0 Music is listed as diary: by day, then by city, then by event.
CLASSICAL
Glasgow 0 BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra
Henry Wood l lall. Clareinont Street. .‘x‘siijfisiiiiit‘Shopi. 12.15pm. L25llttl5lltk 5llpi. Something lor ey eryone in this lunchtime concert ltruch‘s Violin Concerto lor the sentimental. l)ayid liedlord‘s l‘hc Valley Sleeper. lhe (hildrcn. 'l‘he Snakes. and l he (iiant lor the adyenturous and \lo/ai‘ts Symphony No 33 for the pure classical music loyei's.
o Midday Concert Steyenson i lall. RSAMI). St ( icorge‘s Place. 332 4llll. lpm. l7ree at door. l’hilip ledger. l’rincipal ol the Academy. teams up with Neil Black (olioe i tor a recital oi music by l’oulenc. l’eter Racine l’rickcr. Britten and Saint Saens.
0 Glasgow University Chapel Choir l'niycrsiiy ( ‘hapel. ( ilasgoyy
l 'niyei‘sity. 3.?‘lSS55 c\t 5S1. "fillpm. l'rec at door Stuart (uiiipliell directs this small choir iii an amliitious programme ol liy rd (Motel l’cti’iis lieatusl. lippctt (Magnilicat anti \unc I )imittis). Walton and Martin l)alli_\.
o Strathciyde University Chorus Asscnilily l lall . .lamcs \\ eii Building. Montrose Street. 552 44ilil ext 3444, Spm, l-‘rec. (iilhert and Sulliyan seems alyy ay s to he a popular choice and St '( ' hay c gone lorl‘rial liy .lury. the lust time theyye tackled ( i 8e S. Also on the programme are the Sl~ \‘vind linsemhlc and St ' (‘hamhei' ()rchestra.
Edinburgh
0 Friends of the SNO Concert l’orti‘ait ( iallei'y. Queen Street. U41 332 “244 (S\( )l. l:.~l5pm. l’rcc, 'l‘he Scottish Wind ()uintet are the guests in the lirst ol l‘riends ol the SN( )‘s lunchtime concerts in the (iallery. 'l‘hey‘ll he playing \Mii‘ks liy Arnold. llindemith. l.iadoy and .lanacek, As well as the music. there's a chance to view the Riddel l’amily Bequest. o Choral Concert St Johns (‘hurcli l lttll. Princes Street. 'l'ickets Lil door. ".Slipm. 'l'hc llolst Singersol iidinhurgh present .\lrs Bccton‘s Book and A Music l lall ( iuide to Victorian living in aid ot the Seagull 'l‘rust. 0 Organ Recital .‘ylcliyyan i lall. Bristo Square. (th lill 1 ext 457". l.lilpm. l’rce. .lohn \Villniet gi\ es Lt recital ol [is/1‘s Prelude and l’ugue on Bach. Fantasia in l‘ minor and major hy
.‘ylo/art and the prelude and l'ugue in
MUSIC LIST
l5 minor by Bach.
0 SNO l 'sher l lall. l.othian Road. 328115573llpm. {SSH £S.3ll. Andrei ( iayriloy. the Riissian pianist. makes his S.\'( ) dehut playing Rachmaninoy's l’iano (‘oncerto No 3. Also on the programme is Brahms Symphony No 4. and it‘s all conducted hy llon l’resident Sir Alexander ( iihson. particularly noted tor his interpretation ol‘Brahm‘s music. 0 Edinburgh University Singers St Johns ( ‘hurch. \‘v'est l-‘nd. Princes Street. lickcts at door. 7.3llpm.
£2.5ll(£1.5il). ’l'his small choir under director .lohn (irundy sings music by Debussy. Rayel. Byrd. Morley. Victoria and Britten.
SATURDAY 22
Glasgow
0 Werther'l‘heatre Royal. llope Street. 331 l234. 7.15pm.
£2.5ll -£lS.5ll. .‘ylassenet‘s romantic opera returns to the 'l‘heatre Royal tor the first time in linglish. llils is the last chance to see it in Glasgow- lidinhurgh audiences haye their chance mid-March.
0 SNO (‘in l lall. ('andleriggs. 552 5‘Jiil. 7.3(lpm. {JSiL {SAii See Fri 31 . lidinhurgh tor lull description.
Edinburgh
0 Children‘s Concert Royal Museum of Scotland. ( ‘hamhers Street. lickets at door ~ first come. first seryed. l lam. li'ree. ()rganised through their recently established [Education section. the Scottish (‘hamher ( )rchestra inyite children to make music. Sounds great tun.
0 Edinburgh University Musical Society .‘ylc‘l§\\';in llall. Bristo Square. (m7 till 1 ext 45"”. “.fsilpm. £2 ( Ll i. Christopher Bell conducts students oi lidinhurgh l'niyersity in a real challenge for them. which- going on past records. should he we” met. Verdi‘s Requiem is the work in question and tor it they're joined hy leading Scottish soloists including I l’atricia .‘ylacMahon. Frances i McCallerty . William Strachan and lyor Klayman.
0 Edinburgh Society of Musicians 2 Bell‘ord Road. illiek‘ets at door. 7.3llpm. Annual suh tor Jilconcerts Elli. ('hi/uni llollingyyorth plays piano music by yarious composers. including the .‘ylephisto Waltz hy l.is/t and Beethoven‘s Sonata ( ip lll‘).
0 3CD ()ueen‘s llall. (‘lcrk Street. 22S l 155 (l'sher l lall). 7.45pm. lfxtra date: Sun 33 (ilasgow. {SIS Woll. Dragonetti. Paganini. Mendelssohn and Bottesini are the rather unusual selection of composers on offer this evening.
lf it’struethatMarch heraldsthe start otSpring and a reawakeningofideas and creativity. then it‘s a pleasing coincidencethatthe beginning otthe month should be almost lestooned with performances ofnew music.
On Saturdayt March Edinburgh Royal Choral Union—now amazingly in its 128th season—premieresJohn McLeod‘s Stabat Mater. one which has been set by ERCU iorthe occasion. Basically. McLeod (see photo) uses the complete liturgical sequence ofthe Stabat Mater, one which has been set by several composers of the 19th and 20th centuries. including Dvorak, Rossini and Poulenc. but in addition he
SPRING MUSIC
takestextsfrom few externalsources ofwide ranging andtascinating origins. ‘The floors are slippery with blood'. written for soprano solo, from Edith Sitwell‘s The Dancers isthe penultimate number, while the first section ‘Crucifixion‘ comes from the Requiem by Anna Akhmatova. Although these two texts maybe roughly contemporary and oliairiy recent times. 7th century literature is also represented in ‘Weep. Weep. Weep‘ taken from For Her Brother by Al-Khansa. Other female poets used are Emily Bronte and Marguerite de Navarre.
The large scale work is writtenfor
soprano and baritone soloists. two mixed choruses. children‘s chorus. with treble solo and orchestra. Soloists are Jane Manning and Benjamin Luxon and the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and pupils from St Mary's Music School, St Mary's Episcopal Cathedral Choirandthe EdinburghAcademy will bejoining forces withthe regular members ofthe Choral Union.
This must be one of the most exciting times in McLeod's life as on Thursday 27 February the BBC Scottish Orchestra givethe first performance olThe Whispered Name. Jane Manning, intemationallyrenowned lorher performances ofcontemporary music is again the soprano soloist. Other modern music by recognised Scottish composers includes Edward Harper‘s intrada and Lacuna by John Maxwell Geddes. McLeod himself is conductor on this occasion. a role he also takes in his Stabat MateratEdinburgh‘s Usher Hail, atewdays later.
Thelollowing evening‘s premiere may be on a somewhat smaller scale. but again serves to illustrate the growing breed oi top rate composers living and working in Scotland. Edinburgh Contemporary Arts Trust present what they label a Music Theatre concert featuring a commissioned piece by Lyell Cresswell—Ouran Begins at Midnight. The idea is based on a true story abouta pairotAmerican twins who. though mentally subnormai. possessed remarkable mathematical powers. The imaginative scoring is for reciter. with electronics tape piano and saxophone. Geoffrey King's 2 piano sonata also has a first performance in this concert, with one of the pianists showing off new talent as well as new music—15yearoid David Home from StMary‘s Music School.
Letus hopethatMarch doesn'tjust herald the start of Spring. butthat all this outburst of new music is a promise of what the rest of the year has in store. (Carol Main)
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