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Details
The Great Hall - Reading University
27 London Rd
Reading
Berkshire
RG1 5AG
England
Programme
Pyotr Tchaikovsky – Romeo and Juliet (fantasia-overture)
Ralph Vaughan Williams – Tuba Concerto
~ Interval ~
Sergey Prokofiev – Romeo and Juliet (ballet), Op.64
Performers
Philip Ellis – Conductor
James Doherty – tuba
West Forest Sinfonia
Other concerts in this Series (+)
Programme Note
On Sunday 30th June at 4.30pm, West Forest Sinfonia will give its final concert of this season. The concert takes place at The Great Hall, Reading University and will be conducted by Philip Ellis, WFS Principal Conductor.
Tchaikovsky wrote his concert overture Romeo and Juliet when he was just 28 years old. However, the work received little acclaim when it was first performed and he spent the next ten years revising his original composition. The finished article is now one of his most popular orchestral compositions with its glorious sweeping love theme that demonstrates Tchaikovsky at his very best.
Like Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev developed into a giant of dramatic composition, completing no fewer than eight operas and eight ballets, of which Romeo and Juliet is a notable example. The ballet is full of well-known melodies including the Dance of the Knights (Montagues and Capulets) popularised as the signature tune of The Apprentice. We will be playing a substantial part of the ballet and the performance will be illustrated with slides from the ballet and text from Shakespeare’s play.
James Doherty, principal Tuba with WFS will be the soloist in Vaughan-Williams’ Concerto for Tuba and Orchestra. There are few concertos written for the tuba, but Vaughan-Williams manages to bring out the finest lyrical qualities of the instrument whilst also requiring the soloist to display considerable virtuosity.
