deFilharmonie olv. Sian Edwards

Did you manage to hear the amazing deFilharmonie during the recent Bartók Happening in deSingel? This is definitely a reason for you to book your seat for this concert in advance. But that's not all. Jean-Guihen Queyras is one of the most captivating contemporary cellists and Sian Edwards is one of the few women who have conducted the greatest orchestras in the world. She is known primarily as a specialist of contemporary music. Under her baton, the first ever performance of the piece by the young Flemish composer Annelies Van Parys is certainly in good hands. The British composer Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934) wrote his Cello Concerto in 1919. It is a sombre and introverted work in which Elgar was deeply touched by the tragic events of the First World War. From one day to the next, his great German contemporaries in musical history became his enemies. The clear palette of colours and playful rhythms resound in the elegant themes of pre-war Elgar, but this doesn't continue for long. The solo part adopts a more tormented character and draws to a close with a sombre final chord. In 'Music for strings, percussion and celesta' by Béla Bartók (1881-1945) the percussion instruments form a first semicircle round the conductor and the strings a second. It is an unusual arrangement and a special instrumentation that is reflected in the renewed rhythmic and harmonic statement.