London Philharmonic Orchestra new season

The London Philharmonic Orchestra's 2013/14 season at the Royal Festival Hall is remarkably strong and shows and admirable intention to develop programming outside the routine. With chief conductor Vladimir Jurowski conducting a wide variety of repertoire, including contemporary pieces, and principal guest conductor Yannick Nezet-Seguin doing four concerts, there is plenty of interest on the podium.

For the first half of the season, the orchestra is continuing its exploration of 20th and 21st century music in the South Bank Centre's The Rest is Noise festival. This means that we have Vladimir Jurowski conducting Britten's Peter Grimes (28 September) with Stuart Skelton in the title role, and the War Requiem (12 October) with Tatiana Monogarova, Ian Bostridge and Matthias Goerne, plus orchestra music including the Cello Symphony (with Truls Mork), Mark Padmore singing the Nocturne and music from The Prince of the Pagodas. They are also staging four free afternoon performances of Noyes Fludde with young people from local communities.

Jurowski is also conducting Eveyln Glennie in James MacMillan's Veni, Veni Emmanuel, plus music by Thomas Ades and Mark-Antony Turnage (7 December). And the LPO closes their contribution to the festival with John Adams's opera/oratorio El Nino (14 December) with a cast including Kate Royal and Matthew Rose.. 

Yannick Nezet-Seguin returns for two concerts, with Poulenc's Piano Concerto, and music by Dutilleux, Prokofiev and Shostakovich; his conducting is always a highlight. Other interesting concerts include Christoph Eschenbach in Messiaen's Grand Canyon inspired Des canyons aux etoiles (2 November). Tonu Kaluste conducting Arvo Part (6 November) and Lutoslawski's Cello Concerto (30 October). Michal Dworzynski conducts Gorecki's Third Symphony (the famous one!) on 27 November

2014 sees the orchestra returning to ordinary programming, though thankfully with some rather interesting additions. James MacMillan's Viola Concerto premieres with Lawrence Power as soloist and Vladimir Jurowski conducting (15 Jan 2014). Another world premiere, of Gorecki's Fourth Symphony (12 April 2014), which was completed shortly before his death in 2010; Andrey Boreyko conducts.

LPO composer in residence, Julian Anderson's Alleluia is being performed with Beethoven's Ninth Symphony by Jurowksi, and the conductor also pairs Beethoven's Third Symphony, with Karl Amadeus Hartmann's Concerto Funebre composed in 1913 in protest against the Nazi occupation of Poland. Hartmann is one of those composers whom we still don't hear enough of.

Yannick Nezet-Seguin conducts Poulenc's Organ Concerto and Saint-Saens Third Symphony with James O'Donnell playing the newly refurbished Royal Festival Hall organ, plus Anna Caterina Antonacci in Berlioz's Les nuits d'ete (26 March 2014, definitely one of my stand-out concerts.

Children's concerts include Britten's Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra and Benjamin Wallfisch's music inspired by Roald Dahl stories, specially commissioned by the LPO.

The orchestra also has residencies in Brighton and Eastbourne.

Elsewhere on this blog:

• Arcangelo - Enchanted Forest at Wigmore Hall
• Review of Matthew Barley's Around Britten
• Review of Antonino Siragusa at Rosenblatt Recitals
• Juan: film review
• Royal Opera Live
• Review of Christopher Maltman, Lucy Crowe and Graham Johnson in recital
• Richard Rodney Bennett
• CD Review - Advent at Merton
• Home