MUSIC | Classical MUSIC | Classical C L A S S I C A L
FESTIVAL DISCOVER INDONESIA Various venues, Glasgow, Wed 9–Sun 13 Sep
With more than 13,000 islands, about 300 languages and a population of over 250 million people, it’s hardly surprising that Indonesia is a country with a rich and diverse heritage. Yet, how much do we in Scotland know about Indonesian culture? For those of us whose answer is ‘not much’, things are about to change. Bringing the largest curated showcase of Indonesian arts ever presented in the UK, Cryptic is a key partner in an initiative which covers London, Cardiff and Glasgow. Discover Indonesia celebrates 70 years of Indonesian independence and the vibrantly coloured programme includes music, visual art, traditional dance, film, theatre and, of course, some of the delicious cuisine for which the country is famed.
‘We are always interested in cultures of other countries,’ says Cryptic artistic director, Cathie Boyd. ‘We started to reflect on the work we’ve been programming over recent years and wanted to introduce work from a different culture, and that part of the world is really changing at the moment.’ Following a British Council visit to an arts market in Jakarta, Boyd was hooked and determined to bring her experience to Glasgow. Gamelan is, of course, part of what is on offer, both through Gamelan Untethered, a futuristic fusion of gamelan and western instruments, as well as with Javanese dancers from the Mangkunegaran Royal Palace. More avant-garde is Senyawa, who push the boundaries of Javanese tradition.
‘The two guys are just incredible,’ says Boyd. ‘Rully Shabara’s voice goes from falsetto to deep, deep bass. And they are also pretty crazy.’ For Boyd, it’s deeply important to look at other people’s cultures. ‘Discover Indonesia is a pilot to see how the people of Glasgow and Scotland respond and to ask whether they want more.’ (Carol Main)
CLASSICAL HIGHLIGHTS
HITLIST
SCOTTISH OPERA: CARMEN Theatre Royal, Glasgow, Wed 7, Fri 9, Sun 11, Tue 13, Thu 15, Sat 17 Oct, atgtickets.com; Festival Theatre, Edinburgh, Tue 3, Fri 6, Sun 8, Thu 12, Sat 14 Nov, edtheatres.com Scottish Opera open their new season with one of the world’s most popular operas, Bizet’s Carmen, with a couple of rising stars in New York-born tenor Noah Stewart and Lithuanian mezzo Justina Gringyte, in the title role.
MR MCFALL’S CHAMBER: SOLITUDES – BALTIC REFLECTIONS The Queen’s Hall, Edinburgh, Mon 12 Oct, thequeenshall. net Not only celebrating their 20th anniversary but the launch of a new CD with the award- winning Delphian Records, this quirky Edinburgh-based ensemble kick off their special season with an exploration of the music of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania plus a taste of Finnish tango.
EDINBURGH GLASGOW
RSNO: MAHLER’S RESURRECTION Usher Hall, Fri 2 Oct, usherhall. co.uk The RSNO season opens in style with Mahler’s epic Symphony No 2. In the solo mezzo role is the superb Sarah Connolly, joined by international soprano Valentina Farcas.
SCOTTISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA: BRAHMS SYMPHONY NO 1 Usher Hall, Thu 8 Oct, usherhall. co.uk The opening concert of SCO’s 2015-16 season is conducted by Principal Conductor, Robin Ticciati, who puts the emphasis rather firmly on Brahms, whose music is a feature of this year’s programmes. For this first concert, it’s the Symphony No 1 and Academic Festival Overture.
DRESDEN PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA Usher Hall, Sun 11 Oct, usherhall.co.uk Don’t miss a chance to hear the superb Argentinian cellist Sol Gabetta in Elgar’s Cello Concerto. That she plays it with the impressive Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra is even better.
NYCOS NATIONAL GIRLS CHOIR City Halls, Sat 12 Sep, glasgowconcerthalls.com Songbirds seems to be exactly the right title for this concert from NYCoS Girls and their patron, world-renowned Scottish mezzo Karen Cargill,who collaborate in the rarely performed Snowbirds by Michael Head, the neglected British composer from the period around World War 1.
BEETHOVEN WEEKEND Glasgow Royal Concert Hall / City Halls, Glasgow, Thu 24, Fri 25, Sat 26, Sun 27 Sep, glasgowconcerthalls.com The last weekend of a three-year project devoted to the music of arguably the greatest composer who ever lived. Get to know Beethoven up close through different stages of his life in the company of artists who have a deep understanding of his music, including the Elias Quartet and pianist Llyr Wiliams.
PERTH DIE WALKÜRE
Perth Concert Hall, