PUCCINI

MONDAY 21 MAY 2018ST JOHN’S SMITH SQUARE

62ND SEASON2017/18

PIC TO COME HERE

COVER IMAGE: Edvard Munch’s painting The Sick Child (1885-86; detail) depicts the illness of his sister Sophie, who died of tuberculosis when the artist was 14. Their mother had already died of the disease. Photo: courtesy of the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Oslo

In accordance with the requirements of Westminster City Council, persons shall not be permitted to sit or stand in any gangway. The taking of photographs and use of recording equipment is strictly forbidden without formal consent from St John’s. Smoking is not permitted anywhere in the venue. Refreshments are permitted only in the restaurant in the crypt, which is open for licensed refreshments during the interval and after the concert. Please ensure that all digital watch alarms, pagers and mobile phones are switched off.

PHONE 020 7222 1061 ONLINE sjss.org.uk

PUCCINILa bohème

ST JOHN’S SMITH SQUARESt John’s Smith Square Charitable Trust: registered charity no. 1045390; registered in England; company no. 3028678. KSO: registered charity no. 1069620

MONDAY 21 MAY 2018 7PMST JOHN’S SMITH SQUARE LONDON

Interval 20 minutes (after Act II)

Mimì Monica McGheeRodolfo Nico DarmaninMusetta Hazel McBainMarcello Nicholas MorrisColline Tristan HambletonSchaunard Martin HässlerBenoît/Alcindoro Nicholas Folwell

Epiphoni ConsortWetherby Preparatory School Chamber ChoirKensington Symphony Orchestra (leader: Alan Tuckwood)

Conductor Russell Keable

An opera in four actsLibretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa

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TONIGHT’S PROGRAMME BIOGRAPHY

Cathedral, in Tuscany, central Italy, and he entered the Milan Conservatory in 1880, studying under Amilcare Ponchielli, who encouraged him to enter an opera competition. He did not win, and nor was his second opera well received, but with Manon Lescaut, in 1893, his reputation was established and his fame began to spread. La bohème and Tosca followed, and in 1904 came Madama Butter�y, which was a �asco at its �rst performance at La Scala in Milan, su�ering a hostile reception later described as a “lynching” by the composer.

In 1891, Puccini had acquired a house in the �shing village of Torre del Lago, where he lived with one of his former piano students, Elvira Gemignani, marrying her when her husband died in 1904. A lover of speedboats and fast cars, the composer survived a serious road accident in 1903. He later developed throat cancer, and although pioneering radium treatment in Brussels seemed to have been successful, he was so weakened that he died of a heart

GIACOMO PUCCINI’S 12 OPERAS, containing some of the most hauntingly tender and melancholy vocal music ever written, include, remarkably, three of the most popular operas in the repertoire, La bohème, Tosca and Madama Butter�y – to say nothing of the most performed operatic aria of all, “Nessun Dorma” from Turandot.

�e composer’s strength lay in the fact that his roots were deeply embedded in the bel canto tradition of his great Italian forebears, Bellini, Donizetti and Verdi. Always intensely aware of the musical developments happening around him, however, he was able to carry this tradition into the 20th century, absorbing elements of Wagner, Debussy and, in his later works, even Stravinsky and Schoenberg.

Four generations of Puccini’s ancestors had served as Maestro di Capella at Lucca

GIACOMO PUCCINI

1858-1924

Arturo Toscanini, who conducted the world première of La bohème in 1896, with the Vienna Philharmonic (around 1933 to 1937)

attack shortly a�erwards, leaving the �nal two scenes of Turandot un�nished.

Puccini belonged to no school and led to no others. But his sensuality, grasp of local atmosphere and understanding of theatre, along with his meticulous attention to orchestral and vocal detail, were unmatched. �

Life in the fast lane: Puccini loved fast cars

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SYNOPSIS

Tuberculosis sufferers are depicted in Alice Neel’s T.B. Harlem (1940; detail) and in Monet’s portrait (1879; detail) of his dying wife, Camille

ACT I A garret in the Latin Quarter, Paris, on Christmas Eve, 1830

�is is the home of the four impoverished bohemians. Rodolfo, a poet, and Marcello, a painter, are at work. As there is no fuel for the stove, Rodolfo burns one of his manuscripts. Colline, a philosopher, returns from the pawnbrokers, having failed to raise money; happily, Schaunard, a musician, brings food and fuel. But when Benoît, their landlord, suddenly arrives, they fool him into leaving without collecting the rent.

Rodolfo is le� alone to �nish his work when the others go out to their favourite café. �eir neighbour Mimì, a seamstress su�ering from consumption (tuberculosis), knocks at the door to ask for a light for her candle. As she is leaving, the candle blows out and she drops her

LA BOHÈME

Synopsiskey. �eir hands touch (Che gelida manina – Your tiny hand is frozen) and, a�er exchanging life stories (Si, mi chiamano Mimì – Yes, they call me Mimì), they realise that they are in love.

ACT II Outside the Café Momus, later that evening

�e square is �lled with a bustling crowd, and the bohemians and Mimì order food and wine. Musetta, a striking beauty, arrives with Alcindoro, a rich admirer. Musetta was once Marcello’s lover and, a�er her desperate attempts to attract his attention (Quando me n’vo’ – As through the street), it is clear that there is still a strong attraction between them. She eventually shakes o� Alcindoro, who is le� to pay the bill, and goes o� with the bohemians.

