www.list.co.uk/music
Saturday 19
Glasgow I Scottish Chamber Orchestra: Scrapers and Tooters ('rty Halls. ('andleriggs. 353 8000. Want 5pm, £40 (£20l. An opportunity for amateur orchestral musicians to get together and make beatrtiltrl music as part ol a lull orchestra at this pressure-Iree weekend workshop lwrth performance 7pm Sunr. While a bit of experience lit the old scraping and looting departrnenl rs required. knowledge of the music isn't. as sectional instruction from S('() musicians will be giyen. To find out more and to book your place contact Lucy Perry on 0| 3| 478 X353 or Iucypcrry (U sco.org.uk I Scottish Opera: A Night at The Chinese Opera Theatre Royal. 232 Hope Street. 0870 060 6647. 2.15pm, U) £58. See I'il'l | I. I Glasgow Philharmonic Male Voice Choir RSAMI). 100 Renlrew Street. 332 5057. 7.30pm. U0. See In IX.
Royal Scottish National
Orchestra Royal ('oncert Ilall. 2 Sauchiehall Street. 353 8000. 7.30pm. “(I £30. See I.istpic‘ks. I Scottish Ensemble: Essential Ensemble ('ity Halls. (‘andler'rggx 353 8000. 7.30pm. U I50 U450. See I-‘ri IX.
Edinburgh
I Ben Kearsley St Scrf's Hall. 280 Ferry Road. 7.30pm. £7 (£5). Bluegrass. flamenco. tartgo. Spanish and South American styles from this Iidinbur'gh borrt classical guitarist. 'I‘ickcls ayailable on the door.
I The Curve Foundation Dance Company: Four Seasons Brunton 'l'heatre. Ladywell Way. .\Itrsselburgh. 665 2240. 7.30pm. U050 (£8.50; under ISs £6). See I‘ri IS.
I NYCoS National Girls Choir St (‘uthbert's ('hurch. 5 I.othian Road. 287 2850. 7.30pm. [III (£8: schoolchildren £2 l. l’ndcr cortductor ('hristopher Bell artd witlt accompanist Stuart Ilope. this young choir perfortn Letters In I.imI/u'r_e/r by Richard Rodney Bennett. 'I'lrrw Sormrr Songs by Sweeney and ('urrliqrrc (14' Jean Racine by I’atrre plus music by Rutter. Kodaly. Hatfield and Johnston.
I Erskine Stewart’s Melville Schools Concert (ir'cyfriars Kirk. (ireyfriars Place. 225 l‘)00. 7.30pm. U0. The (‘ommunity ('hoir's annual performance features Haydn's Hurmrmt' Muss. with solo line—up irtcltrding soprano Natasha Day.
I Scottish Chamber Orchestra: Brahms Violin Concerto Queen‘s Hall. 818‘) (‘lerk Street. 668 20“). 7.30pm. £84.25. See In I8.
I Choir of St Mary’s Cathedral Reunion Concert St Mary's ('athedral. Palmerston Place. 225 6293. 7.30pm. U0. A celebration of 30 years of girl and boy choristers singing togetlter. a combination that is surprisingly stiII rare in British church rntrsic. Programme includes Mo/art's ('oroirurion .Iluss. Tippett's Fin- Spr'rr'rrmls and music by JS Bach. Kenneth Leighton and (iabriel Jackson.
Clarkston
FIEGreenbank Recitals: Alan Mathew (ireenbank Parish Church. 36 Eaglesharn Road. Iprn. Part of a regular series of recitals. this time on the organ. with tea and coffee served afterwards.
Glasgow Brass Band Day RSAMI). I00 Renfrew Street. 332 5057. Iprn. The
academy celebrates the dexelopment of the Scottish Brass Band movement over the past I60 years with an afternoon of music.
I Scottish Chamber Orchestra: Scrapers and Tooters City Halls. Candleriggs. 353 8000. I.30—6.45prn & 7pm. £40 (£20). See Sat I9.
