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Details
Smith Square Hall
Smith Square
City of Westminster
London
SW1P 3HA
England
Tickets
Prices: £25, £22 (concessions)
Booking line: 0207 222 1061
Book Tickets
Programme
Modest Mussorgsky – Khovanschina prelude: Dawn over the Moscow River
Igor Stravinsky – The Firebird, ballet
Michael Berkeley – Symphonic Suite (adapted from Prokofiev's 'Queen of Spades')
Performers
Philip Ellis – Conductor
Other concerts in this Series (+)
Programme Note
Tonight's concert showcases works deeply embedded in dramatic storytelling by three masters of Russian music: Modest Mussorgsky, Sergei Prokofiev, and Igor Stravinsky.
Modest Mussorgsky: Dawn on the Moscow River (Prelude to Khovanshchina)
Modest Mussorgsky (1839–1881) was committed to creating a uniquely Russian musical identity, favouring folk idioms and simple lyrical beauty over more intellectual approaches.
Dawn on the Moscow River is the prelude to Mussorgsky's final opera, Khovanshchina (The Khovansky Affair). The opera delves into a turbulent period of Russian history. It tells the story of the struggle between old and new Russia, focusing on the rebellion of Prince Ivan Khovansky against the westernising reforms of Tsar Pete.
The music of Dawn on the Moscow River stands in beautiful contrast to the vicious political strife depicted in the opera's narrative.
Sergei Prokofiev: The Queen of Spades (arranged by Michael Berkeley)
Sergei Prokofiev (1891–1953) composed The Queen of Spades in 1936 as a film score. The film, to be based on Alexander Pushkin's short story, was scheduled for release in 1937 to mark the centenary of Pushkin's death. However, due to tightening censorship, it was never completed. Prokofiev, however, found ways to reuse the music, integrating themes into the third movement of his Fifth Symphony and Piano Sonata No. 8.
The version performed tonight is an arrangement by Michael Berkeley created for Kim Brandstrup's ballet Rushes, which premiered at London's Covent Garden.
Igor Stravinsky: Music for the ballet The Firebird
Igor Stravinsky (1882–1971) is one of the 20th century's most important and influential composers, and it is his ballet The Firebird that catapulted him to international fame.
The impresario Sergei Diaghilev commissioned The Firebird for the Ballets Russes' 1910 Paris season. The premiere on June 25, 1910, was a resounding success, with some hailing Stravinsky as the "legitimate heir to The Mighty Handful". After this success, Diaghilev continued to commission Stravinsky, resulting in two other iconic collaborations: Petrushka (1911) and The Rite of Spring (1913).
Conductor: Philip Ellis
Since winning the Leeds Conductors' Competition in 1991, Philip has worked throughout the UK conducting many concerts with the Philharmonia, London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, Hallé, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, BBC Philharmonic, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, London Mozart Players, English Chamber Orchestra, City of London Sinfonia, Northern Sinfonia and over 400 concerts with English Sinfonia. He is a passionate supporter of Music Education and has worked with amateur orchestras, youth and community groups throughout his career.
Since his international debut with the Singapore Symphony Orchestra, he has conducted international orchestras including the Hong Kong Philharmonic, Netherlands Radio Symphony, Belgian National Orchestra, National Orchestra of Mexico, Sydney Symphony, Melbourne Symphony, and many broadcast concerts with the BRTN Philharmonic (Brussels) for radio and television.
Philip conducts extensively for dance, including over 2000 performances with the Birmingham Royal Ballet 1989-2025 and, as guest conductor, for many international ballet companies, including La Scala Ballet, Paris Opera Ballet, The Royal Ballet and Gothenburg Ballet.
He has recorded CDs with the Philharmonia and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and contemporary Clarinet Concertos with Emma Johnson and Tchaikovsky with Dimitri Ferschtman, recorded live from the Concertgebouw Hall, Amsterdam.
