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West Forest Sinfonia February Concert

Wagner, Berg and Brahms

Part of the West Forest Sinfonia 2025 - 2026 Season

Add to my Calendar 22-02-2026 16:30 22-02-2026 18:30 36 West Forest Sinfonia February Concert On Sunday 22nd February we have a lovely concert of romantic music conducted by Philip Ellis. Our programme begins with the Prelude and Liebestod from Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde.  Wagner is of course famous for his epic opera cycle, The Ring of the Nibelung, but Tristan und Isolde is regarded as a more accessible entry into the Wagnerian soundscape. The Prelude and Liebestod, in particular, is immediately intoxicating as you hear the famous “Tristan chord” dissolve and reform. Few pieces capture love’s danger and ecstasy with such spellbinding intensity.  Internationally renowned soprano Janice Watson is the soloist in the Wagner and also joins the orchestra for Alban Berg's Seven Early Songs (Sieben frühe Lieder).  These seven miniatures glow with late-Romantic warmth while already hinting at the modernism the composer would develop later. Originally written for voice and piano before being orchestrated by the composer, they paint sensuous, moonlit scenes where nature, longing, and memory quietly breathe.  Our concert concludes with Brahms' Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98.  This was the composer's final symphony and demonstrates his mastery of the form as it marries classical poise with a deep, autumnal soul. The opening movement unfolds like a tapestry of interwoven ideas, followed by an inward, burnished Andante and a jubilant, rustic scherzo, before a thrilling finale. It’s a masterpiece of craft and emotion, ending the concert with both grandeur and gravitas Great Hall - Reading University, Reading DD/MM/YYYY

Details


27 London Rd
Reading
Berkshire
RG1 5AE
England

Tickets

Prices: Adults £20 Students & under 18s £5
Booking line: [email protected] tel. 07977 050265

Programme

–
–
~ Interval ~
–

Performers

– Conductor
 – soprano


Other concerts in this Series (+)

Programme Note

On Sunday 22nd February we have a lovely concert of romantic music conducted by Philip Ellis.

Our programme begins with the Prelude and Liebestod from Wagner's opera Tristan und Isolde.  Wagner is of course famous for his epic opera cycle, The Ring of the Nibelung, but Tristan und Isolde is regarded as a more accessible entry into the Wagnerian soundscape. The Prelude and Liebestod, in particular, is immediately intoxicating as you hear the famous “Tristan chord” dissolve and reform. Few pieces capture love’s danger and ecstasy with such spellbinding intensity. 

Internationally renowned soprano Janice Watson is the soloist in the Wagner and also joins the orchestra for Alban Berg's Seven Early Songs (Sieben frühe Lieder).  These seven miniatures glow with late-Romantic warmth while already hinting at the modernism the composer would develop later. Originally written for voice and piano before being orchestrated by the composer, they paint sensuous, moonlit scenes where nature, longing, and memory quietly breathe. 

Our concert concludes with Brahms' Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98.  This was the composer's final symphony and demonstrates his mastery of the form as it marries classical poise with a deep, autumnal soul. The opening movement unfolds like a tapestry of interwoven ideas, followed by an inward, burnished Andante and a jubilant, rustic scherzo, before a thrilling finale. It’s a masterpiece of craft and emotion, ending the concert with both grandeur and gravitas

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