’s celebrations, hosted this year by presenter Carol Smillie and featuring the CBSO and its massed choirs. Packed with festive music and your favourite carols, plus stories, readings and plenty of audience participation, these concerts are the perfect way to kick-start your Christmas holidays and put you in the festive spirit.
  Simon Halsey - conductor Carol Smillie - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus City of Birmingham Young Voices City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Pre-concert performance by CBSO Boys Choir on Level 3 Foyer at 2.30pm
  
  

• Friday Night Classics: Hollywood Divas  

  Fri 30 Nov Symphony Hall

  Big stars demand big tunes. Let Broadway diva Kim Criswell and the CBSO sweep you off your feet, as some of the most fabulous melodies ever written carry you back to a golden age of Hollywood glamour. Enjoy hit after hit after hit - from the showtunes made famous by Julie Andrews, Doris Day and Judy Garland, through to the silver-screen torch-songs of Barbara Streisand and Liza Minelli. _Over The Rainbow_, _Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend_, _The Trolley Song_, _Don’t Rain On My Parade_, _I Have Confidence_, _Feed The Birds_, _Maybe This Time_, _The Man That Got Away_ … you’ll never forget these songs - and you can’t resist the emotion.
  *John Wilson* Conductor *Kim Criswell* Vocalist *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• Haydn’s Surprise  

  Sat 28 Mar Town Hall

  Following an electrifying CBSO debut last season, Andrew Manze celebrates two of this year’s anniversary composers, in the Town Hall where so much of their music was heard in the Triennial Festivals and which Mendelssohn famously visited on a number of occasions. His Reformation Symphony combines Protestant and Catholic themes in a superbly fresh manner, while Haydn’s music is always full of surprises! We are joined by a well loved pianist for major works by both composers.
  *Andrew Manze* conductor *Angela Hewitt* piano *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  Haydn: Symphony No. 94, _Surprise_ 20' Mendelssohn: Piano Concerto No. 1 20' Haydn: Piano Sonata No. 52 in E flat 17' Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 5, _Reformation_ 33'
  

• New Year's Eve Gala  

  Wed 31 Dec Symphony Hall

  *SEE IN THE HOUR OF MIDNIGHT* Wiuth light-hearted fun from Special Guests *STRINGFEVER*
  John Hudson _tenor_ Richard Morrison _baritone_ Anthony Inglis _conductor_ London Concert Orchestra
  Symphony Hall’s annual celebration to greet the New Year with a burst of opera and an irresistible assortment of popular classics including: *Mendelssohn* The Hebrides Overture *Sousa* Liberty Bell March *Delibes* Prelude and Mazurka from Coppelia *Bizet* The Pearl Fishers Duet *Rossini* Largo al factotum *Walton* Crown Imperial *Vaughan Williams* Fantasia from Greensleeves *Di Capua* O sole Mio *Strauss* Thunder and Lightning Polka *Puccini* Nessun dorma *Elgar* Land of Hope and Glory *Arne* Rule, Britannia!
  

• CBSO Family Concert: Heroes and Villains - Matinee  

  Sun 15 Nov Symphony Hall

  Fly like a super-hero to Symphony Hall, as the battle between good and evil begins. From dashing princes and beautiful maidens in distress, to action heroes such as _Indiana Jones_ and _The Incredibles_, _Doctor Who_ and _Harry Potter_, our man-of-steel Alasdair Malloy will be fighting evil with the CBSO’s musical super-powers. With notes whizzing past faster than a speeding bullet in _The Ride of the Valkyries_, _The Dance of the Knights_ and more, join us to save the day, as we head up, up and away!
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Matthew Coorey* _conductor_ *Alasdair Malloy* _presenter_
  
  

• CBSO Major Thirds - Matinee  

  Thu 22 Oct Symphony Hall

  Wild landscapes, swirling mists, skirling pipes and Highland reels - they all feature in Mendelssohn’s gloriously romantic Scottish Symphony. No wonder it’s a personal favourite of the CBSO’s popular assistant conductor Michael Seal. En route, though, come two more romantic adventures: Beethoven’s stirring hymn to freedom, and the teenage Mozart’s courtly Third Violin Concerto - surely the most elegant concerto even he ever composed. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* conductor *Jack Liebeck* violin
  *Beethoven* Overture, Leonora No 3 14’ *Mozart* Violin Concerto No 3 28’ *Mendelssohn* Symphony No 3 _Scottish_ 40’
  

• Valentine's Day Love Classics  

  Sat 14 Feb Symphony Hall

  A superb concert of romantic classics for the day of classic romance, with a free Valentine's Rose for every couple in the audience.
  *London Concert Orchestra* *John Rigby* conductor *Nigel Hutchison* piano
  *Verdi* Prelude to Act 1 from _La Traviata_ *Tchaikovsky* Swan Lake Suite *Strauss* Roses from the South Waltz *Rachmaninov* Piano Concerto No 2 *Mendelssohn* Hebrides Overture *Delius* La Calinda *Offenbach* Overture from _Orpheus in the Underworld_ *Mahler* _Adagietto_ from Symphony 5
  

• Friday Night Classics: Bernstein on Broadway  

  Fri 3 Jul Symphony Hall

  Showman, maestro, composer and party animal, Leonard Bernstein was the ultimate musical all-rounder - and he just happened to write some of the best tunes of the 20th century. Carl Davis brings his own brand of Broadway pizzazz to this all-singing, all-dancing salute to Bernstein - from the anarchic comedy of Candide to the urban drama and sheer passion of West Side Story. With a line-up that includes Tonight, America, Overture to Candide - and, of course, New York, New York - it’s just one great tune after another. And with Lennie, Carl and the CBSO, it’s a helluva sound!
  *Carl Davis* conductor *Mary Carewe* vocalist *Sarah Eyden* vocalist *Graham Bickley* vocalist *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  
  

• Family Concert: Steps in Time  

  Sun 9 Nov Symphony Hall

  Time travelling across the musical universe is the theme for today’s family concert! Our own real-life Doctor Who, in the form of popular presenter Alasdair Malloy, will keep the CBSO stepping in time with a selection of dances from across the ages. So forget about two left feet and get with the beat in an afternoon packed with numbers conjuring up twinkling toes for waltzes, courtly dances, marches and sambas, including music by Walton, Mozart, Arnold, Dvorák and Piazzolla. Why not come along dressed as your favourite kind of dancer? FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS AND MUSIC in the foyers from 1.30pm
  David Danzmayr - conductor Alasdair Malloy - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• Tasmin Little Plays Mendelssohn  

  Thu 13 Mar 2008 Symphony Hall

  Making a welcome return to the CBSO, Tadaaki Otaka follows his gripping performance of Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony three years ago with the same composer’s final symphony, an equally luscious masterpiece written during his time in America. Rachmaninov’s sophisticated writing for the velvety strings of the Philadelphia Orchestra finds an English counterpart in Vaughan Williams’s timeless meditation on Tallis’s hymn tune. Following this, one of today’s best-loved string players gives us her account of Mendelssohn’s spirited concerto.
  Tadaaki Otaka conductor Tasmin Little violin
  Vaughan Williams: Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis 15' Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto 27' Rachmaninov: Symphony No. 3 38'
  

• CBSO Biss plays Mozart  

  Wed 16 Dec Symphony Hall

  This young American pianist has already built a formidable reputation for his accounts of classical and early romantic music; here he plays what Brendel calls _‘one of the greatest wonders of the world’_, a miraculous product of the 21-year old Mozart. Sibelius’s sweeping, passionate symphony has long been a Birmingham favourite, and Spano also introduces a work by one of the finest of the current amazing generation of Finnish composers.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Robert Spano* _conductor_ *Jonathan Biss* _piano_
  *Tiensuu* _False Memories_ (UK premiere) 16’ *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 9, K.271 31’ *Sibelius* Symphony No 2 42’
  

• A Pastoral Symphony  

  Tue 12 May Symphony Hall

  Like so many city dwellers then and now, Beethoven took great pleasure in escaping to the countryside, and captured these feelings in his Pastoral Symphony, premiered 200 years ago in the same concert as his fiery Fifth. Acclaimed Scottish conductor Douglas Boyd also takes us to the French countryside for a selection of Canteloube’s glorious French folk-songs, including the haunting _Baïlèro_, sung by one of our greatest sopranos. The imposing northern forests of Sibelius’ _Tapiola_ offer a darker view of the natural world.
  *Douglas Boyd* conductor *Joan Rodgers* soprano *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  *Sibelius* Tapiola 20’ *Canteloube* Songs of the Auvergne 25’ *Beethoven* Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral) 42’
  

• The Birmingham Foundation Christmas Carol Concert  

  Sat 1 Dec Town Hall

  This classic and fun filled carol concert is one of the first performances to be held at the newly refurbished Town Hall. Compered by broadcaster and journalist Adrian Goldberg and performed by the Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of conductor, Anthony Bradbury, the programme will feature such popular classics as Deck the Halls, Once in Royal David's City and O Little Town of Bethlehem together with other rousing winter tunes. We do hope that you will be able to join us for this spectacular evening that will raise funds for The Birmingham Foundation. The charity supports over 950 community projects each year, providing assistance to those in need, reducing crime levels and providing fresh lifestyle, support and career opportunities for young and old alike. Find out more at "www.bhamfoundation.co.uk ":http://bhamfoundation.co.uk
  
  
  

• Friday Night Classics: John Williams Blockbusters  

  Fri 10 Oct Symphony Hall

  No-one writes a big film theme like John Williams - no wonder he’s the world’s most popular living classical composer. And if you think his music is thrilling on the big screen, just wait until you hear it live at Symphony Hall - as the CBSO plays a blockbuster concert of John Williams’ very greatest themes from his signature edition scores.
  Michael Seal - conductor Tommy Pearson - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Including music from: Star Wars Schindler’s List Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone Superman Close Encounters of the Third Kind E.T. Raiders of the Lost Ark Olympic Fanfare and Theme JFK Munich Saving Private Ryan Jaws
  

• Bruch's Violin Concerto  

  Wed 11 Feb Symphony Hall

  The latest in a long line of outstanding young conductors to emerge from Finland, Pietari Inkinen makes his Birmingham debut with the youthful First Symphony by his compatriot Sibelius. The passionate sweep of this music ends a programme full of romantic ardour for the week of Valentine’s Day: Bruch’s timeless concerto is played by the CBSO’s leader, and a selection of Mendelssohn’s music for Shakespeare’s beloved romantic comedy provides a perfect companion.
  Pietari Inkinen - conductor Laurence Jackson - violin City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night’s Dream - Overture, Scherzo and Wedding March 20’ Bruch: Violin Concerto No. 1 26’ Sibelius: Symphony No. 1 38’
  

• Family Concert: All Aboard!  

  Sun 1 Feb 2009 Symphony Hall

  Hop on board as we launch into gear and jet off around the world for an incredible musical journey on planes,trains, automobiles and much more besides. This funpacked afternoon will have you going round the bend and looping the loop, as we thrill and swerve with fast rides and whacky races, and sail on the ocean blue. Be transported by music including Adams’ Short Ride in a Fast Machine, Villa-Lobos’ Little Train of the Caipira, Honegger’s Pacific 231 and more. Don’t miss the boat- buy your return ticket now, and join the CBSO as we go full steam ahead! FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS AND MUSIC in the foyers from 1.30pm. Why not come in fancy dress?
  Andris Nelsons -conductor Michael Collie - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics A Night at the Oscars 

  Fri 18 May Symphony Hall

  Charismatic conductor Carl Davis sweeps us through a glamorous evening of Oscar-winning soundtracks from films including An Officer and a Gentleman, The Godfather, West Side Story, The King and I, Fiddler on the Roof, Love Story, Cabaret, Out of Africa, Fame, Born Free, Singing in the Rain, Wizard of Oz, Yentl, Schindler's List, Dr Zhivago and The Lion King. Vocalists Mary Carewe and Simon Bowman return by popular demand to reawaken memories of the soundtracks to our lives.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Carl Davis* Conductor *Mary Carewe & Simon Bowman* Vocalists
  
  

• The Emperor Concerto  

  Thu 21 May Symphony Hall

  Premiered 200 years ago in 1809, Beethoven’s last and grandest concerto is a work on a truly epic scale, its torrents of notes providing the soloist with both a great challenge and a fantastic opportunity to shine, a task to which Birmingham favourite Freddy Kempf is well equal. 1809 was also the year of Mendelssohn’s birth, and we continue our bicentenary celebrations with his most popular and tuneful symphony. Finally, we stay in Italy for another of Tchaikovsky’s passionate tales of doomed love - this time, the lovers out of Dante’s Inferno.
  *Vassily Sinaisky* conductor *Freddy Kempf* piano *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  *Beethoven* Piano Concerto No. 5 (Emperor) 38’ *Mendelssohn* Symphony No. 4 (Italian) 26’ *Tchaikovsky* Francesca da Rimini 24’
  

• CBSO - Totally Tchaikovsky  

  6 July 2007 Symphony Hall

  No composer beats Tchaikovsky for drama, emotion and unforgettable tunes. The CBSO is thrilled to welcome young Chinese conductor Xian Zhang, making her Birmingham debut with a whole eveing devoted to the Russian master. From the sunny sparkle of Capriccio Italien, to the heady romantic sweep of the Fifth Symphony - with a guest appearance from the young British cellist Paul Watkins in the deliciously witty Rococo Variations - this'll be a concert to remember.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Xian Zhang* Conductor *Paul Watkins* Cello
  *Tchaikovsky* Capriccio Italien 16' *Tchaikovsky* Rococo Variations 18' *Tchaikovsky* Symphony No5 47'
  