ACT III �e Barrière d’Enfer, one of the toll gates in Paris, on a snowy dawn the following February

Mimì, pale and ill, meets Marcello outside a tavern and con�des that Rodolfo’s jealousy is making life impossible. She hides when

Rodolfo appears and overhears him saying that he too is tired of their quarrels. Her coughing betrays her presence and they regretfully agree to part. On re-entering the tavern, Marcello catches Musetta �irting, and in the ensuing quartet (Addio, dolce svegliare – Farewell! Glad awakenings), they exchange insults, while Rodolfo and Mimì decide to stay together until spring.

ACT IV �e garret, that spring

Marcello and Rodolfo, both separated from their lovers, are pretending to work but are clearly missing them. Schaunard and Colline bring meagre food and the evening turns into a party. Suddenly, Musetta knocks at the door: Mimì is seriously ill and has asked to be brought to the place where she was so happy. She is helped in by Rodolfo, and the others go to �nd food, wine and medicine. Mimì recalls the time they �rst met and their love revives – but it is too late. As the others return and try to help her, she dri�s into sleep and dies. �

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TONIGHT’S PROGRAMME

bohème (Scenes of bohemian life), a blend of comedy, tragedy, humour and pathos, published in 1851. Mürger, a minor �gure on the Paris literary scene, regarded his Scènes, which were to bring him fame and fortune, as a mere potboiler. �ey depict the hand-to-mouth existence of struggling young artists and their joys and sorrows, a life the author had known as a young man. Consumption had taken a heavy toll on his friends and he was only 39 when he died.

Puccini started work in 1893 but made slow progress, the première taking place in February 1896 at the Teatro Regio in Turin, conducted by 29-year-old Arturo Toscanini, who was to become a champion of Puccini’s work. �e initial reception was lukewarm, but La bohème soon entered the international repertoire and is now one of the three or four most frequently performed operas.

Hiding Puccini’s tight musical construction behind what appears to be an inspired improvisation, the opera shows the composer’s skill in maintaining a constant interplay of

LA BOHÈME was the �rst of the three operas by Puccini for which Giuseppe Giacosa and Luigi Illica were the exclusive librettists, prompting the composer’s publisher, Giulio Ricordi, to refer to the trio as the “Holy Trinity”. Illica created the scenario while Giacosa was responsible for the poetic verse, but Puccini, with his extraordinary sense of theatre, took an active part in the shaping of his librettos.

�ere were many quarrels, but in La bohème, they created what is perhaps Puccini’s masterpiece. �e critic Mosco Carner described it as “the �rst opera in history to achieve an almost perfect fusion of romantic and realistic elements with Impressionist features. Puccini speaks for the �rst time wholly in his own voice… the dramatist has completely caught up with the musician.”

�e libretto was based on Henry Mürger’s autobiographical sketches Scènes de la vie de

action, character and atmosphere – and the string of hits has contributed to its enduring appeal. Even so French a Frenchman as Debussy, no admirer of Puccini, had to admit that “if one did not keep a grip on oneself, one would be swept away by the sheer verve of the music; I know of no one who has described the Paris of that time as well as Puccini”.

As so o�en in the composer’s work, Act One is the longest and most musically concentrated, dividing into two distinct halves. With its bustling character and snappy rhythms, the �rst half is almost like a scherzo, dominated by two themes that represent the bohemians and Rodolfo. But there are some self-contained episodes, such as the depiction of the �ames, which suggests bitonality (two keys at once), and

‘In this opera, Puccini speaks for the first time wholly in his own voice’Critic Mosco Carner

PUCCINI

La bohème (1895)

Adolfo Hohenstein’s original poster (1896) and the film director Baz Luhrmann’s Tony Award-winning La bohème on Broadway in 2002

MAY 2018 7

GIACOMO PUCCINI 1858-1924

a so� glow”. As the love scene unfolds, strings rather than woodwind dominate, sustained melody replaces the quick�re exchanges of the bohemians and the tonality becomes more settled. �e music tells us that Mimì and Rodolfo are falling in love, a scene that is all the more moving because of its delicacy and restraint. It ends in “muted ecstasy”, with the hushed orchestra playing Che gelida manina (Your tiny hand is frozen), dolcissimo.

�e full force of three bright trumpets opens Act Two, which alternates a vivid depiction of Christmas Eve in a Parisian boulevard with more lyrical episodes in which the bohemians come to the fore. Eventually, the crowd and the soloists are united in a military tattoo. In between, Musetta’s alluring waltz, later repeated as a sextet, forms a lyrical core.

Act �ree opens with an atmospheric evocation of a cold Parisian dawn: continuous bare ��hs in the cellos with parallel ��hs in the �ute and harp suggest both falling snow�akes and the winter of the heart. In the concluding farewell,

The 1996 smash-hit musical Rent (left) is loosely based on La bohème. Right, the late Australian artist Vali Myers in bohemian Paris, in 1954

the Christmas Eve song, which resembles a Medieval French carol with its parallel ��hs.

When Mimì knocks timidly at the door, her theme instantly transforms the mood; Mosco Carner observes that “the brilliant, gay lights of the �rst half are turned down to

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FABIAN WATKINSONProgramme notes: © the author, 2018

‘No one has described the Paris of that time as well as Puccini’Claude Debussy

The Café Momus in Paris, around 1865

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Mimì and Rodolfo’s duet is turned into a quartet by the addition of Musetta and Marcello’s furious patter. But it ends in a mood of tranquil rapture, with Mimì and Rodolfo walking o� hand in hand.

Like the �rst act, the �nal act falls into two halves, but now the bohemians’ gaiety seems forced, depicted by Puccini’s more strident scoring. �e horseplay and fun are at their height when Musetta appears with the desperately ill Mimì; the smile instantly drops from the music, which becomes more poignant than anywhere else in the opera, with heartbreaking reminders of the themes heard when Mimì and Rodolfo �rst met. �

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ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES

SOPRANO MONICA MCGHEE is a graduate of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) and the Royal College of Music (RCM), having graduated with distinction from the RCM’s Masters course in vocal performance. She studies with fellow Scottish soprano Marie McLaughlin.

Her operatic work includes Frasquita (cover) for Scottish Opera’s Carmen, Giannetta and Adina (cover) in Donizetti’s �e Elixir of Love for Haddo House Opera, Gretel for Bloomsbury Opera and Gherardino in an RSAMD/Scottish Opera production of Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi. In 2016, she created the role of the Wise Woman in the world première of Philip Sunderland’s opera �e Glass Knight at Sa�ron Hall.

More recent engagements include Gontran in Chabrier’s Une éducation manquée for

MONICA MCGHEE

MimìPop-Up Opera and Leila in Bizet’s Les pêcheurs de perles for Opera Bohemia.

Monica works frequently at English National Opera (ENO), where highlights include singing Cio-Cio-San for the ENO’s Baylis Projects and Violetta in a West End Live performance in 2017. She sang in the Royal Opera House’s production of Enescu’s Oedipe and returns for Wagner’s Lohengrin this summer.

Monica has appeared as a soloist at some of the country’s leading venues, including the Royal Albert Hall and the Barbican Centre in London, Symphony Hall in Birmingham and Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall.

Competition success includes her appearances as a �nalist in the Les Azuriales competition in 2011 and 2014 and as a �nalist in the prestigious Chilcott Award in 2016. �

THE MALTESE TENOR Nico Darmanin made his solo debut for the Royal Opera in 2013/14 as Daniéli in Verdi’s Les Vêpres siciliennes, returning later that season as the Apparition of a Youth in Richard Strauss’s Die Frau ohne Schatten. He previously appeared for the Royal Opera as a student, in 2009, in Donizetti’s Linda di Chamounix. He has sung in a masterclass given by Joyce DiDonato for the Royal Opera House’s Insights programme and returned to the venue to sing Daniéli in 2017.

Nico studied at London’s Royal College of Music, with Rosa Mannion, and at the National Opera Studio. He was a �nalist in the BBC Cardi� Singer of the World competition in 2015. Nico is a Rossini and bel canto specialist, and his operatic appearances in this repertoire include Don Ramiro in La Cenerentola for Scottish

NICO DARMANIN

RodolfoOpera and Opera Holland Park, Bel�ore in Il viaggio a Reims for the Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, Italy, Count Almaviva in �e Barber of Seville for Welsh National Opera and Opera Holland Park, and the title role in Le comte Ory for Dorset Opera.

Other appearances include the Italian Tenor in Der Rosenkavalier and Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni for Opera Vlaanderen, Don Ottavio for Nederlandse Reisopera and Mérgy in Hérold’s Le pré aux clercs for Wexford Festival Opera.

Nico’s concert appearances include recitals in the US for Arts Council Malta, Beethoven’s Symphony No.9 at London’s Barbican Centre and Handel’s Messiah at the Royal Festival Hall. He has also sung in a masterclass given by Juan Diego Flórez at the Rossini Opera Festival. �

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THE SOLOISTS

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HAZEL MCBAIN is a Scottish soprano who recently graduated with distinction from the opera course at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, under the tuition of Wilma MacDougall. Upon graduating, she received the Ian Smith of Stornoway Award. Hazel previously graduated with �rst-class honours from the Royal College of Music, where she studied with Kathleen Livingstone. In 2016/17, she was an Emerging Artist at Scottish Opera.

Recent engagements include Susanna in �e Marriage of Figaro (Garsington Opera’s Alvarez performances), Fräulein Bürstner/Leni in Philip Glass’s �e Trial, Caterina in Mascagni’s L’amico Fritz and Giannetta in �e Elixir of Love (Scottish Opera), Musetta in La bohème (Opera Bohemia and Edinburgh Grand Opera), Vixen in �e Cunning Little Vixen (British Youth Opera), Constance in Poulenc’s Dialogues des

HAZEL MCBAIN

Musetta

BARITONE NICHOLAS MORRIS trained at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. �is season, he will perform in the world première of To See the Invisible by Emily Howard at the Aldeburgh Festival, and has played Garibaldo in Rodelinda for the Cambridge Handel Opera Company.

