Sea Songs

Our final orchestral concert is inspired by the sea. Framed by Britten’s stormy Sea Interludes and Debussy’s spectacular La Mer, we’re joined by the violinist Ragnhild Hemsing in a joyful visit to the Norwegian fjords.

The dynamic young conductor Adam Hickox conducts BPO’s tremendous season finale, opening with Benjamin Britten’s darkly psychological Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes, evoking both the power of the sea and a stifling fishing village. Then to the fjords: we present the first British performance of Geirr Tveitt’s ebullient Three Fjords concerto for hardanger fiddle, performed by the brilliant young virtuoso Ragnhild Hemsing. A rare and irresistible gem, Ragnhild has just released a five-star recording of this work with the Bergen Philharmonic.

Joanna MacGregor joins for three short pieces for piano and orchestra by the legendary Japanese film composer, record producer and actor Ryuichi Sakamoto, whose delicate, experimental scores included Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor and The Sheltering Sky. Debussy’s love of Japanese art is reflected in his three-movement masterwork of La Mer, which is scrupulously wild: he famously selected Hokusai’s woodblock Great Wave off Kanagawa for the title page.  It finishes a vibrant, sometimes tempestuous but always playful concert. Unmissable!