• The Organ Symphony  

  Thu 2 Oct Symphony Hall

  There are few more thrilling sounds in all music than the 6,000 pipes of Symphony Hall’s magnificent Klais organ pitted against a full-strength CBSO, and Saint-Saëns’ ever-popular symphony is just the piece to show off this dynamic combination. The elegant classicism of Mozart’s serene concerto and Ravel’s fairy-tale miniatures should provide the perfect upbeat. The New York Philharmonic’s Associate Conductor Xian Zhang returns for her third visit to Birmingham.
  Xian Zhang - conductor David Saint - organ Michael Collins - clarinet City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Ravel: Mother Goose Suite 18’ Mozart: Clarinet Concerto 28’ Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 (Organ) 36’
  

• Mahler's Fifth Symphony  

  Thu 1 May 2008 Symphony Hall

  Portraying an epic journey from the darkness of its opening trumpet fanfares to its jubilant, Bach-inspired finale, by way of the tender Adagietto written as a love-letter to his wife Alma, Mahler’s Fifth has it all a whole world in one symphony. It has become a CBSO party-piece in recent years, and Sakari Oramo offers Birmingham audiences a last chance to hear his acclaimed interpretation as the Orchestra embarks on a major European tour that will embrace performances in Germany, Holland, Switzerland and Italy. Haydn’s cheerful concerto, played by a British cellist with a global reputation, offers a perfect upbeat. 1.15pm pre-concert talk
  *Sakari Oramo* Conductor *Steven Isserlis* Cello
  *Elgar* Cello Concerto *Mahler* Symphony No. 5 72'
  

• Shostakovich’s Fifth  

  Sat 6 Jun Symphony Hall

  Three composers on a learning curve. Shostakovich’s epic Symphony is a powerful music portrait of a great artist learning the hard way about tyranny. Composed at the height of Stalin’s terror, its triumphant finish is either a bitterly ironic comment on its times, or an heroic victory for freedom. Decide for yourself - either way, it’s a gripping journey. Britten’s ravishing song-cycle finds him at the start of a lifelong love-affair with the human voice - but it’s no less magical for it. And Mahler’s teenage Symphonic Prelude is a real find, packed with all its composer’s trademark drama and angst.
  *John Storgårds* conductor *Barbara Hannigan* soprano *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  *Mahler* Symphonic Prelude 10’ *Britten* Les Illuminations 23’ *Shostakovich* Symphony No. 5 47’
  

• Favourites from the Opera City of Birmingham Choir 

  Sat 17 May Symphony Hall

  A night of great passions, great music and great singing. From the splendour of Egyptian pomp, through haunting Sea Interludes, an entertainment for a Russian Prince, the heartbreak of the American deep south to the fiery passions of a Spanish Gypsy girl, all are here for a night to remember! The concert will end at approximately 9.30pm
  *Maureen Brathwaite* Soprano *Roderick Earle* Bass *City of Birmingham Choir* *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Adrian Lucas* Conductor
  *Verdi* Triumphal Scene from Aida *Britten* Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes *Gershwin* Porgy and Bess (Concert Version) *Borodin* Polovtsian Dances *Bizet* Concert Suite from Carmen
  

• Totally Tchaikovsky!  

  Wed 26 Nov Symphony Hall

  Tchaikovsky’s struggles with his personal demons left a mark on many of his works, and the dramatic Fifth Symphony of 1888 is one of the pieces in which positive forces ultimately seem to triumph over the darkness. Composed during the same year, the fantasy overture Hamlet is one of his three works based on Shakespeare plays. Andris Nelsons is also joined by his compatriot Baiba Skride for the tuneful concerto that represents the lighter side of Tchaikovsky’s art, and which they recorded together with the CBSO in Birmingham last year.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Baiba Skride - violin City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Tchaikovsky: Hamlet - Overture 19’ Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto 34’ Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5 47’
  

• Good Friday St Matthew Passion Birmingham Bach Choir  

  Fri 21 Mar 2008 Symphony Hall

  Utterly timeless in its emotional appeal, there are few who are not moved by the glorious music of Bach's St Matthew Passion, particularly in its majestic opening and closing choruses. Our Good Friday performances of this intense yet dignified telling of the events surrounding Easter are a well-established tradition in Birmingham. BBC Music magazine's Editor, Oliver Condy, explains why he has recommended today's concert: " If I were to name my one Desert Island Disc, it would be Bach's St Matthew Passion. A gigantic work of orchestral and choral perfection, it contains everything, from expressions of unbridled joy to movements that somehow describe devastating grief. Bach's abilities defy explanation."
  *English Chamber Orchestra* *Paul Spicer* Conductor
  *JS Bach* St Matthew Passion 180'
  

• Schools Concert: Romeo and Juliet  

  Fri 19 Jun Symphony Hall

  *The CBSO schools' concerts will feature a presentation and performance of Tchaikovsky's Fantasy Overture, _Romeo and Juliet_. Music from _West Side Story_ mentioned in earlier publicity will not now be included in the programme. Each concert will last for one hour* Shakespeare’s tragic love-story inspired many composers as well as young imaginations! Today’s concert specially devised for Key Stage 2 children (Years 3 & 4) features two pieces written in Russia and the USA almost a century apart. Tchaikovsky’s fantasy overture retains Shakespeare’s characters, while Bernstein’s musical West Side Story updates Romeo and Juliet to modern times and the streets of New York.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Tommy Pearson - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• Schools Concert: Romeo and Juliet  

  Fri 19 Jun Symphony Hall

  *The CBSO schools' concerts will feature a presentation and performance of Tchaikovsky's Fantasy Overture, _Romeo and Juliet_. Music from _West Side Story_ mentioned in earlier publicity will not now be included in the programme. Each concert will last for one hour* Shakespeare’s tragic love-story inspired many composers as well as young imaginations! Today’s concert specially devised for Key Stage 2 children (Years 3 & 4) features two pieces written in Russia and the USA almost a century apart. Tchaikovsky’s fantasy overture retains Shakespeare’s characters, while Bernstein’s musical West Side Story updates Romeo and Juliet to modern times and the streets of New York.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Tommy Pearson - presenter City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• The Emperor Concerto  

  Wed 20 May 2009 Symphony Hall

  Premiered 200 years ago in 1809, Beethoven’s last and grandest concerto is a work on a truly epic scale, its torrents of notes providing the soloist with both a great challenge and a fantastic opportunity to shine, a task to which Birmingham favourite Freddy Kempf is well equal. 1809 was also the year of Mendelssohn’s birth, and we continue our bicentenary celebrations with his most popular and tuneful symphony. Finally, we stay in Italy for another of Tchaikovsky’s passionate tales of doomed love - this time, the lovers out of Dante’s Inferno.
  Vassily Sinaisky - conductor Freddy Kempf - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Beethoven: Piano Concerto No. 5 (Emperor) 38’ Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 4 (Italian) 26’ Tchaikovsky: Francesca da Rimini 24’
  

• Sing Live West Midlands presents Sing Swing  

  Sat 25 Oct Town Hall

  From the Fabulous Forties to the present day revival, Sing Live West Midlands will have you on your feet dancing to the sound of the National Festival Orchestra Big Band and 150 singers from your area. You will instantly recognise the unmistakable Glenn Miller Sound, with the show-stopping Chattanooga Choo-choo, and also our tribute to Ol’ Blue Eyes himself, the Chairman of the Board, Frank Sinatra. Something for everyone as the Sing Live Wall of Sound grabs you and takes you into the era of Swing. £15, £17.50 Under 16s £9 Tickets available from Sing Live Booking office on 01609 780315 or Town Hall and Symphony Hall Box Office. Please note the 3.30pm show has now been cancelled
  
  
  

• Great Romantics  

  Sat 13 Dec Symphony Hall

  Last Christmas Sakari Oramo brought us all some seasonal cheer with highlights from The Nutcracker; this year it’s the turn of another of Tchaikovsky’s great ballets. It shares the first half with possibly the most popular of all piano concertos, played by the Russian pianist with whom the CBSO has made an acclaimed series of Rachmaninov recordings. Elgar said that his First Symphony expressed ‘a wide experience of human life with a great charity (love) and a massive hope in the future’ how better to celebrate the festive season?
  Sakari Oramo - conductor Nikolai Lugansky - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Tchaikovsky: Sleeping Beauty (highlights) 10’ Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 2 32’ Elgar: Symphony No. 1 52’
  

• Family Concert: Carnival of the Animals  

  Sun 19 Apr Symphony Hall

  Gallop, hop or slither your way to Symphony Hall, as today’s concert is full of music inspired by the animal kingdom. Join the CBSO as it travels through jungles, oceans, farmyards and forests, including Saint-Saëns’ The Carnival of the Animals with two- and four-legged friends from cuckoos to kangaroos, and Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. Roll up, roll up, and hear the elephants trumpet and roar in Stravinsky’s Circus Polka, but you had better beware of Rossini’s Thieving Magpie and Elgar’s Wild Bears! Why not come dressed up as your favourite animal? FREE CREATIVE WORKSHOPS AND MUSIC in the foyers from 1.30pm
  Michael Seal - conductor Tommy Pearson - presenter City of Birmingham Young Voices City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• Mahler's Fifth Symphony  

  Tue 22 Apr 2008 Symphony Hall

  Portraying an epic journey from the darkness of its opening trumpet fanfares to its jubilant, Bach-inspired finale, by way of the tender Adagietto written as a love-letter to his wife Alma, Mahler’s Fifth has it all a whole world in one symphony. It has become a CBSO party-piece in recent years, and Sakari Oramo offers Birmingham audiences a last chance to hear his acclaimed interpretation as the Orchestra embarks on a major European tour that will embrace performances in Germany, Holland, Switzerland and Italy. Haydn’s cheerful concerto, played by a British cellist with a global reputation, offers a perfect upbeat. 6.15pm pre-concert talk
  Sakari Oramo conductor Steven Isserlis cello
  Haydn: Cello Concerto in C major 25' Mahler: Symphony No. 5 72'
  

• CBSO Viennese Classics - Matinee  

  Thu 11 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  Light and shade in old Vienna. Schubert’s friends bet him that he couldn’t write an overture as good as one of Rossini’s, so he simply ran one off there and then! His sunny “little C major” symphony took rather more work, but you’d hardly know it; it positively bubbles with happiness - and, of course, those unforgettable Schubert melodies. It’s all a world away from Beethoven’s darkest and most powerful piano concerto - though you can certainly hear why Schubert hero-worshipped Beethoven above all his contemporaries. Expect conductor Andrew Manze, and hugely respected soloist Ronald Brautigam, to bring out all its drama and emotion.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andrew Manze* _conductor_ *Ronald Brautigam* _piano_
  *Schubert* _Overture in the Italian Style_ 8’ *Beethoven* Piano Concerto No 3 34’ *Schubert* Symphony No 6 35’
  

• Symphony Organ Concert Pipes and Percussion 

  Wed 18 Apr Symphony Hall

  The combination of organ and percussion is spectacularly effective and is explored in this concert by two of the UK's finest young performers. They will be joined by percussionists from Birmingham Conservatoire for a performance of Lou Harrison's uniquely eccentric Concerto for Organ and Percussion, featuring homemade instruments. *6.15pm - Free pre-concert talk* _International Concert Season discounts available for 60plus, disabled patrons, Birmingham Passport to Leisure, students and young people and groups. Plus our 'Kids go free' scheme. Please contact the box office for more details._
  *Clive Driskill* Smith Organ *Colin Currie* Percussion
  Bolcom Black Host Eben Landscapes of Patmos MaricBorrowed Time Xenakis Rebonds B HarrisonConcerto for Organ with Percussion Orchestra
  

• CBSO Nelsons Conducts The Firebird  

  Fri 24 Jul Symphony Hall

  Stravinsky’s The Firebird is one of the best-loved works in all music, conjuring a sumptuous fairytale world of glittering colours, enchanted melodies and blood-curdling thrills. Andris Nelsons’ first journey through this magical score with the CBSO is one of the most keenly-awaited concerts this year. And as a bonus, three of the world’s finest woodwind soloists - two of them real Birmingham favourites! - play three fascinatingly different modern masterpieces. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Margaret Cookhorn* _contra bassoon_ *Jonathan Kelly* _oboe_ *Pascal Gallois* _bassoon_
  *Woolrich* Falling Down (world premiere) 15’ *Strauss* Oboe Concerto 26’ *Berio* Sequenza XII for solo bassoon 18’ *Stravinsky* The Firebird 44’
  

• CBSO Great Romantics  

  Sat 28 Nov Symphony Hall

  Dvorák always insisted that he liked nothing more than listening to a Czech village band. And no wonder, if they sounded anything like the slow movement of his glorious Eighth Symphony. Forget the New World, this is Dvorák celebrating the old world with lilting tunes and utterly irresistible charm. Andris Nelsons sets the mood with another Slavic fairytale; Liadov’s ravishing _Enchanted Lake_, before joining pianist Nikolai Lugansky to scale the Everest of romantic piano concertos - Rachmaninov’s epic Third Concerto, premiered 100 years ago tonight and still as thrilling as ever. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Nikolai Lugansky* _piano_
  *Liadov* _The Enchanted Lake_ 7’ *Rachmaninov* Piano Concerto No. 3 44’ *Dvorák* Symphony No. 8 36’
  

• Jansen Plays Beethoven  

  Thu 15 Nov Symphony Hall

  The young British conductor Robin Ticciati has already achieved an international reputation in his early twenties, and tonight makes his CBSO debut alongside one of the world's great violinists, herself now a regular visitor to Birmingham. Dvorák composed his flowing, tuneful Third Symphony in 1873 when he was still under the spell of Wagner, so what better work with which to open the evening than the visionary prelude to that composer’s final opera? Free pre-concert talk 6.15pm 6.15pm pre-concert talk
  *Robin Ticciati* Conductor *Janine Jansen* Violin *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra*
  *Wagner*: Parsifal Prelude *Dvorák*: Symphony No. 3 *Beethoven*: Violin Concerto
  

• Romeo and Juliet  

  Thu 13 Nov Symphony Hall

  Popular CBSO guest Andrew Litton returns with a colourful programme featuring two brilliant musical responses to Shakespeare: Walton’s score for Laurence Olivier’s 1944 film of Henry V, together with highlights from Prokofiev’s ever-popular ballet (currently featured as the music for the BBC series _The Apprentice_) premiered six years earlier. Barber’s gloriously lyrical Violin Concerto, composed between these two works, receives its first-ever CBSO performance, played by a dazzling American soloist.
  Andrew Litton - conductor Anne Akiko Meyers - violin City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Walton: Henry V - Suite 15’ Barber: Violin Concerto 25’ Prokofiev: Romeo and Juliet (highlights) 50’
  

• Good Friday St John Passion  

  Fri 2 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  This year Symphony Hall develops the long tradition of its Good Friday passion performances by turning to Bach’s St John Passion. Enduring in its emotional appeal, there are few who remain unmoved by the glorious music. BBC Music magazine’s Editor Oliver Condy explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert: _“In a world that often recognises Bach’s St Matthew Passion as the composer’s greatest choral work, his St John has a tricky time getting a look in. But the St John contains some of Bach’s most colourful and emotional music…this concert will make for a poignant Good Friday.”_
  *Ex Cathedra Soloists,Choir and Baroque Orchestra* *Jeffrey Skidmore* _conductor_ *Nicholas Mulroy* _Evangelist_ *James Rutherford* _Christus_ *Greg Skidmore* _Pilate_
  *J S Bach* St John Passion 115’
  

• Lesley Garrett Christmas Gala Concert  

  Wed 9 Dec Symphony Hall

  Lesley Garrett, Britain's most popular soprano, presents a gala evening of favourite carols and seasonal songs to celebrate Christams as well as opera and classical arias from her most recent album _Amazing Grace_. Lesley will be accompanied by the English Chamber Orchestra and Manchester Camerata, conducted by Philip Ellis. The programme will include music by composers such as Mozart, Vivaldi, Puccini, John Rutter, Karl Jenkins, Bach, Verdi as well as some seasonal songs and carols for Christmas. Lesley has recently starred in _Carousel_ and _The Sound of Music_, appeared on television in _Strictly Come Dancing_, _Loose Women_ and _Comic Relief Does Fame Academy_ and sung with the National and Welsh Opera.
  
  
  

• CBSO Great Romantics - Matinee  

  Wed 2 Dec Symphony Hall

  Dvorák always insisted that he liked nothing more than listening to a Czech village band. And no wonder, if they sounded anything like the slow movement of his glorious Eighth Symphony. Forget the New World, this is Dvorák celebrating the old world with lilting tunes and utterly irresistible charm. Andris Nelsons sets the mood with another Slavic fairytale; Liadov’s ravishing _Enchanted Lake_, before joining pianist Nikolai Lugansky to scale the Everest of romantic piano concertos - Rachmaninov’s epic Third Concerto, premiered 100 years ago tonight and still as thrilling as ever. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Nikolai Lugansky* _piano_
  *Liadov* _The Enchanted Lake_ 7’ *Rachmaninov* Piano Concerto No 3 44’ *Dvorák* Symphony No 8 36’
  

• CBSO - Prokofiev & Shostakovich  

  Thu 21 Jun Symphony Hall

  Two of today's most exciting artists return to the CBSO for a programme with a distinctly Russian flavour. Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony is one of the composer's finest works and offers the composer's personal response to the deaths on the same day in 1953 of his great friend Prokofiev, also represented tonight by his superb Second Piano Concerto and his greatest enemy, Josef Stalin. One gets a deeply-felt elegy, the other a vicious scherzo � no prizes for guessing which! Copland's 1920s classic starts the evening in energetic style. PLEASE NOTE this concert is being performed on 21 June @ 7.30pm and 23 June @ 7pm
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Ilan Volkov* Conductor *Nikolai Lugansky* Piano
  *Copland* Dance Symphony 18' *Prokofiev* Piano Concerto No 2 31' *Shostakovich* Symphony No 10 48'
  

• CBSO - Prokofiev & Shostakovich  

  Sat 23 Jun Symphony Hall

  Two of today's most exciting artists return to the CBSO for a programme with a distinctly Russian flavour. Shostakovich's Tenth Symphony is one of the composer's finest works and offers the composer's personal response to the deaths on the same day in 1953 of his great friend Prokofiev, also represented tonight by his superb Second Piano Concerto and his greatest enemy, Josef Stalin. One gets a deeply-felt elegy, the other a vicious scherzo � no prizes for guessing which! Copland's 1920s classic starts the evening in energetic style. PLEASE NOTE this concert is being performed on 21 June @ 7.30pm and 23 June @ 7pm
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Ilan Volkov* Conductor *Nikolai Lugansky* Piano
  *Copland* Dance Symphony 18' *Prokofiev* Piano Concerto No 2 31' *Shostakovich* Symphony No 10 48'
  

• Last Night of The Spring Proms  

  Sat 28 Mar Symphony Hall

  A feast of uplifting classics crowned with a jubilant Proms finale.
  *London Concert Orchestra* *Stephanie Corley* soprano *John Marshall* tenor *John Pryce-Jones* conductor
  *Strauss* Die Fledermaus Overture *Verdi* Prelude to Act 1 & Brindisi from _La Traviata_; La donna è mobile from _Rigoletto_ *Dvorák* Slavonic Dance *Rossini* Galop from _William Tell_ *Puccini* O soave fanciulla from _La Bohème_ *Coates* Calling All Workers *Sousa* Semper Fidelis *Denza* Funiculi, funicula *Goodwin* Those Magnifient Men in Their Flying Machines *Tchaikovsky* Waltz of the Flowers from _The Nutcracker_ *Sullivan* _HMS Pinafore_ Overture
  

• CBSO Russian Masters  

  Sat 6 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  Stravinsky’s _The Firebird_ is one of the most popular of all ballet scores, conjuring a sumptuous fairy-tale world of glittering colours, enchanted melodies and blood-curdling thrills. It’s already become something of a signature-work for Andris Nelsons, so if you haven’t yet heard his interpretation, prepare to be astonished - and to be delightfully surprised by Liadov’s _Kikimora_, another Russian fairytale from the man who was originally supposed to write _The Firebird_. We welcome back the superb young Latvian violinist Baiba Skride, as soloist in Shostakovich’s powerful First Concerto.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelson* _conductor_ *Baiba Skride* _violin_
  *Liadov* _Kikimora_ 7’ *Shostakovich* Violin Concerto No 1 36’ *Stravinsky* _The Firebird_ 44’
  

• CBSO-Friday Night Classics: The Magic of MGM  

  Fri 4 Jul Symphony Hall

  Escape from it all this Friday - into the technicolour world of the legendary MGM musicals. The young British conductor John Wilson loves this music, so much so that MGM itself has hired him to restore some of these fabulous movies to their former glory. Tonight he shares his passion, with a night of sheer tuneful indulgance from the golden age of the Hollywood musical. Star vocalists Kim Criswell and Gary Williams join Wilson and the band for a show that features such hits as _Singin' In The Rain, Ten Cents A Dance, Somewhere Over The Rainbow, Get Happy, Can't Help Lovin' That Man, You Were Meant For Me, The Heather On The Hill_ - and, of course, _That's Entertainment_. Go on, spoil yourself!
  John Wilson - conductor Kim Criswell - vocalist Gary Williams - vocalist City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus City of Birmingham Young Voices
  
  

• Friday Night Classics: Best of Bond  

  Fri 21 Nov Symphony Hall

  Never mind if you didn’t get invited to the red-carpet premiere of Quantum of Solace - because the CBSO is always licensed to thrill. Whether your favourite Bond is Craig or Connery, Brosnan or Moore, this will be an allaction celebration with the best of 40 years of Bond themes. Featuring such all-time greats as From Russia With Love, Goldfinger, Diamonds Are Forever, Live And Let Die, The Spy Who Loved Me, For Your Eyes Only, Licensed to Kill and Dr No, as well as modern Bond classics including GoldenEye and Casino Royale, this is music guaranteed to leave you both shaken - and stirred. *We are sorry to announce that Carl Davis has reluctantly withdrawn from this concert due to a scheduled minor operation but Carl looks forward to performing with the CBSO on 6 February 2009. We are very grateful to Gareth Hudson who will replace him.*
  Gareth Hudson - conductor Mary Carewe - vocalist City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  
  

• Schubert’s Great  

  Thu 19 Mar Symphony Hall

  Always a favourite with CBSO audiences and players, the distinguished conductor Walter Weller returns for one of the greatest musical masterworks from his native Vienna, Schubert’s last completed symphony. Though never performed in the composer’s lifetime, it has since become one of his most frequently-performed works;Tchaikovsky’s equally well-known concerto also nearly never saw the light of day, its dedicatee denouncing it as ‘poorly composed and unplayable’. Well, pianists and audiences since 1874 have tended to disagree! *We are sorry to announce that Walter Weller has unfortunately had to withdraw from the concerts on 17 & 19 March as he is unwell. We are very grateful to Mark Wigglesworth for replacing him at extremely short notice.*
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Mark Wigglesworth* conductor *Sergey Kuznetsov* piano
  *Glinka* Ruslan and Ludmila - Overture *Tchaikovsky* Piano Concerto No. 1 *Schubert* Symphony No. 9 (The Great)
  

• CBSO Haydn 200: I  

  Tue 27 Oct Town Hall

  Beethoven may have been Haydn’s most rebellious student, but he never forgot what he’d learned. Beethoven’s Second is a flamboyant homage to Haydn from a young man in a hurry, a controlled explosion of wit, panache and pure creative energy. It’s the perfect complement to Haydn’s elegant concerto. And hear where Beethoven got his ideas, with one of the magnificent symphonies Haydn wrote specially for the British public: grandeur, humour, and a slow movement to die for! 6.15pm Free pre-concert talk: *The Player’s Perspective - Beethoven’s Second* CBSO violinist David Gregory reveals the inside story of Beethoven’s sunniest symphony. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Giovanni Antonini* conductor *Dejan Lazić* piano
  *Haydn* Symphony No 102 26’ *Haydn* Piano Concerto in D major 20’ *Beethoven* Symphony No 2 34’
  

• Wagner: Passion Beyond Reason  

  Wed 28 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  Andris Nelsons has already won great acclaim for his interpretations of Wagner’s operas in Riga, and next year he makes his debut at the Bayreuth Festival. For his first CBSO Wagner outing, he has chosen contrasting extended sequences from three of the composer’s greatest operas, culminating in the apocalyptic climax of the entire Ring cycle. Acclaimed Swedish soprano Iréne Theorin takes the roles of Isolde and Brünnhilde - two of the very greatest operatic heroines, both driven by a love more powerful than life itself.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Iréne Theorin - soprano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Wagner: Tannhäuser - Overture and Venusberg Music 24’ Wagner: Tristan und Isolde - Prelude and Liebestod 17’ Wagner: Götterdämmerung - Siegfried’s Rhine Journey, Siegfried’s Funeral March & Brünnhilde’s Immolation
  

• Carols by Candlelight  

  Sat 20 Dec Symphony Hall

  Herald Christmas in the most elegant way with this joyous concert of carols and seasonal classics presented with all the grace and charm of the 18th Century in an evocative candle-lit style setting. CAROLS FOR ALL including _Good King Wenceslas_, _God Rest You Merry Gentlemen_, _Once in Royal David’s City_, _Away in a Manger_, _Hark! The Herald Angels Sing_, _It Came Upon The Midnight Clear_, _O Little Town of Bethlehem_, _Unto Us Is Born A Son_, _The First Noel_.
  *Steven Devine* conductor *Laura Parfitt* soprano *MOZART FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA* in full period costume *MOZART FESTIVAL CHORUS*
  *Handel* Zadok the Priest, Let the bright Seraphim, Christmas sequence from Messiah *Mozart* Laudate Dominum *Corelli* Allegro and Pastorale from Christmas Concerto *Vivaldi* Gloria (Opening Chorus)
  

• IgorFest: Biblical Works  

  Wed 6 May Symphony Hall

  Though he was never especially strict in his Church attendance or attitudes, religion played an increasingly important part in Stravinsky’s output, and his later works based on Biblical texts are among his most profound and original. Tonight Sakari Oramo offers up four varied pieces based on Old Testament stories, culminating in Threni, Stravinsky’s extraordinary setting of the Lamentations of Jeremiah. There is also a New Testament counterpart in A Sermon, a Narrative and a Prayer. *6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Biblical Works*
  *City of Birmingham Syphony Orchestra* *Sakari Oramo* conductor *Roderick Williams* baritone *Exaudi* consort of soloists *New London Chamber Choir*
  Stravinsky: Babel 5’ Stravinsky: Abraham and Isaac 10’ Stravinsky: The Flood 24’ Stravinsky: A Sermon, a Narrative and a Prayer 15’ Stravinsky: Threni 30’
  

• Wagner: Passion Beyond Reason  

  Thu 29 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  Andris Nelsons has already won great acclaim for his interpretations of Wagner’s operas in Riga, and next year he makes his debut at the Bayreuth Festival. For his first CBSO Wagner outing, he has chosen contrasting extended sequences from three of the composer’s greatest operas, culminating in the apocalyptic climax of the entire Ring cycle. Acclaimed Swedish soprano Iréne Theorin takes the roles of Isolde and Brünnhilde - two of the very greatest operatic heroines, both driven by a love more powerful than life itself.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Iréne Theorin - soprano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Wagner: Tannhäuser - Overture and Venusberg Music 24’ Wagner: Tristan und Isolde - Prelude and Liebestod 17’ Wagner: Götterdämmerung - Siegfried’s Rhine Journey, Siegfried’s Funeral March & Brünnhilde’s Immolation
  

• Bach to Beethoven  

  Tue 27 Nov Symphony Hall

  British violinist-turned-conductor Andrew Manze is one of the stars of the period-instrument movement, acclaimed internationally for his original and dynamic interpretations of a wide range of music. For his CBSO debut he has chosen to perform, and to introduce from the stage, Beethoven’s delightfully witty Eighth, one of the few later works in which the composer seems entirely untroubled by his difficult life. Another leading British artist, Michael Chance, joins the Orchestra for one of Bach’s greatest solo cantatas, while the concert opens in extrovert style with Bach’s joyous Suite - the original home of the Air on a G String.
  *Andrew Manze* Conductor *Michael Chance* Counter-Tenor
  *Bach*: Orchestral Suite No. 3 *Bach*: Cantata No. 170 - Vergnügte Ruh’, beliebte Seelenlust *J C Bach*: Ach, Dass Ich Wassers gnug hätte *Beethoven*: Symphony No. 8
  

• Pure Gold  

  Tue 20 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  Unfairly derided by snootier critics as ‘more corn than gold’ on account of the composer’s successful Hollywood career, the lush music of Erich Wolfgang Korngold has won a huge audience in recent years. His 1945 violin concerto, which draws on three of his film scores, has become a particular favourite with violinists, while his music for a 1920 Vienna production of Shakespeare’s comedy also contains music of great charm and wit. Korngold’s father Julius was an important supporter of Brahms in Vienna, and his majestic First Symphony concludes a warmly romantic programme. 6.15pm Pre concert talk - Pure Gold Critic, biographer and blogger Jessica Duchen introduces the music of E.W. Korngold.
  Michael Seal - conductor Anthony Marwood - violin City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Korngold: Much Ado About Nothing - Suite 15’ Korngold: Violin Concerto 23’ Brahms: Symphony No. 1 45’
  

• Sci-Fi Symphony II CBSO Summer Concert 

  Tue 11 Sep Symphony Hall

  Symphony Hall: The Final Frontier. Back by popular demand, Carl Davis takes the CBSO on a fantastic journey through the greatest music ever inspired by space, science-fiction and fantasy. From John Williams' unforgettable themes for _ET_ and _Star Wars_ to highlights from Holst's spectacular odyssey through _The Planets_, and whether by Thunderbird or TARDIS, it's an out-of-this-world programme. Begin the count-down, engage warp-drive, and beam on board as Carl and the CBSO boldly go where no orchestra has gone before! (Please note: this concert is not part of the 2006/2007 CBSO Season, therefore tickets cannot be bought as part of a concert package or other promotion.)
  *Carl Davis* Conductor
  Sci-Fi Symphony II
  

• Schubert’s Great  

  Tue 17 Mar Symphony Hall

  Always a favourite with CBSO audiences and players, the distinguished conductor Walter Weller returns for one of the greatest musical masterworks from his native Vienna, Schubert’s last completed symphony. Though never performed in the composer’s lifetime, it has since become one of his most frequently-performed works; Tchaikovsky’s equally well-known concerto also nearly never saw the light of day, its dedicatee denouncing it as ‘poorly composed and unplayable’. Well, pianists and audiences since 1874 have tended to disagree! *We are sorry to announce that Walter Weller has unfortunately had to withdraw from the concerts on 17 & 19 March as he is unwell. We are very grateful to Mark Wigglesworth for replacing him at extremely short notice.*
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Mark Wigglesworth* conductor *Sergey Kuznetsov* piano
  *Glinka* Ruslan and Ludmila - Overture *Tchaikovsky* Piano Concerto No. 1 *Schubert* Symphony No. 9 (The Great)
  

• Rutter Conducts Rutter English Chamber Orchestra 

  Sat 7 Jun 2008 Symphony Hall

  John Rutter's Requiem has established itself as a classic. Its melodies and atmosphere speak directly and naturally to both audiences and singers alike. Hear it tonight conducted by the composer himself, with his own Cambridge Singers, alongside his recent Mass of the Children, the New York premiere of which made him the toast of Manhattan. Classic FM's Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight's recommended concert: _"John Rutter doesn't seem to stop for a moment. When he's not performing, composing or recording he's committed to grassroots music-making. This leading composer and conductor is a national treasure."_
  *John Rutter* Conductor *Cambridge Singers* *City of Birmingham Symphony Youth Choruses* *Joanne Lunn* Soprano *Jeremy Huw Williams* Baritone
  *Ravel* Pavane 5' *Rutter* Requiem 40' *Rutter* Mass of the Children 37'
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics: You Call the Tunes  

  Fri 21 May 2010 Symphony Hall

  This is your chance to nominate and vote for the music you want to hear! Tonight the CBSO plays the people’s favourites in a concert packed with Midlanders’ most-loved classical music. Look out for details on the CBSO website, and in CBSO podcasts and concert programmes during autumn 2009, to find out how to nominate your absolutely-must-hear pieces. The most popular nominations will then be voted on by CBSO fans ready for the performance in Symphony Hall on 21 May, culminating in the Midlands’ Favourite Classic for 2010. Following her success in the BBC’s conducting series _Maestro_, tonight’s presenter Sue Perkins will also step onto the podium once again to conduct the CBSO for one of tonight’s pieces. Sue Perkins appears professional contracts permitting. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Michael Seal* conductor *Sue Perkins* presenter
  
  

• Celebrating Messiaen  

  Fri 20 Jun Town Hall

  The Conservatoire’s end of year concert celebrates the centenary of the birth of Olivier Messiaen in tremendous style, while marking the end of the New Generation Arts Festival and the start of Messiaen 2008, a weekend of concerts and a major international conference devoted to the composer, hosted by Birmingham Conservatoire. Ranging from his first published orchestral work, the remarkable Les Offrandes oubliées, written when he was just twenty-one years old, to the musical souvenirs of Japan of Sept Haïkaï, the evening provides a glimpse of the diversity of Messiaen’s music. £10, 60 plus/Under 16’s/Unwaged £8, Students £2.50
  *Birmingham Conservatoire Symphony Orchestra* *Lionel Friend* conductor *Rebeca Omordia* piano *Colin Scott* piano
  Messiaen Les Offrandes oubliées Messiaen Sept Haïkaï Debussy Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune Messiaen L’Ascension Messiaen Oiseaux exotiques
  

• CBSO New Year from Vienna  

  Sat 9 Jan 2010 Symphony Hall

  Tap your toes into 2010 with the CBSO’s effervescent New Year celebrations in traditional Viennese style, featuring much-loved waltzes, arias and polkas. A concert to put a smile on your face and tunes in your heart! "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Barry Wordsworth* _conductor_ *Elizabeth Atherton* _soprano_
  *Strauss* _Die Fledermaus - Overture & Czardas_ _Tritsch-Tratsch Polka_ _Perpetuum mobile_ _Champagne Polka_ _Emperor Waltz_ _Egyptian March_ _Voices of Spring_ _Cuckoo Polka_ _Pizzicato-Polka_ _Thunder and Lightning Polka_ _The Blue Danube_ *Lehár* _Gold & Silver Waltz_ _The Merry Widow - Vilja Song_ *Suppé* _Overture, Morning, Noon & Night in Vienna_ *Kalman* _Gräfin-Mariza Czardas_
  

• Friday Night Classics: Chaplin’s Circus  

  Fri 3 Apr Symphony Hall

  Conductor, composer and entertainer Carl Davis is world famous for his new scores for classic silent movies; tonight he presents two of Charlie Chaplin’s greatest silent comedies, accompanied live by the CBSO with music that mirrors every action, gesture and emotion on the screen. The Circus was the most successful silent film of all time, and finds Chaplin’s Little Tramp stumbling into a hilarious new profession. And as for The Cure - well, one critic wrote that “in terms of sheer belly-laughs, it may well be the funniest movie Chaplin ever made”. Decide for yourself as Symphony Hall transforms into a giant cinema. One thing’s for sure though - silent movies have never sounded better!
  *Carl Davis* conductor *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra *
  *Davis* The Cure 23’ *Chaplin* The Circus 72’
  

• Century!  

  Thu 11 Dec Symphony Hall

  Today the musical world salutes the centenary of the birth of the great American composer Elliott Carter, the only major composer ever to reach his 100th year and still be creating new work. His new horn concerto is a perfect example of his art, and is played here by the CBSO’s own Elspeth Dutch. Tonight’s concert is actually a triple celebration of December 1908: the great French composer Olivier Messiaen was born just a day before Carter, and Elgar’s magnificent First Symphony had been premiered just a week before that. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Premiere! - Elliott Carter’s Horn Concerto Anthony Burton introduces the music of this great American survivor.
  Sakari Oramo - conductor Elspeth Dutch - horn City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Messiaen: L’Ascension 19’ Carter: Horn Concerto (UK premiere) 11’ Elgar: Symphony No. 1 52’
  

• Dvorák’s New World  

  Thu 5 Feb Symphony Hall

  *Please note today's matinee concert is going ahead.* Was there ever a more evocative, nostalgic work than the New World Symphony? Right from the opening bars it is clear that the composer’s thoughts were more of his beloved Bohemia than of the exciting city of New York in which he found himself. Rachmaninov also had his moments of homesickness after he moved to the USA, but the bubbly brilliance of his ever-popular Paganini Rhapsody makes it one of his most extrovert works. Sometimes musicians simply choose to ignore their surroundings: Prokofiev’s equally brilliant first symphony was composed, amazingly, against the stormy background of the Russian Revolution!
  Michal Dworzynski - conductor Alexander Kobrin - piano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Please note today's matinee concert is going ahead
  Prokofiev: Symphony No. 1 (Classical) 15’ Rachmaninov: Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini 25’ Dvorák: Symphony No. 9 (From the New World) 40’
  

• Russian Masters  

  Tue 29 Jan Symphony Hall

  Great tunes, grand passions, an epic scale • Rachmaninov’s Third Piano Concerto has quite rightly become one of the best-loved pieces in the classical repertoire. Tonight it is played for us by an outstanding young Russian-Israeli pianist, making his CBSO debut. CBSO Assistant Conductor Michael Seal frames the concerto with two other Russian works that have stood the test of time. Shchedrin’s Naughty Limericks is a subversive, riotously entertaining work that shocked the Soviet authorities at its premiere in 1963, while Shostakovich’s exuberant First Symphony, composed when he was still in his teens, has a darker, sardonic humour that is entirely typical of this composer. 6.15pm pre-concert talk
  Michael Seal conductor Boris Giltburg piano
  Shchedrin: Concerto for Orchestra No. 1 (Naughty Limericks) Rachmaninov: Piano Concerto No. 3 Shostakovich: Symphony No. 1
  

• Schumann & Shostakovich with Schiff  

  Wed 8 Oct Symphony Hall

  High romance and biting sarcasm - the superb Austrian cellist and conductor Heinrich Schiff makes a welcome return to the CBSO with a programme of extremes. Kurt Weill’s Threepenny Opera Suite is the ultimate in musical irony, irresistibly sarcastic, shamelessly sleazy and unforgettably tuneful. In Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto, though, the satire has teeth - it’s a punchy political drama driven by profound emotion. Schiff himself performs the solo part, before taking the podium to conduct Schumann’s noblest symphony - a world of romantic dreams and classical beauty, a million miles from the 20th century.
  Heinrich Schiff - conductor / cello City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No. 1 28’ Weill: Threepenny Opera - Suite 20’ Schumann: Symphony No. 2 36’
  

• CBSO New Year from Vienna - Matinee  

  Sat 9 Jan 2010 Symphony Hall

  Tap your toes into 2010 with the CBSO’s effervescent New Year celebrations in traditional Viennese style, featuring much-loved waltzes, arias and polkas. A concert to put a smile on your face and tunes in your heart! "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Barry Wordsworth* _conductor_ *Elizabeth Atherton* _soprano_
  *Strauss* _Die Fledermaus - Overture & Czardas_ _Tritsch-Tratsch Polka_ _Perpetuum mobile_ _Champagne Polka_ _Emperor Waltz_ _Egyptian March_ _Voices of Spring_ _Cuckoo Polka_ _Pizzicato-Polka_ _Thunder and Lightning Polka_ _The Blue Danube_ *Lehár* _Gold & Silver Waltz_ _The Merry Widow - Vilja Song_ *Suppé* _Overture, Morning, Noon & Night in Vienna_ *Kalman* _Gräfin-Mariza Czardas_
  

• CBSO - Benedetti Plays Bruch  

  Tue 26 Jun Symphony Hall

  The CBSO close their season in style with a popular programme in the company of two of this country's finest young musicians. Nicola Benedetti has already embarked on an international career in the three years since winning the BBC Young Musicians competition and for her CBSO debut she plays the piece which has topped the Classic FM Hall of Fame almost every year. The CBSO complete their survey of Dvor�k's last three symphonies with the most relaxed and genial of the trilogy and dynamic young conductor Joseph Wolfe also gives us the Suite from Tchaikovsky's greatest ballet score.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Joseph Wolfe* Conductor *Nicola Benedetti* Violin
  *Tchaikovsky* Sleeping Beauty Suite 22' *Bruch* Violin Concerto No 1 26' *Dvor�k* Symphony No 8 36'
  

• Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto  

  Wed 29 Oct Symphony Hall

  Bruckner’s majestic, spiritually uplifting symphonies are perfectly suited to the grand open spaces of Symphony Hall’s world-famous acoustics, and there are few symphonies grander than Bruckner’s Sixth, premiered by none other than Gustav Mahler. Mendelssohn’s effervescent concerto is on a far more modest scale, but its soaring melodies have assured it a firm place in the repertoire for more than a century and a half. It’s played tonight by the 2002 BBC Young Musician of the Year. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Bruckner’s Sixth Stephen Johnson, broadcaster and author of Bruckner Remembered talks about this great late-Romantic symphony.
  James Gaffigan - conductor Jennifer Pike - violin City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Mozart: The Marriage of Figaro - Overture 4’ Mendelssohn: Violin Concerto 27’ Bruckner: Symphony No. 6 54’
  

• Michel Legrand and his orchestra with special guest Alison Moyet  

  Mon 2 Feb 2009 Symphony Hall

  Michel Legrand has charmed audiences for generations with his music. He is the winner of three Oscars, five Grammy awards, and two Palmes d’Or. He has written the scores for numerous movie classics which include Yentl, The Thomas Crown Affair and The Umbrella’s of Cherbourg. Michel is an accomplished and innovative musician as gifted in the jazz milieu as he is with classical music and is one of the giants of popular song. Accompanying Michel will be the mellifluous Alison Moyet famed for her strong blues voice and award winning music career spanning 26 years; from mainstream pop group YAZOO, to solo artist, and more recently acting in the musical CHICAGO and the play SMALLER both in the West End. Winner of three BRIT awards and Grammy nominee, her latest album THE TURN was released in the UK in 2007 and the US in 2008.
  
  
  

• Sci-Fi Symphony II CBSO Summer Concert 

  Fri 31 Aug Symphony Hall

  Symphony Hall: The Final Frontier. Back by popular demand, Carl Davis takes the CBSO on a fantastic journey through the greatest music ever inspired by space, science-fiction and fantasy. From John Williams' unforgettable themes for _ET_ and _Star Wars_ to highlights from Holst's spectacular odyssey through _The Planets_, and whether by Thunderbird or TARDIS, it's an out-of-this-world programme. Begin the count-down, engage warp-drive, and beam on board as Carl and the CBSO boldly go where no orchestra has gone before! (Please note: this concert is not part of the 2006/2007 CBSO Season, therefore tickets cannot be bought as part of a concert package or other promotion.) *PERFORMANCE REPEATED ON TUESDAY 11TH SEPTEMBER*
  *Carl Davis* Conductor
  Sci-Fi Symphony II
  

• Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius  

  Sat 28 Nov Town Hall

  The story of one man’s journey from this world to the next, _The Dream of Gerontius_ never fails to sweep audiences away with its operatic immediacy. Originally premiered in Town Hall as a commission for the 1900 Birmingham Festival, these performances will be the first period-instrument rendition of _Gerontius_ that return to the score as Elgar conceived it. BBC Music magazine’s Editor Oliver Condy explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert: _“To hear Elgar’s undisputed masterpiece performed ‘at home’ by such distinguished musicians is a rare treat. Gerontius will surely be one of Birmingham’s autumn highlights.”_
  *Ex Cathedra XL Anniversary Choir* *Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment* *Jeffrey Skidmore* _conductor_ *Anna Stéphany* _mezzo soprano_ *Adrian Thompson* _tenor_ *Roderick Williams* _bass_
  *Elgar* _The Dream of Gerontius_ 100'
  

• Elgar's The Dream of Gerontius  

  Sun 29 Nov Town Hall

  The story of one man’s journey from this world to the next, _The Dream of Gerontius_ never fails to sweep audiences away with its operatic immediacy. Originally premiered in Town Hall as a commission for the 1900 Birmingham Festival, these performances will be the first period-instrument rendition of _Gerontius_ that return to the score as Elgar conceived it. BBC Music magazine’s Editor Oliver Condy explains why he has recommended tonight’s concert: _“To hear Elgar’s undisputed masterpiece performed ‘at home’ by such distinguished musicians is a rare treat. Gerontius will surely be one of Birmingham’s autumn highlights.”_
  *Ex Cathedra XL Anniversary Choir* *Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment* *Jeffrey Skidmore* _conductor_ *Anna Stéphany* _mezzo soprano_ *Adrian Thompson* _tenor_ *Roderick Williams* _bass_
  *Elgar* _The Dream of Gerontius_ 100'
  

• Chant d'Amour  

  Tue 20 May Symphony Hall

  There is nothing else in the whole of classical music to compare with the experience of hearing Messiaen’s amazing Turangalîla Symphony live. A larger-than-life tribute to the cosmic power of love, it features a massive orchestra and major solos for piano and ondes martenot, the other-worldly electronic instrument that was this composer’s speciality. It is conducted in the composer’s centenary year by Ilan Volkov, who has built a very strong reputation in large-scale 20th-century scores. We also begin a three-week Janácek focus with Taras Bulba, his stirring triptych telling of the battles and ultimate death of a Ukrainian Cossack hero. 6.15pm pre-concert talk
  Ilan Volkov conductor Steven Osborne piano Cynthia Millar ondes martenot
  Janácek: Taras Bulba 23' Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie 76'
  

• Chant d'Amour  

  Thu 22 May Symphony Hall

  There is nothing else in the whole of classical music to compare with the experience of hearing Messiaen’s amazing Turangalîla Symphony live. A larger-than-life tribute to the cosmic power of love, it features a massive orchestra and major solos for piano and ondes martenot, the other-worldly electronic instrument that was this composer’s speciality. It is conducted in the composer’s centenary year by Ilan Volkov, who has built a very strong reputation in large-scale 20th-century scores. We also begin a three-week Janácek focus with Taras Bulba, his stirring triptych telling of the battles and ultimate death of a Ukrainian Cossack hero. 6.15pm pre-concert talk
  Ilan Volkov conductor Steven Osborne piano Cynthia Millar ondes martenot
  Janácek: Taras Bulba 23' Messiaen: Turangalîla-Symphonie 76'
  

• CBSO An Alpine Symphony  

  Thu 28 Jan 2010 Symphony Hall

  Richard Strauss once boasted that he could depict a knife and fork in music - so when he sets out to paint the Alps themselves, you’d expect the results to be spectacular! His _Alpine Symphony_ is a vast, sun-drenched musical panorama - with everything from a trickling mountain stream to a mighty glacier, painted in music of dazzling colour and breathtaking power. Hear why Andris Nelsons has such a passion for this extraordinary score. Mozart was Strauss’s favourite composer, so his spirited 33rd Symphony and 24th Piano Concerto make the perfect musical _hors d’oeuvre_.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Martin Helmchen* _piano_
  *Mozart* Symphony No 33 19' *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 24, K491 31' *Strauss* An Alpine Symphony 51'
  

• CBSO An Alpine Symphony  

  Tue 2 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  Richard Strauss once boasted that he could depict a knife and fork in music - so when he sets out to paint the Alps themselves, you’d expect the results to be spectacular! His _Alpine Symphony_ is a vast, sun-drenched musical panorama - with everything from a trickling mountain stream to a mighty glacier, painted in music of dazzling colour and breathtaking power. Hear why Andris Nelsons has such a passion for this extraordinary score. Mozart was Strauss’s favourite composer, so his spirited 33rd Symphony and 24th Piano Concerto make the perfect musical _hors d’oeuvre_.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Martin Helmchen* _piano_
  *Mozart* Symphony No 33 19' *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 24, K491 31' *Strauss* An Alpine Symphony 51'
  

• Transfigured Night  

  Thu 19 Feb Symphony Hall

  The idea of transfiguration loomed large for late romantic artists, and these two masterpieces by Strauss and Schoenberg - although the product of composers who were just 25 years old - seem to sum up a whole lifetime’s experience in music that is among the most luscious ever composed. Schoenberg’s masterpiece for strings tells of a transfigured night in which a couple fall in love all over again. Messiaen’s more explicitly religious world-view provides the perfect complement: in his powerful piece for wind, brass and percussion he expresses his own deeply-held beliefs on the resurrection of the dead. And the concert climaxes with a chance to hear the CBSO and Andris Nelsons - already so admired in Strauss’s music - play the magnificent tone poem Death and Transfiguration.
  City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Andris Nelsons - Conductor
  Schoenberg: Verklärte Nacht 32’ Messiaen: Et exspecto resurrectionem mortuorum 26’ Strauss: Tod und Verklärung 24’
  

• CBSO The Pathétique  

  Wed 2 Jun 2010 Symphony Hall

  There’s really nothing in all music quite like Tchaikovsky’s _Pathétique_ Symphony. Tchaikovsky threw his all into this no-holds-barred musical autobiography; the result is a symphony that blends raw emotion and glorious melody to devastating effect. It’s gripping stuff - Andris Nelsons has it in his blood. And if you saw him conducting Tchaikovsky last season, you won’t need any further recommendation. Meanwhile, the CBSO’s wonderful section leader oboe offers a moment of tranquillity with Strauss’s gentle concerto. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk Pre-concert talk 6.15pm: *The Players' Perspective - The Pathétique* Violinist David Gregory, and CBSO colleagues, explore Tchaikovsky's final symphony.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Rainer Gibbons* _oboe_
  *Tchaikovsky* The Voyevoda 14' *Strauss* Oboe Concerto 26' *Tchaikovsky* Symphony No 6 (_Pathétique_) 45'
  

• Tchaikovsky’s Little Russian  

  Thu 18 Jun Symphony Hall

  After Hamlet in November, Andris Nelsons offers us another of Tchaikovsky’s responses to Shakespeare, a passionate fantasy overture based on the kind of story of doomed love to which the composer was naturally drawn. But Tchaikovsky is not always doom and gloom, and his Second Symphony uses folk music to create a tuneful work of great charm. Britten, a more openly gay composer than Tchaikovsky, nevertheless suffered his own share of inner torment - but in his Serenade we hear his acutely sympathetic response to great English poems from across the ages. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - The Little Russian Roderic Dunnett of The Independent gives a user’s guide to Tchaikovsky’s Second Symphony
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Elspeth Dutch - horn Toby Spence - tenor City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet 21’ Britten: Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings 26’ Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 2 (Little Russian) 33’
  

• Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel Please note: There will a support act for this event; Simon Le Fort. 

  Sun 8 Jun Town Hall

  After 34 years of touring the world, Steve Harley still says, "Playing Live is the biggest thrill there is. Every night is different. Every audience and every town have their own personality, and I am a relentless explorer". Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel will be appearing in a show that will cover a 12-album career, with tracks from each one. _The Human Menagerie_, the band's debut release, caused a sensation in 1973, with a 40-piece orchestra and 30-piece choir augmenting the band on Steve's mega-hit, the mysterious _Sebastian_ and the enigmatic _Death Trip._ The current release, _The Quality Of Mercy_ has been described by many as possibly the best album Steve has ever made. The list of hits is considerable, including _Judy Teen_, _Mr Soft_, _Here Comes The Sun_, _Mr Raffles_, _Love's a Prima Donna_, but the biggest of all is, of course, *_Make Me Smile (Come Up And See Me)_*. The song has been covered by other artists over 100 times, in several languages.
  
  
  

• Mahler's Fourth Symphony (matinee) CBSO 

  Wed 25 Apr Symphony Hall

  Mahler�s Fourth is on a comparatively modest scale after his enormous first three symphonies. But it still evokes passions along the way to its finale in which we hear a child (voiced today by a superb young Danish soprano) sing of the joys of heaven. Wagner also contrasted visions of heaven with rather earthier delights but in the Prelude to Lohengrin you hear his music at its purest, in a shimmering portrayal of the Holy Grail that is the opera�s subject. Sine Bundgaard also offers a further centenary tribute to Grieg via a collection of his most familiar songs. PLEASE NOTE this concert is being performed on Wednesday 25 April, 2.15pm and Thursday 26 April, 7.30pm
  Manfred Honeck Conductor Sine Bundgaard Soprano
  Wagner Lohengrin, Prelude to Act One 10� Grieg Solveig's Cradle Song, Solveigs sang, Det forste mode, Varen, En Svane Mahler Symphony No 4 55�
  

• CBSO Jansen plays Sibelius  

  Sat 7 Nov Symphony Hall

  Mendelssohn was one of music's great travellers - he even made it to Birmingham! And there's no better way to launch a concert than with his _Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage_: all the fun of his _Hebrides_ overture, but with none of the seasickness. And then we're off - first to the brooding northern landscape of Sibelius' impassioned Violin Concerto (with the stunning Janine Jansen as soloist), then to the sunlit Alipne meadows of Brahms' happiest symphony. Lullabies, horn-calls and jubilant trumpets all come together in some of the loveliest music Brahms ever wrote; charismatic guest-conductor Ilan Volkov should make an entertaining guide. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Ilan Volkov* _conductor_ *Janine Jansen* _violin_
  *Mendelssohn* _Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage_ *Sibelius* Violin Concerto 31’ *Brahms* Symphony No 2 39’
  

• CBSO A Soirée with the Labèques  

  Thu 18 Feb 2010 Symphony Hall

  It’s a real pleasure to welcome back to Birmingham the amazing Labèque sisters, for one of the most sparkling of all French pieces, Poulenc’s delightful double concerto. They also bring their uniquely gallic flair to Debussy’s masterpiece for two pianos, while rising French star Lionel Bringuier makes his CBSO debut conducting three very different orchestral showpieces from his homeland. Ravel’s sumptuous Spanish fantasy brings the evening to an exuberant finish.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Lionel Bringuier* _conductor_ *Katia & Marielle Labèque* _piano_
  *Berlioz* Overture, _Le Corsaire_ 9’ *Debussy* _En blanc et noir_ 16’ *Poulenc* Concerto for two pianos 20’ *Roussel* Symphony No 3 24’ *Ravel* _Rapsodie espagnole_ 17’
  

• IDRS 2009 Grand Finale Concert featuring New Mozart Orchestra  

  Sat 25 Jul Town Hall

  *International Double Reed Society* The Grand Finale concert of IDRS 2009 embodies the conference theme of the “old and new”, featuring performances by established artists whilst also celebrating up-and-coming talent with a performance of the Vaughan Williams' concerto given by the winner of this year’s IDRS Gillet-Fox Competition.
  *Clive Fairbairn* conductor *Omar Zoboli* oboe *Meyrick Alexander & Graham Hobbs* bassoon *Winner of the Fernand Gillet-Hugo Fox Competition for oboe* *Christian Schmitt* oboe *Carlo Colombo* bassoon
  *Mozart* Symphony No.23 (K.181) in D *Pasculli* Gran Concerto su I Vespri Siciliani arr. G.Zani *Nigel Treherne* Concerto for two bassoons *Vaughan WIlliams* Concerto for oboe *Haydn* Sinfonia Concertante
  

• Anton & Erin - Cheek to Cheek No judges, just dancin’ 

  Fri 16 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  Join Anton du Beke and Erin Boag from BBC’s ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ in a glamorous celebration of Ballroom and Latin song and dance. Accompanied by world salsa champions Chris Marques and Jaclyn Spencer, Anton and Erin will combine sophistication and seduction in an exhilarating mix of dance styles from the Tango, Rumba and Cha-Cha-Cha to the ballroom elegance of the Waltz and Foxtrot. Classic hit songs such as: *Fly me to the Moon*, *Take Five*, *Sing, Sing, Sing* and *It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing*, will be mixed with music from the Golden Age of Hollywood by *Irving Berlin*, *Cole Porter*, *Jerome Kern* and *George* and *Ira Gershwin*. The vibrant Latin influences of Kings of Jazz *Tito Puente* and *Perez Prado* will complete this heady evening featuring the best of music, song and dance.
  London Concert Orchestra conducted by Gavin Sutherland
  
  

• Inspired by Bach  

  Wed 22 Apr Symphony Hall

  More composers have been inspired by Bach than by any other composer. Tonight Andris Nelsons takes us to Brahms’ final symphony - with its finale based on music from a Bach cantata - by way of Berg’s highly expressive violin concerto - which quotes a Bach chorale at its emotional climax - and the tiny trumpet concerto in which Arvo Pärt incorporates the great man’s name. Elgar’s sumptuous arrangement of some genuine Bach sets the evening off in splendid style. 6.15pm - Pre Concert Talk - Inspired by Bach Stephen Johnson, presenter of BBC Radio 3’s Discovering Music, explores the hidden connections behind tonight’s programme.
  Andris Nelsons - conductor Isabelle van Keulen - violin Jonathan Holland - trumpet City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Bach (orch. Elgar): Fantasia and Fugue in C minor 8’ Berg: Violin Concerto 25’ Pärt: Concerto Piccolo on B-A-C-H 8’ Brahms: Symphony No. 4 42’
  

• CBSO The Pathétique - Matinee  

  Thu 3 Jun 2010 Symphony Hall

  There’s really nothing in all music quite like Tchaikovsky’s _Pathétique_ Symphony. Tchaikovsky threw his all into this no-holds-barred musical autobiography; the result is a symphony that blends raw emotion and glorious melody to devastating effect. It’s gripping stuff - Andris Nelsons has it in his blood. And if you saw him conducting Tchaikovsky last season, you won’t need any further recommendation. Meanwhile, the CBSO’s wonderful section leader oboe offers a moment of tranquillity with Strauss’s gentle concerto. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk Pre-concert talk 1.15pm: *The Players' Perspective - The Pathétique* Violinist David Gregory, and CBSO colleagues, explore Tchaikovsky's final symphony.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* conductor *Rainer Gibbons* oboe
  *Tchaikovsky* The Voyevoda 14' *Strauss* Oboe Concerto 26' *Tchaikovsky* Symphony No 6 (_Pathétique_) 45'
  

• Christmas Eve Classics  

  Wed 24 Dec Symphony Hall

  _A magical matinee to start your Christmas Eve celebrations._ This concert of glorious seasonal and traditional music captures perfectly the true spirit of Christmas.
  John Graham-Hall _tenor_ Paul Beniston _trumpet_ Birmingham Choral Union Staffordshire Childrens Choir Robin Stapleton _conductor_ London Concert Orchestra
  *Bach* Sheep may safely graze *Head* The Little Road to Bethlehem *Handel* Hallelujah Chorus from Messiah *Rutter* Shepherd’s Pipe Carol *Franck* Panis Angelicus *Adam* O Holy Night *Clarke* Trumpet Suite *Keonig* Post Horn Galop *Darke* In the bleak midwinter *Pachelbel* Canon *Bizet* Agnus Dei *Adams* The Holy City _plus_ *CAROLS FOR ALL* O come, all ye faithful God rest you merry, gentlemen Good King Wenceslas O little town of Bethlehem Hark! the herald angels sing
  

• The Glory of Christmas  

  Sun 23 Dec Symphony Hall

  This concert of glorious seasonal and traditional music for all the family perfectly captures the true spirit of Christmas.
  Daniel Norman tenor *John Pryce-Jones* Conductor *Angela Whelan* Trumpet *Birmingham Choral Union* *Staffordshire Children’s Choir* *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Bach* Opening Chorus from Christmas Oratorio *Bach* Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring *Handel* Ombra mai fù from Xerxes *Handel* Worthy is the Lamb from Messiah *Handel*Zadok the Priest *Haydn* Trumpet Concerto (Last Mvt) *Darke* In the Bleak Midwinter *Berloiz* The Shepherd's Farewell *Leopold Mozart* Sleigh Ride *Stanley* Trumpet Voluntary *Franck* Panis Angelicus *Adam* O Holy Night *Plus Carols for all;* Good King Wenceslas Once in Royal David's City God rest you merry, gentlemen While shepherd's Watched Hark! the Herald Angels Sing
  

• CBSO Favourite Mozart - Matinee  

  Wed 21 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  Robert Schumann just couldn’t help himself. He knew he was meant to be writing serious symphonies, but emotion kept getting in the way. With its heroic opening, imposing slow movement and beer-festival finale, his _Rhenish_ Symphony is more than just a joyous musical postcard from the sunny hills of the Rhineland - it’s an irresistibly exuberant self-portrait of one of music’s supreme Romantics. Mozart’s best-loved piano concerto makes a perfect complement. Call it the “Elvira Madigan”, call it Piano Concerto No. 21; the fact remains that it’s one of the most eloquent, most stirring and - yes - most romantic concertos Mozart ever wrote. And in the hands of the acclaimed young Finnish pianist Antii Siirala, you’ll know it.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Karl-Heinz Steffens* _conductor_ *Antti Siirala* _piano_
  *Schumann* _Manfred_ Overture 12’ *Mozart* Piano Concerto No 21, K.467 31’ *Schumann* Symphony No 3, _Rhenish_ 32’
  

• Carols By Candlelight  

  Mon 24 Dec Symphony Hall

  Reflecting the grace and charm of the 18th century, this exquisite concert of carols and enchanting festive music presented in an evocative candle-lit style setting is the most elegant way to usher in Christmas. Featuring Bach’s Air on the G String, Pachelbel’s Canon and carols for all including O Come, All ye Faithful, Good King Wenceslas, The First Nowell, Unto Us is Born and Once in Royal David’s City.
  *Robert Howarth* Conductor *Nicola Stonehouse* Soprano *Canzonetta Choir* *Mozart Festival Orchestra* in full period costume
  *Vivaldi* Gloria (Opening Chorus) *Bach* Air on the G String *Bach* Sleepers Wake *Arr. Cullen* Joy to the World *Arr. Cullen* Of the Father’s heart begotten *Handel* Christmas Sequence from _Messiah_ *Handel*Let the Bright Seraphim *Pachebel* Canon *Arr. Pearsall* In dulci jubilo *Mozart* Allelujah from _Exsultate Jubilate_ *Corelli* Allegro and Pastorale from _Christmas Concerto_
  

• Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique  

  Thu 15 Apr 2010 Symphony Hall

  _Symphonie Fantastique_ dramatises unrequited love. In this colourful score Berlioz depicted the fantasies of a spurned lover, ranging through a glittering ball, love in a meadow during the drowsy heat of the afternoon, an execution and a supernatural encounter in a churchyard at night. Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall, says of tonight’s recommended concert: _“Every year Classic FM asks you to vote for your favourite classical works in our Hall of Fame. One of the works I like to vote for each year is the Grieg Piano Concerto and one of my favourite recordings of it is by tonight’s soloist Jean-Yves Thibaudet.”_
  *Luxembourg Philharmonic Orchestra* *Emmanuel Krivine* conductor *Jean-Yves Thibaudet* piano
  Berlioz Overture, _Roman Carnival_ 8’ Grieg Piano Concerto 28’ Berlioz _Symphonie Fantastique_ 50’
  

• CBSO Festive Favourites with Alan Titchmarsh  

  Sun 20 Dec Symphony Hall

  Join the CBSO for its traditional Christmas concerts, hosted by a British treasure - the broadcaster, novelist and gardener Alan Titchmarsh. The CBSO and its massed choirs provide the perfect way to get into the festive spirit and kick-start your holidays. These celebrations are overflowing with Christmas music and lots of your favourite carols for all to sing - and the icing on the cake will be Alan sharing a selection of Christmas stories and readings from his seasonal anthology _Fill My Stocking_. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Simon Halsey* _conductor_ *Alan Titchmarsh* _presenter_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus* *City of Birmingham Young Voices* *CBSO Boys’ Choir*
  Following each of these concerts, there will be a Christmas collection for a different local charity, as voted for by CBSO employees. To be considered for inclusion, please contact Eve Smith at the CBSO via email at esmith@cbso.co.uk
  

• CBSO Festive Favourites with Alan Titchmarsh  

  Mon 21 Dec Symphony Hall

  Join the CBSO for its traditional Christmas concerts, hosted by a British treasure - the broadcaster, novelist and gardener Alan Titchmarsh. The CBSO and its massed choirs provide the perfect way to get into the festive spirit and kick-start your holidays. These celebrations are overflowing with Christmas music and lots of your favourite carols for all to sing - and the icing on the cake will be Alan sharing a selection of Christmas stories and readings from his seasonal anthology _Fill My Stocking_. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Simon Halsey* _conductor_ *Alan Titchmarsh* _presenter_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus* *City of Birmingham Young Voices* *CBSO Boys’ Choir*
  Following each of these concerts, there will be a Christmas collection for a different local charity, as voted for by CBSO employees. To be considered for inclusion, please contact Eve Smith at the CBSO via email at esmith@cbso.co.uk
  

• CBSO Festive Favourites with Alan Titchmarsh  

  Tue 22 Dec Symphony Hall

  Join the CBSO for its traditional Christmas concerts, hosted by a British treasure - the broadcaster, novelist and gardener Alan Titchmarsh. The CBSO and its massed choirs provide the perfect way to get into the festive spirit and kick-start your holidays. These celebrations are overflowing with Christmas music and lots of your favourite carols for all to sing - and the icing on the cake will be Alan sharing a selection of Christmas stories and readings from his seasonal anthology _Fill My Stocking_. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Simon Halsey* _conductor_ *Alan Titchmarsh* _presenter_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus* *City of Birmingham Young Voices* *CBSO Boys’ Choir*
  Following each of these concerts, there will be a Christmas collection for a different local charity, as voted for by CBSO employees. To be considered for inclusion, please contact Eve Smith at the CBSO via email at esmith@cbso.co.uk
  

• Last Night of the Christmas Proms  

  Thu 27 Dec Symphony Hall

  A rousing musical feast in true Proms tradition. Classic after classic including Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty Waltz, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue, Strauss’ Champagne Polka, and Ravel’s Bolero. Plus all your proms favourites such as Rule, Britannia! and Land of Hope and Glory.
  *James Edwards* Tenor *Viv McLean* Piano *Anthony Inglis* Conductor *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Offenbach* Orpheus in the Underworld Overture *Tchaikovsky* The Sleeping Beauty Waltz *Sousa* The Stars and Stripes Forever *Delibes* Mazurka from Coppélia *Dvorak* Largo from The New World *Brahms* Hungarian Dance No.5 *Bizet* The Pearl Fishers Duet *Gershwin* Rhapsody In Blue *Strauss* Champagne Polka *Grainger* Shepherd’s Hey *Ravel* Bolero *Plus* _Jerusalem_, _Hornpipe_ , _Rule Britannia!_ _Nessun Dorma_ , _Nimrod_ and _Land of Hope and Glory_
  

• CBSO Bruckner's Romantic  

  Wed 16 Jun 2010 Symphony Hall

  Inspired by the same idea of courtly romance as Wagner’s _Lohengrin_, Bruckner’s glorious Fourth is one of the finest of all Austrian symphonies, its evocative horncalls and soaring melodies perfectly suited to Symphony Hall’s cathedral-like acoustics. Henri Dutilleux also summons up ‘a whole distant world’ in his much-played cello concerto, composed for the great Rostropovich and played tonight by one of his greatest successors. It’s a gloriously vivid programme for the CBSO debut of Solihull-born conductor Jonathan Nott, who has established an enviable international reputation both in new music and in the Austro-German classics. Visit the "CBSO website":http:www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Jonathon Nott* _conductor_ *Truls Mørk* _cello_
  *Dutilleux* _Tout un monde lointain..._ 24' *Bruckner* Symphony No 4 (Romantic) 64'
  