In 2017, he made his debut in Croatia as Smirnov in Walton’s �e Bear and performed in the Portuguese and British premières of Hummus by Zad Moultaka with Opera Lab Europe. In recent seasons, he has sung Peter Maxwell Davies’s Eight Songs for a Mad King and has appeared as �e O�cer in Philip Glass’s In the Penal Colony with Shadwell Opera, also making his debut at Sadler’s Wells with Independent Opera.

Nicholas has sung Harlekin in Richard Strauss’s Ariadne auf Naxos, Count Almaviva in �e

NICHOLAS MORRIS

MarcelloMarriage of Figaro, Don Giovanni, Emperor Überall in Viktor Ullmann’s �e Emperor of Atlantis, Junius in Britten’s �e Rape of Lucretia and Dancairo and Escamillo in Carmen. For Wexford Festival Opera, he has played �e Learned Judge in Arthur Sullivan’s Trial by Jury and Andy Tracy in the European première of Losers by Richard Wargo, in addition to roles in Antoine Mariotte’s Salomé and Nino Rota’s Il cappello di paglia di Firenze. For Glyndebourne, he has sung Footman/Waiter in Der Rosenkavalier and Gunner’s Mate in Britten’s Billy Budd in the UK and New York.

Nicholas studied at Jesus College, Cambridge, where, when not singing or playing rugby, he read history and philosophy of science. While at Cambridge, he was a member of King’s College Choir. He began his singing career as a chorister at Peterborough Cathedral. �

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Carmélites (Scottish Ballet) and Papagena in �e Magic Flute, Servilia in La clemenza di Tito, Minerva in Monteverdi’s Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria, Lisette in Puccini’s La rondine and Anne Page in Vaughan Williams’s Sir John in Love (Royal Conservatoire of Scotland). She has covered Despina in Così fan tutte (Scottish Opera) and Elvira in Rossini’s L’italiana in Algiri (Garsington Opera).

�is season, Hazel sings Mademoiselle Silberklang in Mozart’s Der Schauspieldirektor (Pop-Up Opera), Sophie in the world première of Matthew Whiteside’s Little Black Lies and excerpts of Anne Trulove in �e Rake’s Progress (Scottish Opera Connect) and Nannetta in Falsta� (Opera Bohemia). She will make her English National Opera debut in 2019.

Hazel is grateful to the Gillespie Trust for its continued support. �

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ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES THE SOLOISTS

BASS-BARITONE TRISTAN HAMBLETON studied at St John’s College, Cambridge, Heidelberg University and the Royal Academy of Music, London.

A keen recitalist, Tristan has performed in venues such as London’s Wigmore Hall and the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam. Recent performances include Angelotti in Tosca for Nevill Holt Opera and Sergeant in Hartmann’s Simplicius Simplicissimus with Independent Opera at Sadler’s Wells.

Engagements this season include Handel’s Messiah with Opéra National de Bordeaux and the Hanover Band and Purcell’s Odes with Le Banquet Céleste, as well as covering Masetto in Don Giovanni with Welsh National Opera and Witness 3/Madman in George Benjamin’s Lessons in Love and Violence for the Royal Opera House. �

TRISTAN HAMBLETON

Colline

BARITONE MARTIN HÄSSLER has received accolades including the Best Singer’s Award at the Gerald Moore competition, London, in 2010, and second prize at the Das Lied International Song Competition in 2011. He is an alumnus of the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

As a recitalist, Martin has sung at the Berlin Philharmonie, the Oxford Lieder Festival and the Vienna Musikverein. Concert appearances include Bach’s Passions, Haydn’s �e Creation, Mozart’s Requiem and Beethoven’s Symphony No.9. He took part in the BBC’s Schubert festival in 2012 and made his debut at London’s Wigmore Hall in 2013.

Martin made his debut at the Gewandhaus Leipzig in Bach’s Christmas Oratorio in 2012 and at Garsington Opera as Captain in Tchaikovsky’s Eugene Onegin in 2016. �

MARTIN HÄSSLER

Schaunard

NICHOLAS FOLWELL

Benoît/Alcindoro

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THE INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED bass-baritone Nicholas Folwell studied at the Royal Academy of Music, at the London Opera Centre and with Raimund Herincx.

His career began at Welsh National Opera, where he sang roles including Figaro, Leporello, Schaunard and Pizarro, in addition to Alberich in Wagner’s Ring cycle under Sir Reginald Goodall. He has sung for all of the UK’s major opera companies, making his debut as Harashta in �e Cunning Little Vixen, conducted by Sir Simon Rattle, at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.

Nicholas has sung Alberich many times, including for Scottish Opera, Longborough Festival Opera, Nationale Reisopera Holland, Opéra de Nantes and Opéra de Dijon.

He has recorded a solo album of Victorian ballads and is currently appearing in Der Rosenkavalier at Glyndebourne. �

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Russell Keable has established KSO’s reputation as one of the finest non-professional orchestras in the UK

‘Keable and his orchestra did magnificently’The Guardian

RUSSELL KEABLE is one of the UK’s most exciting musicians, praised as a conductor in both the national and international press. “Keable and his orchestra did magni�cently,” wrote the Guardian; “one of the most memorable evenings at the South Bank for many a month,” said the Musical Times.

