Festival Fiesta

This week sees appearances at three prestigious UK fetsivals for the BSO.  First stop, on Monday 5 July, is the Cheltenham Music Festival, where the BSO will be performing under the baton of its Principal Conductor Kirill Karabits - his first performance at the Festival - with guest soloist Gunilla Sussmann, who will play Chopin's exquisite Piano Concerto No 1.  Also on the programme is Liadov's The Enchamted Lake and Tchaikovsky's Symphony No 5. 

On Friday 9 July the orchestra finds itself in Winchester, performing under Associate Guest Conductor David Hill in the lovely setting of Winchester Cathedral in the opening concert of the 2010 Winchester Festival.  Works performed include Wagner's Die Meistersinger Overture; Strauss' Four Last Songs and Brahms' A German Requiem.  The BSO is joined by soloists Sarah Fox (Soprano) and Jimmy Holiday (Bass) as well as the world famous Bach Choir in this concert of soaring classical favourites.

From Hampshire to Berkshire, in a complete contrasting programme, as the orchestra travels to the prestigious Henley Festival of Music and Arts to perform Symphonic Queen - a tribute to the most famous rock band of all time.  Under the baton of Pete Harrison, and with a quartet of West End stars to sing songs ranging from Don't Stop Me Now to Bohemian Rhapsody - the full BSO will create a kind of magic on the banks of the River Thames.  With the vocal pyrotecnics of Sarah French-Ellis, Mazz Murray, MiG Ayesa and Ricardo Afonso this is a symphonic experience not to be missed.

And after this Festival Fiesta?  The BSO barely has time to draw breath before it returns to the South Coast to prepare for its annual series of school concerts and the start of its summer concert season at Wilton House, Wiltshire