• CBSO Festive Favourites with Alan Titchmarsh - Matinee  

  Sun 20 Dec Symphony Hall

  Join the CBSO for its traditional Christmas concerts, hosted by a British treasure - the broadcaster, novelist and gardener Alan Titchmarsh. The CBSO and its massed choirs provide the perfect way to get into the festive spirit and kick-start your holidays. These celebrations are overflowing with Christmas music and lots of your favourite carols for all to sing - and the icing on the cake will be Alan sharing a selection of Christmas stories and readings from his seasonal anthology _Fill My Stocking_. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Simon Halsey* _conductor_ *Alan Titchmarsh* _presenter_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus* *City of Birmingham Young Voices* *CBSO Boys’ Choir*
  Following each of these concerts, there will be a Christmas collection for a different local charity, as voted for by CBSO employees. To be considered for inclusion, please contact Eve Smith at the CBSO via email at esmith@cbso.co.uk
  

• CBSO Festive Favourites with Alan Titchmarsh - Matinee  

  Tue 22 Dec Symphony Hall

  Join the CBSO for its traditional Christmas concerts, hosted by a British treasure - the broadcaster, novelist and gardener Alan Titchmarsh. The CBSO and its massed choirs provide the perfect way to get into the festive spirit and kick-start your holidays. These celebrations are overflowing with Christmas music and lots of your favourite carols for all to sing - and the icing on the cake will be Alan sharing a selection of Christmas stories and readings from his seasonal anthology _Fill My Stocking_. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Simon Halsey* _conductor_ *Alan Titchmarsh* _presenter_ *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus & Youth Chorus* *City of Birmingham Young Voices* *CBSO Boys’ Choir*
  Following each of these concerts, there will be a Christmas collection for a different local charity, as voted for by CBSO employees. To be considered for inclusion, please contact Eve Smith at the CBSO via email at esmith@cbso.co.uk
  

• Tchaikovsky & Shostakovich  

  Fri 13 Feb Symphony Hall

  The Russian State Philharmonic has the music of their homeland running strong in their blood. And with tonight’s celebrity soloists, Julian Lloyd Webber and Tatyana Polianskaya, we can expect the powerful music of Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich to come to life in vivid technicolour: the illicit passion of Tchaikovsky’s Francesca da Rimini offset by the Mozartian elegance of the Rococo Variations; the brilliance of Shostakovich’s Second Piano Concerto in stark contrast to the despair and joy of his Sixth Symphony. Tickets £5-£37.50
  *Russian State Philharmonic Orchestra* *Valery Poliansky* conductor *Julian Lloyd Webber* cello *Tatyana Polianskaya* piano
  *Tchaikovsky* Francesca da Rimini 22’ *Shostakovich* Piano Concerto No 2 20’ *Tchaikovsky* Variations on a Rococo Theme 18’ *Shostakovich* Symphony No 6 33’
  

• CBSO Haydn 200: II  

  Wed 18 Nov Town Hall

  One of the stars of the period instrument music scene and now a leading opera conductor, Corsican-born Jean- Christophe Spinosi makes his CBSO debut with a sparkling programme featuring this year’s anniversary composers, Handel and Haydn. Two of the latter’s splendid Paris symphonies are separated by arias by Handel and Rossini, sung by one of today’s leading mezzos, acclaimed for her ‘Carmen’ at Glyndebourne. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Jean-Christophe Spinosi* _conductor_ *Rinat Shaham* _mezzo-soprano_
  *Haydn* Symphony No. 83 (The Hen) 26’ *Handel* Julius Caesar - Dall’ondoso periglio ... Aure, deh, per pietà 7’ *Rossini* The Thieving Magpie - Overture 10’ *Rossini* The Italian Girl in Algiers - Cruda sorte; Per lui che adoro 10’ *Handel* Xerxes - Ombra mai fù 3’ *Rossini* The Barber of Seville - Overture; Una voce poco fa 12’ *Haydn* Symphony No. 82 (The Bear) 26’
  

• Viennese New Year  

  Sat 3 Jan Symphony Hall

  Tap your toes into 2009 with the CBSO’s traditional Viennese concerts. With jubilant works by Mozart, and much-loved waltzes, polkas and arias by members of the Strauss family, let the CBSO whisk you off your feet to a world of dashing dancers and swirling ballgowns.
  Carlos Kalmar - conductor Gillian Keith - soprano City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra *We are sorry to announce that Mary Hegarty has unfortunately had to withdraw from the performances due to ill health. We are grateful to Gillian Keith for stepping in at short notice.*
  Mozart: La Clemenza di Tito - Overture Strauss: Acceleration Waltz Mozart: Exsultate Jubilate Strauss: Dragonfly Polka Strauss: Furioso Polka Suppé: Poet and Peasant Mozart: Idomeneo - Ballet Music Strauss: Village Swallows from Austria Strauss: Im Krapfenwaldl Strauss: Plappermäulchen! Strauss: Spial ich die Unschuld vom Lande (Fledermaus) Strauss: "Draussen in Sievering" (Die Tanzering Fanny Essler) Strauss: Anvil Polka Strauss: Blue Danube Waltz
  

• Viennese New Year  

  Sat 3 Jan Symphony Hall

  Tap your toes into 2009 with the CBSO’s traditional Viennese concerts. With jubilant works by Mozart, and much-loved waltzes, polkas and arias by members of the Strauss family, let the CBSO whisk you off your feet to a world of dashing dancers and swirling ballgowns.
  City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Gillian Keith soprano Carlos Kalmar conductor *We are sorry to announce that Mary Hegarty has unfortunately had to withdraw from the performances due to ill health. We are grateful to Gillian Keith for stepping in at short notice.*
  *Mozart*: La Clemenza di Tito - Overture *Strauss* Acceleration Waltz *Mozart* Exsultate Jubilate *Strauss* Dragonfly Polka *Strauss* Furioso Polka *Suppé* Poet and Peasant *Mozart* Idomeneo - Ballet Music *Strauss* Village Swallows from Austria *Strauss* Im Krapfenwaldl *Strauss* Plappermäulchen! *Strauss* _Spiel ich die Unschuld vom Lande_ (Fledermaus) *Strauss* _Draussen in Sievering_ (Die Tanzerin Fanny Elssler) Strauss: Anvil Polka Strauss: Blue Danube Waltz
  

• Handel’s Jephtha  

  Thu 15 Jan 2009 Town Hall

  250 years since Handel’s death, we return to the hall where so many of his works have been heard, not least as the cornerstone of the Birmingham Triennial Festivals. Jephtha, his last oratorio, is one of his very finest works in English, and tells the story of the great military captain who finds himself in conflict with God’s law as a result of a rash promise. Featuring a host of glorious arias and dramatic choruses, and with a leading cast conducted by Handel specialist Nicholas McGegan, this is a must for Handel fans. There will be one interval after Act One. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - Handel’s Jephtha Conductor Nicholas McGegan - in conversation with CBSO Events Officer Richard Bratby.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *City of Birmingham Symphony Chorus* *Nicholas McGegan* conductor *Paul Nilon* Jephtha *Dominique Labelle* Iphis *Diana Moore* Storge *Daniel Taylor* Hamor *Andrew Foster-Williams* Zebul
  *Handel* Jephtha 150’
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics: Rodgers & Hammerstein  

  Fri 2 Jul 2010 Symphony Hall

  July is bustin’ out all over - so celebrate the summer with the supreme masters of the Broadway Musical. Everyone knows the sound of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s music, and all your favourite melodies are here - sung by two modern legends of musical theatre. From _Climb Ev’ry Mountain_, _Oh What a Beautiful Morning_ and _You’ll Never Walk Alone_ to _Some Enchanted Evening_ and _The Lonely Goatherd_, one thing’s for sure; John Wilson and the CBSO will send you home whistling a merry tune! Pre-concert event 6.15pm: CBSO Boys' Choir gives a free performance in the hall. Visit the "CBSO website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *John Wilson* coductor *Kim Criswell* vocalists *Brent Barrett* vocalist
  Including music from: Carousel South Pacific The King and I The Sound of Music Oklahoma! State Fair Flower Drum Song Pipe Dream Cinderella and more!
  

• The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber  

  Sun 22 Mar Symphony Hall

  For many years the hugely prolific Andrew Lloyd Webber has not only dominated the theatre stage in the West End and Broadway, but he has also enjoyed unrivalled chart and commercial success. Having written some of the world's most covered compositions, in recent years he has taken on the role of mentor in television's _American Idol_, _How do you solve a problem like Maria_, _Any Dream Will Do_, as well as _I'd Do Anything_ Join The Showbiz Pops Orchestra, and four of the West End’s finest stars in an evening of excerpts from the musicals of the world's most successful composer - hear your favourites from _The Phantom of the Opera_, _Cats, Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar, Starlight Express, Sunset Boulevard, Aspects of Love, Tell me on a Sunday, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat_ and many other Lloyd Webber favourites. £22.50, £26.50, £30
  *Richard Ward-Roden* conductor Starring *Daniel Boys*, *Chrissie Hammond*, *Helen Hobson* and *Scott Davis*
  
  

• Randy Crawford and The Joe Sample Trio  

  Fri 28 Nov Symphony Hall

  The incomparable RANDY CRAWFORD and legendary jazz pianist/composer JOE SAMPLE Trio (featuring Steve Gadd on drums and Nick Sample on bass) will be arriving in the UK for their first show at the Symphony Hall. Randy and Joe’s excellent new album, No Regrets, is a collection of twelve great songs that showcase these cherished performers in their greatest light, performing classic songs in a smoky atmosphere of silky, soulful, jazz arrangements. Tracks include the classic Respect Yourself, a massive hit for the Staple Singers in the 1970s and cannily relevant today; Me Myself And I which was a huge hit for Billie Holiday in 1937; Everyday I Have The Blues a classic tune made famous by Joe Williams with the Count Basie Orchestra; Angel of the Morning, a huge hit for the great PP Arnold more than 40 years ago and more. £26.50, £28.50 To read the recent Telegraph interview with Randy Crawford "click here":http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/10/27/bmrandy127.xml
  
  
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics: Winter Wonderland  

  Fri 11 Dec Symphony Hall

  Take a sleigh ride into the CBSO’s very own winter wonderland, where the chestnuts are already roasting on an open fire and this Christmas, at least, is guaranteed to be white! A sumptuous spread of seasonal classics, beautifully gift-wrapped for you by the CBSO and West End maestro Gareth Hudson. Take time out from the Christmas shopping for an evening of pure musical indulgence.
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Gareth Hudson* _conductor_ *Annalene Beechey* _vocalist_ *Glyn Kerslake* _vocalist_
  Including: *Prokofiev* _Troika_ *Anderson* _Christmas Festival_ _Drivin’ Home for Christmas_ _Little Drummer Boy_ _Baby It’s Cold Outside_ _Mistletoe and Wine_ _Santa Baby_ _Winter Wonderland_ _Let It Snow_ _A Winter’s Tale_ _White Christmas_ _Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas_ _The Christmas Song_ _When A Child Is Born_ _Mary’s Boy Child_
  

• British Classics  

  Wed 1 Apr Symphony Hall

  Springtime in England, and what better way to celebrate it than with this delightfully tuneful programme? Some of these pieces are classics, others are the kind of melodies you’re always humming but can’t put a name to. Either way, they’ll come up fresh as a daisy under John Wilson’s sparkling baton. A fine British string player joins him for an afternoon of pure melodious pleasure. 1.15pm - Pre Concert Talk - John Wilson’s Light Programme. The conductor talks to Christopher Morley of The Birmingham Post about this concert of tuneful British rarities.
  John Wilson - conductor Lawrence Power - viola City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Holst: The Perfect Fool - ballet music 13’ Delius: On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring 4’ Walton: Viola Concerto 25’ Sullivan: Overture di Ballo 11’ German: Romeo and Juliet - Nocturne 5’ Farnon: Westminster Waltz 3’ Ketèlbey: Sanctuary of the Heart 4’ Elgar: Chanson de nuit 4’ Coates: The Three Men Suite 15’
  

• CBSO Brahms and Sibelius  

  Thu 14 Jan 2010 Symphony Hall

  Lots of composers have been given honorary degrees - but only Johannes Brahms responded by writing an overture full of student drinking songs! His _Academic Festival Overture_ is a hilarious one-in-the-eye for those who think of Brahms as stuffy - and so’s his gorgeous, deeply romantic Double Concerto. And then, conductor Vassily Sinaisky tackles two real CBSO trademarks. _The Swan of Tuonela_ is a darkly beautiful meditation on mortality; the mighty Fifth Symphony, meanwhile is one of 20th century’s most dynamic and life-affirming masterpieces - with a finale that will stay with you forever. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Vassily Sinaisky* _conductor_ *Laurence Jackson* _violin_ *Ulrich Heinen* _cello_
  *Brahms* _Academic Festival Overture_ 10’ *Brahms* Double Concerto 31’ *Sibelius* _The Swan of Tuonela_ - Legend No. 2 10’ *Sibelius* Symphony No. 5 31’
  

• CBSO Youth Orchestra  

  Sun 28 Oct Symphony Hall

  Tonight Michael Seal unleashes the orchestra's youthful energy on Carl Nielsen’s explosive Fourth Symphony. A torrential celebration of the unstoppable power of the life-force, it’s no wonder it’s dubbed _The Inextinguishable_! It should be a thrilling work-out for our superb young players. Seal also steers them through two more 20th-century showpieces - Rachmaninov’s much-loved Rhapsody, and the all-American high-jinks of Leonard Bernstein’s uproarious Divertimento. “A feisty performance from these excellent young players.” The Sunday Times, October 2006 *Please note Sakari Oramo has unfortunately had to withdraw from the concert due to illness. Michael Seal has kindly agreed to step in at short notice and will conduct the whole concert.*
  *Michael Seal* Conductor *Alexander Melnikov* Piano
  *Bernstein*: Divertimento *Rachmaninov*: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini *Nielsen*: Symphony No. 4 ( _The Inextinguishable_ )
  

• CBSO Friday Night Classics: The Wild Wild West  

  Fri 20 Nov Symphony Hall

  Big music from a Big Country! Join all-American maestro Carl Davis as he swings into the saddle to round up the very wildest tunes of the old West. From _The Magnificent Seven_ to _Brokeback Mountain_, all the classic Western themes are here - and a few new favourites too. Yee-ha! *Pre-Concert Talk* Friday 20 November, 6.15pm Music from the Movies - Wild Wild West! Film music aficionado Tommy Pearson talks to conductor Carl Davis about tonight’s concert. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Carl Davis* _conductor_
  Including Music From: _The Big Country_ _The Magnificent Seven_ _High Noon_ _Blazing Saddles_ _The Lone Ranger_ _Shane_ _Oklahoma!_ _The High Chaparral_ _Little House on the Prairie_ _Brokeback Mountain_ _Dances with Wolves_ _Copland’s Rodeo_ and more!
  