Keable has been associated with Kensington Symphony Orchestra for more than 30 years, establishing the group’s reputation as one of the �nest non-professional orchestras in the UK. Under his baton, KSO has become known for its consistently ambitious programming of contemporary music, and he has led premières of works by British composers including Robin Holloway, David Matthews, Peter Maxwell Davies, John McCabe, Joby Talbot and John Woolrich.

RUSSELL KEABLE

Music directorHe has received particular praise as a champion of the music of Erich Korngold: the British première of the composer’s opera Die tote Stadt was hailed as a triumph, and research in Los Angeles led to a world première of music from Korngold’s �lm score for �e Sea Hawk.

Keable performs with orchestras and choirs throughout the UK, has conducted in Prague and Paris (�lmed by British and French television) and made his debut with the Royal Oman Symphony Orchestra in Dubai. He has recorded two symphonies by Robert Simpson, and a Beethoven CD was released in New York.

Keable holds the post of director of conducting at the University of Surrey. He trained at the University of Nottingham and at King’s College, London University. He studied conducting at London’s Royal College of Music with Norman Del Mar, and later with George Hurst.

Over �ve years, Keable developed a special relationship with the Schidlof Quartet, with whom he established an innovative education programme. He is a dynamic lecturer and workshop leader, working with audiences ranging from schoolchildren to music students and international business conferences.

Keable is also in demand as a composer and arranger; he has written works for many British ensembles, and his opera Burning Waters, commissioned by the Buxton Festival, was premièred in July 2000. He has also composed music for the mime artist Didier Danthois to use in prisons and special-needs schools. �

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Revivals and premières of new works o�en feature in the orchestra’s repertoire, alongside major works of the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. World and British premières have included music by Bax, Brian, Bruckner, Nielsen, Schoenberg, Sibelius and Verdi.

Russell Keable has aired a number of unusual works, as well as delivering some signi�cant musical landmarks: the London première of Dvořák’s opera Dimitrij and the British première of Korngold’s operatic masterpiece Die tote Stadt, the latter praised by the Evening Standard as “a feast of brilliant playing”. In 2004, KSO and the London Oriana Choir performed a revival of Walford Davies’s oratorio Everyman, a recording of which is available on the Dutton label.

Contemporary music continues to be the lifeblood of KSO. Recent programmes have

KENSINGTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA, now in its 62nd season, enjoys an enviable reputation as one of the �nest non-professional orchestras in the UK. Its founding aim – “to provide students and amateurs with an opportunity to perform concerts at the highest possible level” – remains key to its mission.

KSO has had only two principal conductors: its founder, Leslie Head, and the incumbent, Russell Keable, who recently celebrated three decades with the orchestra. �e knowledge, passion and dedication of these musicians has shaped KSO, giving it a distinctive repertoire that sets it apart from other groups.

Kensington Symphony Orchestra is known for its bold, ambitious programming and its commitment to contemporary music

ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES

featured works by an impressive roster of composers working today, including �omas Adès, Julian Anderson, Charlotte Bray, Brett Dean, Jonny Greenwood, Oliver Knussen, Magnus Lindberg, Benedict Mason, Rodion Shchedrin, Joby Talbot and John Woolrich.

In 2005, Errollyn Wallen’s Spirit Symphony, performed with the BBC Concert Orchestra and broadcast on BBC Radio 3, won the Radio 3 Listeners’ Award at the British Composer Awards. In 2014, KSO gave the world première of Stephen Montague’s From the Ether, commissioned by St John’s Smith Square to mark its 300th anniversary.

‘A feast of brilliant playing’The Evening Standard

CHANGE PIC

KENSINGTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Founded in 1956

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KENSINGTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

guest conductor each year; recently, these have included Jacques Cohen, Nicholas Collon, Alice Farnham, Andrew Gourlay, Holly Mathieson and Michael Seal.

KSO’s regular performance venue is St John’s Smith Square. �e orchestra also performs regularly at Cadogan Hall and will return to the recently reopened Queen Elizabeth Hall at the Southbank Centre in January 2019. KSO celebrated its 60th anniversary with a gala concert at the Barbican Centre in May 2017. �

During the 2014/15 season, the orchestra was part of Making Music’s Adopt a Composer scheme, collaborating with Seán Doherty on his work Hive Mind.

From the very beginning, KSO has held charitable aims. Its �rst concert was given in aid of the Hungarian Relief Fund, and the orchestra has since supported many di�erent charities, both musical and non-musical. In recent years, it has developed links with the Kampala Symphony Orchestra and Music School under its KSO2 programme, providing training, fundraising and instruments in partnership with the charity Musequality.

Last month, KSO returned to the West�eld London shopping centre in Shepherd’s Bush for the orchestra’s 16th “sponsored play” event, raising £20,000 for the War

The orchestra at Cadogan Hall, London, in January 2017. KSO also performs at the Barbican Centre and the Queen Elizabeth Hall

Child charity and the Kensington & Chelsea Foundation’s Grenfell Tower Fund. A small percentage of the proceeds will be used by the orchestra to stage more fundraising events and to support the music programme at Pimlico Academy, its primary rehearsal home.