82 THE LIST 10—24 Apr 2008
PREVIEW QPERA
A NIGHT AT THE CHINESE OPERA Theatre Royal. Glasgow. Fri 11 & Sat 19 Apr, Tue 20 & Thu 22 May: Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, Wed 25 & Fri 27 Jun
Pick up any newspaper these days and the chances are that a story about China will be making the headlines. Whether it's the Beijing Olympics, the new panda cub born to Chinese parents at Vienna 200, the devel0ping economy or political tensions with Tibet, China seems to be taking an increasingly central position in world affairs. Closer to home, the stage is Scottish Opera’s and on it is Lee Blakeley‘s new production of Judith Weir‘s deservedly well received and highly enjoyable A Night at the Chinese Opera.
Commissioned by the BBC and written in 1987, the China of Weir's piece is not of today, but that of the 13th century, when China was under the rule of the Yuan Dynasty, established by Genghis Khan. There are, however, parallels to be found in Weir's tale, the story of a young man growing up in a country invaded by tyrants, whether between the China of today and her 700 year-old incarnation, or China as it was when she was writing the piece.
‘In a way. it’s a story like occupied Europe.‘ she says. ‘and that's a theme that is still important today. This time, it is the Chinese who are occupying Tibet. The question in such a situation is: “What do you do as an individual? What can your reaction be? What is your role?”
When revenge is the response of Weir's central character, he is captured and executed, so her timeless questions offer no easy answers. Weir grew up during the period when Chairman Mao ruled as leader of China, with the Tiananmen Square protests against his communist legacy simmering just around the corner. ‘But,‘ she adds, ‘tbe opera is not a piece about China‘s political history, it is about any political regime.‘
A Night at the Chinese Opera is in three acts, with the middle one featuring Weir's transcriptions of Chinese folk music and an almost complete version
of a Chinese play.
‘It is very much inspired by what I heard of live Chinese music theatre, with influences of tonal and pitch differences in speech. In the outer two acts, people have commented that there are echoes of Chinese music, but I’m not sure if that can be true,’ Weir explains. ‘It is essentially my music, which is in
the Western classical tradition.’
She doesn’t use traditional Chinese instruments as such in the score, but there are gongs aplenty. ‘Tbe percussionist and I spent an afternoon in a percussion store hearing every possible gong. By the time we’d finished, he could have played a saucepan lid and I’d have said OK.’
No woks to watch out for then, but beautifully crafted music, a real sense of storytelling and drama coupled with colourful scoring. (Carol Main)
I Piano Recital by Alasdair Cameron Ramshor'n Theatre. Us“ Ingram Street. 552 348‘). 2.30pm. U2 (£6). The pianist who made his name in Rome. Frankfurt and Sal/burg plays sonatas by I) Scarlatti. Beethm en and Schuben.
Edinburgh Royal Scottish National Orchestra I-‘estisal Theatre. l3--29 .\'icolson Street. 52‘) 6000. 6pm. U0—£2S. See Sat I‘). FREESt Giles’ at Six: Edinburgh Academy Ensembles St (tiles' Cathedral. Royal Mile. 226 0673. 6pm.
.\lusic by ’I'elemann. Weill. Briickner and .\Io/art.
Helensburgh
I NYCoS National Girls Choir West Kirk ('ottagc. ('olquhoun Street. 287 2856. 7pm. Donation. Sec Sat I‘).
Glasgow
I Music on Mondays RSAMI). 100 Renfrew Street. 332 5057. Ipm. £3. Music ranging from Biber to Birtwistlc to Bra/ilian be-bop by Bryan Allen and the RSAMI) Trumpets.
