Manchester composer John Foulds’ astonishing celebration of cosmic love, Three Mantras, will raise the curtain on the BBC Philharmonic’s new concert season. Chief Conductor Juanjo Mena will take the podium on the night, completing the programme with Messiaen’s Turangalîla Symphony, alongside world class soloists Steven Osborne (piano) and Valerie Hartmann-Claverie (ondes martenot).
The concert at The Bridgewater Hall on Saturday 19 September, 7.30pm, will feature Messiaen’s mind-boggling Turangalîla Symphony which demands a huge orchestra (over 100 players will be on stage) whose music will blend with the other worldly sounds of the Ondes Martenot, a vintage electronic instrument straight out of science fiction. It combines a 1940s film score, a pounding rhythmic workout and a Javanese gamelan, all washed in blissful impressionist colours. 66 years after the brilliant American composer Leonard Bernstein conducted the premiere, it still sounds like nothing on earth!
The concert opens with John Foulds’ heady work Three Mantras. Foulds, who was born in Hulme South Manchester was heavily influenced by his spiritual fascination with India, and it has a meditative loveliness at its core.
After rave reviews of the performance of the same programme at the BBC Proms recently, this is the chance for Manchester audiences to experience these special pieces.
Ahead of the performance at 6.30pm the BBC Philharmonic’s General Manager, Simon Webb, will introduce the season and the themes it explores in Preview, free to all ticket holders.
The forthcoming season, which runs until May 2016, will see an array of world class conductors and soloists join us in Manchester and our home in Salford for this exciting journey. Find out more at www.bbc.co.uk/philharmonic
The BBC Philharmonic is supported by Salford City Council.
Tickets cost from £12 to £38 and can be purchased online at www.bridgewater-hall.co.uk or by calling the Box Office on 0161 907 9000.
Picture shows Juanjo Mena, Chief Conductor, BBC Philharmonic