�e reputation of the orchestra is re�ected in the quality of international artists who regularly appear with KSO. In recent seasons, soloists have included Nikolai Demidenko, Jean Rigby, Sir John Tomlinson, Matthew Trusler and Richard Watkins.

�e orchestra enjoys working with up-and-coming artists such as the pianist Martin James Bartlett, the 2014 BBC Young Musician of the Year, and Young Classical Artists Trust musicians Ji Liu and Richard Uttley. KSO works with a

‘KSO once again scores over most professional orchestras’Classical Source

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�e choir received its �rst accolades in September 2015: Epiphoni won Tenebrae’s prestigious Locus Iste competition and reached the �nal of the London International A Cappella Choral Competition. A judging panel led by Peter Phillips, the director of the Tallis Scholars, described Epiphoni’s performance as “mesmerising”, and the choir was awarded second prize.

EPIPHONI CONSORT Epiphoni made its television debut in 2016, featuring in the BBC Four documentary �e Joy of Rachmaninov, and appeared on BBC Two in 2017, singing �omas Tallis’s 40-part motet Spem in alium in the documentary Terry Pratchett: Back in Black.

In 2017, the choir released its debut CD, Sudden Light, on Delphian Records. �e recording received praise from BBC Radio 3, BBC Music Magazine, Gramophone, Choir & Organ and many online reviewers.

Epiphoni is in demand to work with professional orchestras across London. Future performances include Beethoven’s Symphony No.9 with Southbank Sinfonia, and the choir will be reunited with the City of London Sinfonia in October, appearing at the Queen Elizabeth Hall alongside Roderick Williams and at Southwark Cathedral in Bach’s Mass in B Minor, conducted by John Butt. �

WETHERBY PREPARATORY SCHOOL is one of central London’s most sought-a�er prep schools for boys. It promotes a

WETHERBY PREPARATORY SCHOOL CHAMBER CHOIR

three di�erent choirs, and exists to challenge the boys by tackling more substantial repertoire and o�ering further opportunities for performance.

Last year marked the music department’s �rst choir tour to Belgium, and in March, the boys embarked on a music tour to Vienna, where they sang in renowned venues such as St Stephen’s Cathedral.

�e chamber choir has been invited to perform in several events and venues in London and beyond. �ese include turning on the Christmas lights in Marylebone and for St Mary’s Hospital, singing in the ragazzi part of Carl Or� ’s Carmina Burana in Guildford Cathedral, a full performance of Fauré’s Requiem and services at St George’s, Hanover Square. �

THE EPIPHONI CONSORT was founded by Tim Reader in 2014 to �ll a gap between the amateur and professional tiers of London’s choral circuit. Its members include a number of people who sing to a professional standard but have other full-time careers.

ARTISTS’ BIOGRAPHIES THE SINGERS

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“can-do” culture, one in which boys are equipped with a value system that serves and supports them throughout their time at the school and well into the future.

Choral education is at the heart of music at Wetherby Prep. �e chamber choir draws its members from the school’s

MAY 2018 15

PATRONS Sue and Ron Astles Kate Bonner Sim Canetty-ClarkeCWA International Ltd John and Claire Dovey Bob and Anne Drennan Malcolm and Christine DunmowMrs G Hjert Nick Marchant Jolyon and Claire Maugham David and Mary Ellen McEuenJohn and Elizabeth McNaughton Belinda MurrayMichael and Jan Murray Linda and Jack Pievsky Neil Ritson and family Kim Strauss-Polman Keith Waye

PREMIUM FRIENDS David Baxendale Dr Michele Clement and Dr Stephanie Munn John Dale Alastair Fraser Michael and Caroline Illingworth Maureen Keable Jeremy Marchant Margot RaybouldRichard and Jane Robinson

FRIENDS Anne Baxendale Robert and Hilary Bruce Yvonne and Graeme Burhop George Friend David JonesRufus Rottenberg Jane SheltonPaul SheehanFabian Watkinson Alan Williams

FRIENDS’ SCHEMESUPPORT US

Support the orchestra by choosing one of our three levels of membership

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SUPPORT KSO by joining our popular Friends’ Scheme. �ere are three levels of membership with special bene�ts.

JOIN OUR FRIENDS’ SCHEME

Become a member today

SEE YOUR NAME listed in our concert programmes as a Friend, Premium Friend or Patron, under single or joint names.

CORPORATE SPONSORSHIPS are available on request for companies and groups, tailored to your needs.

HOW TO JOIN To join the Friends’ Scheme, contact David Baxendale by calling 020 8650 0393 or by emailing friends@kso.org.uk.

FRIEND £65Unlimited concert tickets at concessionary rates, priority booking and free interval drinks and concert programmes.

PREMIUM FRIEND £135One free ticket for each concert, unlimited guest tickets at concessionary rates, priority booking and free interval drinks and concert programmes.

PATRON £235Two free tickets for each concert, unlimited guest tickets at concessionary rates, priority booking and free interval drinks and concert programmes.

16 KENSINGTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

SPONSOR OR DONATESUPPORT US

YOU, OUR AUDIENCE, can really help us through sponsorship. Anyone can be a sponsor, and any level of support – from corporate sponsorship of a concert or soloist to individual backing of the orchestra – is enormously valuable to us.