I A Concert, a Cocktail and a Canapé than .\Ior. “SI ‘35 (ireat “estern Road. 35~ 6200 5 l5pm U0 I‘hc I‘tlltll‘tllg‘ll group ot the \atronal \outh ('horr ol Scotland perlor‘m a \arred programme of choral name under conductor \Iark I~\ans
The Dunedin Consort G
Playerstilasgow l rtr\crsrly \Iemorral (‘Itapcl. Ihe Square. (Ill l‘nrsersrty \\enuc. 3‘0 5522 5 30 ‘l 30pm U0 Heb. students {5| See In IS
Tuesday 22
Glasgow
I Strathclyde University Improvisation Ensemble Rarnslrorrr I'Itcatre. ‘IS Ingram Street. 552 NS” I.l5 2pm (3 I nitrite and spontaneous music oI and tor the rnornenl lrom one of tlte newest and most orrgmal ensembles to emerge Irorn the l nrserstty
FREE Music at the Mitchell - Songs without Words .\Irrelrell library. 20I North Street. 2S" 20‘)” “.30pm. .larnes \\ rlIsIure perlorrns Hacb's I’rrrlrlrr \u 2 m ('nruror. Boyle's (tr/nu r In on {In Irrlrrt ('1 win of ti [fr/NIH] "(Mir I. I‘I'.IIIL‘I\.\ l'li'lllrlt'. (‘lrnrrr/ tillr/ I (turn. :\lbenI/'s I./ (hi/tux l'II .Sr'ir/lu and Ra\e|'s (iris/urn/ t/r' lrl .\'rrrl.
Edinburgh
I Get Organised: John Kitchen St ('utltbcr't‘s ('Irur‘ch. 5 I.othran Road. 22I 33S0. I.I0 I50prn. f3. (‘tty ()rganrst .Ioltn Kitchen presents 'Vatratrons on a 'I'llellte'i Handel's Ilrrrmu/rrurrs Ii’lrrr/unrrI/r \ar'ialrons. a set of \ar‘ratrons on the .\Iat'serl|arse by Halbastr'e arid works by (‘or‘ Kee and I)urulle. 'I'rckets a\ai|ab|e on lllt‘ tltmt lt'nllt I2, 3”.
Wednesday 23
Glasgow
I Richard Tognetti with the Australian Chamber Orchestra ('ity Halls. ('andlerrggs. 353 H000 3pm U2 [20. Richard 'I'ogncttr takes on the role ol artistic director and \ ioIrntst In this programme designed to show oII the lttlc'ltls HI the ttL‘L‘ltlllllL'tl :\( '( ). ’I’llt‘) .t‘L' tinned h} guest SUIUISI IL‘IIHI‘ \Ittl'k I’adrnore for Bach's ('unruru .Vu 5‘2 ‘Ich habe genug'. li\\'\'S2. w Inch is part ol a programme with Handel's ('um r'rlu (il'uurilll“Nil/14H; ()p 6 .\'u H). .IS Bach's I'r'u/m r um r'I'IrI .\'u / In .I IHIIIHI'. HH'I'IIIJI. Sillttllcy 's Strung ()rrl [or If solo strings and Ra\el\ Slrmu Qrurrlr'l in I’ Ina/or Iurr for (In Irr'xmr R 'Iiiuirr'mr.
Edinburgh
I Edinburgh Ouartet Stockbr'tdgc I’arish ('lturch. Sase ('oburg Street. 332 0I22. 7.30pm. U0 0.2 {7). Haydn's Quartet in I: [In] ()pm 76 .\'u 6, Vaughan Williams" (M Hi‘Il/m A Izrlur' iwrth tenor Thomas Hobbs and pianist Nicholas Ashton) and Hcelltmcn's Quurlr'l III /' ()pm /.t'.5.
Dunfermline
I Mazaika ('arnegie Hall. Izasl I’ort. 0I3ls‘3 602302. 7.30pm. U0. Igor ()ukrn and Sarah Harrison pcr‘Iorm folk music artd tango rnterspersed w rth arias and song.
Thursday 24
Glasgow BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra: Thursday Night Series ('ity Halls. ('andleriggs. 353 8000. 7.30pm. L") £2l50. See I.istpiclss. page X l.
Edinburgh
I Scottish Chamber Orchestra: Director’s Notes Queen‘s Hall. 87449 ('Ierk Street. 668 20I‘). 7.30pm. £87 £25. Stephen Kosaccyich directs a programme of Molar! LS'ymp/mny No 35 'Huffm'r' and I’imm ('umwrln in ('. K 503’) and Beethm en (Symphony No 4).