• CBSO Nelsons Conducts Bruckner's Third  

  Wed 25 Nov Symphony Hall

  Bruckner dedicated his Third Symphony to Richard Wagner - and there’s more than a hint of the _Ride of the Valkyries_ about this stirring, powerfully romantic symphony. Vast musical landscapes, hymns of triumph and moments of heart-breaking poetry - if you heard Andris Nelsons conducting Wagner and Strauss last season, you won’t want to miss his Bruckner. But the evening begins with the serene beauty of Wagner’s _Parsifal_ prelude - while Magnus Lindberg’s sparky Clarinet Concerto (played by the artist who inspired it) is like a dazzling firework display amidst all this teutonic grandeur. *Pre-Concert Talk at 6.15pm* Bruckner and Lindberg BBC Radio 3’s Stephen Johnson introduces tonight’s programme. "www.cbso.co.uk":http://cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Kari Kriikku* _clarinet_
  *Wagner* _Parsifal_ - Prelude 14’ *Lindberg* Clarinet Concerto 25’ *Bruckner* Symphony No. 3 54’
  

• In Love... With Renée Fleming  

  Mon 2 Nov Symphony Hall

  There are few more famous divas than soprano Renée Fleming, whose fame has soared into realms normally reserved for pop music superstars. The effortless ease of her distinctive tone brings a breathtaking sheen to every note she sings. She returns to symphony Hall after a break of six years in a programme on the theme of love. Classic FM’s Anne-Marie Minhall, says of tonight’s recommended concert: _"Renée Fleming is undoubtedly a soprano in a league of her own. The double Grammy winner is an outstanding solo performer. Don’t miss this chance to catch this world-class singer live.”_
  *Renée Fleming* _soprano_ *Royal Philharmonic Orchestra* *Charles Dutoit* _conductor_
  *Tchaikovsky* Fantasy Overture, _Romeo and Juliet_ *Tchaikovsky* Tatyana's Letter Scene from _Eugene Onegin_ *Prokofiev* Suite, _Romeo and Juliet_ *Puccini, Mascagni & Cilea* Italian Operatic Arias
  

• CBSO The Perfect Fifth - Matinee  

  Thu 10 Sep Symphony Hall

  Andris Nelsons launches the season in grand style! Beginning with the majestic prelude to Wagner’s sunniest opera, and finishing with the most famous symphony ever written, this is a concert to set pulses racing - and if you only know the first four notes of Beethoven’s perfect Fifth Symphony, trust us: you’re in for a wonderful surprise! Brahms’ dreamy Second Piano Concerto will be an oasis of calm at the evening’s heart - though with the superb young Russian virtuoso Arcadi Volodos at the keyboard, there’ll be no shortage of thrills either. 1.15pm. Free pre-concert talk: *Welcome to the Season.* Andris Nelsons introduces the new season, with CBSO Chief Executive Stephen Maddock. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Arcadi Volodos* _piano_
  *Wagner* _The Mastersingers_ - Prelude 9’ *Brahms* Piano Concerto No 2 44’ *Beethoven* Symphony No 5 36’
  

• Re-opening Concert Repeat Performance: Hallelujah!  

  Sat 20 Oct Town Hall

  A second chance to hear our stunning reopening concert! An outstanding line-up of local and national musicians performs Quincy Jones's Messiah:A Soulful Celebration - a classic from the Town Hall's Triennial Festival past in a pioneering gospel/soul re-imagination for the future. Dusting down another classic alongside that, Duke Ellington's brilliant big-band revisioning of Tchaikovsky's 'Nutcracker' Suite is sheer fun-loving genius.
  *Ruby Turner*, *Cleveland Watkiss* Vocals *Black Voices* (Carol Pemberton, Music Director) *Town Hall Gospel Choir*, *BBC Big Band*, *Soweto Kinch*, *Strings of the Reggae Philharmonic Orchestra* *Steve Gray* Musical Director *Ken Burton* Choir Director
  *Tchaikovsky/Duke Ellington*: Nutcracker Suite *Quincy Jones*: Handel's Messiah: A Soulful Celebration
  

• Central England Ensemble 'Town Hall Connections' Sibelius, Downes & Dvorak 

  Sun 1 Mar Town Hall

  Central England Ensemble presents three popular composers with strong links to Birmingham Town Hall: Dvorak conducted two of his world premieres here, The Spectre’s Bride (1885) and his Requiem (1897); Sibelius directed the British premiere of his Symphony no 4 here in 1912; Andrew Downes’ connections with the hall began as a chorister (with the CBSO under Harold Gray) and a counter-tenor soloist in the 1960s/70s, continued throughout the 1970s/80s with many performances of his Fanfare for a Ceremony at the Town Hall Open University ceremonies, and are confirmed in this concert with the world premiere of his Piano Concerto.
  
  *Central England Ensemble* *Anna Downes* Leader *Duncan Honeybourne* Piano *Anthony Bradbury* Conductor *Sibelius* Finlandia *Downes* Concerto for Piano and Symphony Orchestra (world premiere performance) *Dvorak* New World Symphony
  

• Elgar's 150th Anniversary City of Birmingham Choir 

  Sat 19 May Symphony Hall

  Classic fm's dynamic presenter, Natalie Wheen, traces the development of Elgar's compositional genius. Hear about those brilliant creative skills with performances of some of his earlier choral and orchestral compositions, culminating in his late, great and reflective choral ode, "The Music Makers", first performed in the Town Hall at the 1912 Birmingham Festival. Frances McCafferty, internationally acclaimed opera and concert artist, and the CBSO under Adrian Lucas' inspirational baton feature in this anniversary tribute to the Midlands' greatest musical son.
  *Adrian Lucas* Conductor *Natalie Wheen* Presenter *Frances McCafferty* Contralto *City of Birmingham Choir* *City of Birminham Symphony Orchestra*
  Programme includes: Give Unto the Lord Sursum Corda The Music Makers Pomp and Circumstance March No 6 (realised by Payne)
  

• No Place Like Home  

  Tue 30 Jun Symphony Hall

  The brilliant young Danish conductor Thomas Søndergård, making his second visit to the CBSO, brings with him the charming Flute Concerto by his compatriot Carl Nielsen, for which he will be joined by the CBSO’s outstanding flute section leader. The light-hearted side of the Danish character which Nielsen portrays here finds a good match in a tuneful suite by his contemporary Sibelius, drawn from the same patriotic pageant that also produced Finlandia. Dvorák was just as concerned as these two composers with reflecting national character through music, and his stirring Seventh Symphony is reckoned by many to be his finest orchestral work. 6.15pm Pre-concert talk - The Player’s Perspective - Dvorák’s Seventh. Introduced by David Gregory - CBSO violinist.
  Thomas Søndergård - conductor Marie-Christine Zupancic - flute City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
  Sibelius: Scènes historiques - Suite No. 1 20’ Nielsen: Flute Concerto 20’ Dvorák: Symphony No. 7 38’
  

• Opera Gala Night  

  Sun 30 Dec Symphony Hall

  Three distinguished soloists perform great arias from the world’s best loved operas.
  *Andrew Greenwood* Conductor *Linda Richardson* Soprano *Mark Stone* Baritone *John Hudson* Tenor *Birmingham Choral Union* *Fanfare Trumpeters of the Band of the Welsh Guards* *London Concert Orchestra*
  *Rossini* William Tell; _Overture_ *Gounod* Faust; _Jewel Song, Soldiers Chorus_ *Bizet* The Pearlfishers; _Duet_ & Carmen; _Toreador Song_ *Verdi* Il Trovatore; _Miserere_ Rigoletto; _La donna è mobile_ La Forza del Destino; _Pace, pace_ Don Carlos; _Friendship Duet_ Aida; _Grand March_ La Traviata; _Brindisi_ *Wagner* The Mastersingers; _Overture_ Tannhauser; _O Star of Eve_ *Dvorak* Rusalka; _Song to the Moon_ *Puccini* Madam Butterfly; _Humming Chorus_ La Boheme; _Ah Mimi_ Gianni Schicchi; _O mio babbino caro_ Turandot; _Nessun dorma_ Tosca; _Vissi d’arte, E lucevan le stelle_
  

• Beethoven's Eroica Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra  

  Fri 14 Mar 2008 Symphony Hall

  Christened by The Times as the "Volcano from Vladikavkaz" Tugan Sokhiev is the latest in a long tradition of dynamic young Russian conductors. Two of Beethoven's most powerful works make up his programme, the ground-breaking Eroica Symphony and smoulderingly tragic Coriolan Overture. Sarah Chang, one of the most sought after young violinists, is the soloist in the majestic sweep of Brahms's Violin Concerto. Classic FM's Anne-Marie Minhall says of tonight's recommended concert: _"Sarah Chang performing live is an event not to be missed. She's a dynamic violinist who always delivers. Beethoven tops and tails the concert and the epic Eroica was in fact the composer's own favourite symphony of the nine he produced."_
  *Tugan Sokhiev* Conductor *Sarah Chang* Violin
  *Beethoven* Overture, Coriolan 10' *Brahms* Violin Concerto 42' *Beethoven* Symphony No3, Eroica 50'
  

• IgorFest: Orpheus  

  Thu 30 Apr Symphony Hall

  We enter the final leg of our ground-breaking four-year Stravinsky cycle with a programme featuring two largescale orchestral works: the 1947 ballet Orpheus and the energetic, neo-classical Symphony in C. These frame a pair of religious works: what he called his ‘pocket requiem’, Requiem Canticles, and his exuberant arrangement of the music of J. S. Bach in Vom Himmel Hoch. Two of his many tributes to great contemporaries - in this case the writers T. S. Eliot and Aldous Huxley complete the programme. 6.15pm - Pre Concert Talk - The three final instalments of the CBSO’s epic journey through the complete works of Stravinsky - introduced by BBC Radio 3’s Anthony Burton
  *Jac van Steen* conductor *City of Birmingham Orchestra* *Ex Cathedra Choir*
  *Stravinsky* Orpheus 31’ *Stravinsky* Introitus - T. S. Eliot in memoriam 4’ *Stravinsky* Requiem Canticles 15’ *Stravinsky* Chorale Variations on _Vom Himmel Hoch_ 11’ *Stravinsky* Variations: Aldous Huxley in memoriam 5’ *Stravinsky* Symphony in C 28’
  

• CBSO The Perfect Fifth  

  Wed 9 Sep Symphony Hall

  Andris Nelsons launches the season in grand style! Beginning with the majestic prelude to Wagner’s sunniest opera, and finishing with the most famous symphony ever written, this is a concert to set pulses racing - and if you only know the first four notes of Beethoven’s perfect Fifth Symphony, trust us, you’re in for a wonderful surprise! Brahms’ dreamy Second Piano Concerto will be an oasis of calm at the evening’s heart - though with the superb young Russian virtuoso Arcadi Volodos at the keyboard, there’ll be no shortage of thrills either. 6.15pm. Free pre-concert talk: *Welcome to the Season.* Andris Nelsons introduces the new season, with CBSO Chief Executive Stephen Maddock. This CBSO concert is sponsored by Mitchells & Butlers. "CBSO Website":http://www.cbso.co.uk
  *City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra* *Andris Nelsons* _conductor_ *Arcadi Volodos* _piano_
  *Wagner* _The Mastersingers_ Prelude 9’ *Brahms* Piano Concerto No. 2 44’ *Beethoven* Symphony No. 5 36’
  

• Celebrating Nielsen: The Four Temperaments  

  Sat 10 Jan 2009 Symphony Hall

  For Nielsen, music was all about exploring what it means to be human. And this second concert in the CBSO and the Hallé’s joint Nielsen Symphony Cycle does exactly that. Nielsen’s extraordinary Second Symphony, “The Four Temperaments”, is a musical attempt to paint an entire personality in wonderfully colourful music; his deceptively tuneful Sixth is a musical self-portrait as haunting and unforgettable as anything by Mahler. To these masterpieces Oramo adds Nielsen’s picturesque tribute to the sun, and Prokofiev’s equally warm-hearted violin concerto played by an outstanding soloist. 5.45pm Pre-concert talk - Ni