We o�er a variety of bene�ts to sponsors, tailored to their needs, such as programme and website advertising, guest tickets and assistance with entertaining.

As a charity, KSO is able to claim Gi� Aid on any donations made to the orchestra. Donating through Gi� Aid means that KSO can claim an extra 25p for every £1

you give, at no extra cost to you. Your donations will qualify as long as they are not more than four times what you have paid in tax in that �nancial year.

TO SPONSOR KSO, or to �nd out more, call David Baxendale on 020 8650 0393, email sponsorship@kso.org.uk or speak to any member of the orchestra.

TO MAKE A DONATION, or to �nd out more about Gi� Aid, email the treasurer at subs@kso.org.uk.

Support us by sponsoring a concert

SPONSORSHIP AND DONATIONS

Make a difference to KSO

LEGACIES LEFT to qualifying charities, such as KSO, are exempt from inheritance tax. In addition, if you leave more than 10% of your estate to charity, the tax due on the rest of your estate may be reduced from 40% to 36%.

Legacies can be le� for �xed amounts (speci�c or pecuniary bequests) as either cash or shares, but a common way to ensure that your loved ones are provided for is to make a residuary bequest, in which the remainder of your estate is distributed to one or more charities of your choice a�er speci�c bequests to your family and friends have been met.

Legacies, along with conventional donations to KSO’s Endowment Trust,

enable us to plan for the next decades of the orchestra’s development.

If you include a bequest to KSO in your will, please tell us that you have done so; we can then keep you up to date and, if you choose, we can also recognise your support. Any information you give us will be treated in the strictest con�dence, and does not form a binding commitment of any kind.

TO LEAVE A LEGACY or to �nd out more, speak to your solicitor or contact Neil Ritson, the chair of KSO’s Endowment Trust, on 020 7723 5490 or neil.ritson@kso.org.uk.

LEAVING A LEGACY

Support the next generation

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Help KSO by remembering us in your will

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MAY 2018 17

KSO ONLINEFIND OUT MORE

GO TO KSO.ORG.UK to keep up to date with the orchestra and all our events. You can see the details of forthcoming concerts, listen to previous performances, read reviews and learn more about the history of KSO.

BOOKMARK OUR WEBSITE:

VISIT US ONLINEAll the latest on KSO

CONNECT WITH US:

facebook.com/kensingtonsymphonyorchestra

twitter.com/kensingtonso

instagram.com/kensingtonsymphony

kso.org.uk/shop

thegivingmachine.co.uk

FOLLOW OUR FEEDS for the latest news and behind-the-scenes photos from KSO. Join the conversation and share our news, photos and events with your friends and family to help us spread the word.

FOLLOW USFacebook, Twitter and Instagram

SIGN UP TO OUR NEWSLETTER to receive regularemails with the details of all our concerts. Visit kso.org.uk/mailinglist or email jo.johnson@kso.org.ukand we’ll keep you up to date.

REGISTER FOR ALERTS:

JOIN OUR MAILING LISTNews straight to your inbox

BUY VIA THESE WEBSITES:

CONTRIBUTE TO KSO by shopping online. A number of online retailers will pay us a small percentage of the value of your purchase – at no extra cost to you – when you visit their websites through links at kso.org.uk/shop or thegivingmachine.co.uk.

DONATE WHILE YOU SHOPSupport us at no cost to you

kso.org.uk/mailinglist

jo.johnson@kso.org.uk

18 KENSINGTON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

THE ORCHESTRATONIGHT’S PERFORMERS

FIRST VIOLINAlan TuckwoodSusan KnightClaire MaughamHelen StanleySarah HackettErica JealMatthew HickmanHelen TurnellRobert ChatleyBronwen FisherHeather BinghamHelen HockingsRia HopkinsonAdrian GordonJo Johnson

SECOND VIOLINDavid Pievsky Danielle DawsonClaire DoveyJeremy BradshawJuliette BarkerRufus Rottenberg Kathleen RuleRichard Sheahan Francoise Robinson

Judith Ní Bhreasláin Sonja NagleElizabeth BellLiz Errington Daniella Blackford

VIOLABeccy Spencer Andrew McPhersonGuy RaybouldSally RandallHattie Ray� eldPhil CooperSam Blade Alison NethsinghaJane Spencer-DavisMeredith EstrenLiz LavercombeFreya Plummer

CELLOJoseph SpoonerJudith RobinsonLinda HindmarshRosie GoddardDavid BaxendaleRosi Callery

Hannah ReidAnnie Marr-JohnsonBecca WalkerAlex BreedonNatasha BriantVanessa Hadley

DOUBLE BASSSteph FlemingAndrew NealSam WisePaul HornerPenny Halnan

FLUTEChristopher WyattClaire Knighton

PICCOLODan Dixon

OBOECharles BrenanChris Astles

COR ANGLAISJuliette Murray-Topham

CLARINETChris HorrilClaire Baughan

BASS CLARINETGraham Elliott

BASSOONNick RampleySheila Wallace

FRENCH HORNJon BoswellHeather PawsonEd CornAlex Regan

TRUMPETStephen WillcoxJohn HackettMichael Collins

TENOR TROMBONEDavid TaineKen McGregor

BASS TROMBONEStefan Terry

David Musgrove TIMPANI Brian Furner

PERCUSSIONTim AldenCatherine HockingsSimon WillcoxAndrew Barnard

HARP Bethan Semmens

OFF-STAGE BAND

PICCOLOCaroline WelshChris Gould

TRUMPETPeter WrightSimon Bristow

PERCUSSIONRichard SouperSimon Willcox

MUSIC DIRECTORRussell Keable

TRUSTEESChris AstlesDavid BaxendaleElizabeth BellJohn DoveyJudith Ní BhreasláinSabina NielsenHeather PawsonNick RampleyRichard Sheahan

