Arts

The VSO Presents – A British Fantasy

Over the course of five concerts, (April 22 & 24, April 29 & 30, and May 1) the orchestra will explore the musical landscape of Great Britain, from the pastoral sounds of the English countryside to the dramatic Scottish Highlands.

By Chris Hinton /

Featuring great British composers and their most popular works

 

Single tickets and festival passes are available for the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra’s 2017 Spring Festival – A British Fantasy. Over the course of five concerts, (April 22 & 24, April 29 & 30, and May 1) the orchestra will explore the musical landscape of Great Britain, from the pastoral sounds of the English countryside to the dramatic Scottish Highlands.

The Festival begins with Canadian classical music superstar James Ehnes, pulling triple duty (conductor, violinist, violist) with three of the best-known English composers: Elgar, Britten, and Vaughan Williams. Next up, Ehnes performs Walton’s Viola Concerto, and Maestro Bramwell Tovey takes up the baton in a concert that features Holst’s incredible journey through the solar system in The Planets – complete with NASA footage from Voyager, Pioneer, and Discovery missions. Created by filmmaker Duncan Copp and produced by The Houston Symphony, THE PLANETS–AN HD ODYSSEY is a spectacular presentation of Gustav Holst’s cosmic masterpiece, The Planets. The video was created by celebrated director/producer Duncan Copp in cooperation with NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratories.

The next concert features Vancouver’s own Ian Parker performing Addinsell’s Warsaw Concerto for piano and orchestra, written for the 1941 British film, Dangerous Moonlight, as well as William Walton’s epic score for Henry V. The Artistic Director of Bard on the Beach, Christopher Gaze will add his voice to this Shakespeare Scenario. The next night, Maestro Tovey joins VSO Principal musicians to perform the Elgar Piano Quintet, and then explores the mysteries and humour of Elgar’s Enigma Variations.

The 2017 Spring Festival concludes with the pomp and circumstance of The Last Night of the Proms, the traditional ending to the Promenades series at the Royal Albert Hall in London, a tradition proudly upheld by Bramwell Tovey, the Vancouver Bach Choir, and the VSO.

Join the VSO and Maestro Bramwell Tovey for the 2017 PwC Spring Festival: A British Fantasy.

Tickets are available online at www.vancouversymphony.ca or by calling VSO Customer Service at 604.876.3434. The five-concert festival runs from Saturday, April 22nd to Monday, May 1st, 2017; all concerts at 8 pm (except Sunday April 30th at 7pm) at the historic Orpheum Theatre. Read on for complete listings.

PwC SPRING FESTIVAL – A BRITISH FANTASY

SPECIALS

FESTIVAL SPECIAL EVENTS

The VSO Spring Festival includes Pre-Concert Talks which begin one hour before each concert, and Post- Concert Question & Answer sessions each night, with Maestro Bramwell Tovey VSO musicians. FREE TO TICKETHOLDERS

APRIL 2017

PwC SpringFest 1
Songs and Serenades
Saturday, April 22, 8pm, Orpheum

James Ehnes, leader/violin/viola*

Elgar Serenade for Strings in E minor
Britten Lachrymae*
Vaughan Williams Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis
Britten Prelude and Fugue for 18 Strings
Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending*
Elgar Introduction and Allegro* 3

 

Multi-talented Canadian artist audience favourite James Ehnes conducts and performs on the violin and viola, in a beautiful, lyrical program that kicks off the 2017 PwC Spring Festival.

For program notes click here.

PwC SpringFest 2

The Planets: an HD Odyssey
Monday, April 24, 8pm, Orpheum
Bramwell Tovey, conductor
James Ehnes, viola*
Elektra Women’s Choir+
Morna Edmundson, chorus director

Gavin Higgins Velocity
Walton Viola Concerto*
Holst The Planets+

James Ehnes performs Walton’s wonderful Viola Concerto. In the second half, take a voyage through the solar system through Holst’s fantastic The Planets, enhanced by spectacular updated video footage and imagery from NASA missions shown on the big screen as the orchestra performs this epic work.

Video presentation of THE PLANETS – AN HD ODYSSEY was created by filmmaker Duncan Copp and produced by the Houston Symphony.

For program notes click here.

PwC SpringFest 3

Henry V
Saturday, April 29, 8pm, Orpheum
Bramwell Tovey, conductor
Ian Parker, piano*
Christopher Gaze, narrator+

Elizabeth Maconchy Proud Thames
Sir Ernest MacMillan Fantasia on Scottish Airs
Godfrey Ridout Fall Fair
Addinsell Warsaw Concerto*
Walton Henry V: A Shakespeare Scenario+

Music from the era of Britain’s “Finest Hour”is featured in this stirring program. William Walton’s rich, powerful and emotional score Henry V has become as beloved on the concert stage as it was in Sir Lawrence Olivier’s wartime film. Hear it in all its glory with the VSO, alongside the Warsaw Concerto from the movie Dangerous Moonlight.

For program notes click here. 

 

PwC SpringFest 4
Enigma
Sunday, April 30, 7pm, Orpheum

Bramwell Tovey, conductor/piano*
Nicholas Wright & Jason Ho, violins*
Andrew Brown, viola* Ariel Barnes, cello*

Elgar Piano Quintet*
Elgar Enigma Variations: An Exploration
Elgar Enigma Variations

For program notes click here.

In the first half, Maestro Tovey joins Principals from the orchestra to perform Elgar’s Piano Quintet. Then join Bramwell Tovey and the VSO for a very special presentation of Elgar’s Enigma Variations: Maestro Tovey will deconstruct and explain this fascinating work with his trademark insight and wit, and then the orchestra will play the full piece, with all its secrets freshly revealed!

 

For concert
MAY 2017

PwC SpringFest 5
Last Night of the Proms
Monday, May 1, 2017, 8pm

Bramwell Tovey, conductor
Vancouver Bach Choir

The proud tradition of the last night of the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts at the Royal Albert Hall is continued here as the last night of the Spring Festival, with beloved favourites such as Pomp and Circumstance, Rule Britannia, and much more.

For program notes click here.

TICKET INFORMATION: Individual Tickets: $25 (senior, student, and subscriber discounts available). Festival Passes: $94 – $284 for the full 5-concert Festival (senior, student, and subscriber discounts available) Tickets available online at www.vancouversymphony.ca or by calling VSO Customer Service at 604.876.3434

BONUS SAVINGS! Order the FESTIVAL PASS and SAVE 30% over single concert prices!

The presenting Sponsor of the VSO’s Spring Festival is PwC