ENDOWMENT TRUSTRobert DrennanGraham ElliottJudith Ní BhreasláinNick RampleyNeil Ritson

EVENTSCatherine AbramsChris AstlesJudith Ní BhreasláinSabina NielsenBeccy SpencerLeanne � ompson

MARKETINGJeremy BradshawRia HopkinsonJo JohnsonAndrew NealGuy Raybould

MEMBERSHIPJuliette BarkerDavid BaxendaleAndrew Neal

PROGRAMMESRia Hopkinson

CONTACT US:

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Kensington Symphony Orchestra is “a remarkable band of non-professionals”, according to Classical Source

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The Epiphoni Consort, who will sing with KSO at the Queen Elizabeth Hall next January, and Wetherby Preparatory School Chamber Choir

Nicholas FolwellMartin HässlerTristan HambletonNicholas MorrisHazel McBainNico DarmaninMonica McGhee

SOLOISTS

MIMÌMonica McGhee

RODOLFONico Darmanin

MUSETTAHazel McBain

MARCELLONicholas Morris

COLLINETristan Hambleton

SCHAUNARDMartin Hässler

BENOÎT/ALCINDORONicholas Folwell

SOPRANOCharlotte BrokerRachel CacciaClaire ClarkeLeoma MonteiroHarriet FlowerZoë FreedmanJessica HaigHelen MayEmma MorganHarriet PridmoreMilly TaylorNerissa Taysom Marie-Louise Zervides

ALTO Christina AstinLaura Bevan Tom Day

Jessica Ginn Helen HendryEmma KjellinZoe LakotaHolly MannersJenny McPhersonAnna MosesCharly OakleyAbaigh Wheatley

TENOREdgar Chan Conrad HealdRichard HoldsworthScott McCall Gareth Moss Christopher Pelmore

Joel Potts Iain Rhodes George Wilson Greg Windle

BASSJon BannisterCharles Blamire- BrownEd BremnerAdrian CollisterMilo ComerfordLouis GearyRichard PelmoreTim ReaderMatthew Shoults Morgan SimesRichard Smith Rufus Stilgoe

SOLOISTS

ACT II

VENDITOREAMBULANTEGareth Moss

PARPIGNOLChristopher Pelmore

ACT III

DOGANIERE Charles Blamire- Brown

SERGENTE Richard Smith

Adrian BoettcherMax CharlesNika Choupak�omas DunnJasper FritzeLaurence FritzeNoah GrunschlagAshaan JayarajSamuel KupsinSami KymisisLucas LinnaneRory McConnon

Saif MelitiTeo MianLeonardo O’SullivanZackaria RodaKilian SeidelSava SeltzerZayn ShabeehZayd SindiBrooks StevensNicolas Wright Rocafort

WETHERBY PREPARATORY SCHOOL CHAMBER CHOIR

EPIPHONI CONSORT

62ND SEASON2017/18

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63RD SEASON2018/19

MONDAY 15 OCTOBER 2018 7.30PMST JOHN’S SMITH SQUAREJOAN TOWER Fanfare for the Uncommon Woman No.1JOHN ADAMS Doctor Atomic SymphonyBERNSTEIN Divertimento for OrchestraWILLIAM SCHUMAN Symphony No.3

MONDAY 26 NOVEMBER 2018 7.30PMST JOHN’S SMITH SQUAREHOLST Ballet music from The Perfect FoolRACHMANINOV Symphonic DancesVAUGHAN WILLIAMS Job: A Masque for Dancing

TUESDAY 22 JANUARY 2019 7.30PMQUEEN ELIZABETH HALLKORNGOLD Kings RowGERSHWIN Piano Concerto in F Soloist: Richard UttleyRAVEL Daphnis et Chloé Chorus: Epiphoni Consort

SATURDAY 16 MARCH 2019 7.30PMST JOHN’S SMITH SQUAREENESCU Romanian Rhapsody No.1MAHLER Kindertotenlieder Soloist: Julien Van MellaertsLUTOSLAWSKI Concerto for Orchestra Guest conductor: Holly Mathieson

MONDAY 13 MAY 2019 7.30PMCADOGAN HALL LIADOV The Enchanted LakeHUW WATKINS SymphonySIBELIUS Lemminkäinen Suite

MONDAY 1 JULY 2019 7.30PMST JOHN’S SMITH SQUARE KODALY Dances of MarosszékCHRIS LONG World premièreDVORAK Symphony No.6

TUESDAY 3 JULY 2018 7.30PMST JOHN’S SMITH SQUARE DELIUS A Song of SummerBRIDGE The SeaSIBELIUS Symphony No.6 in D minor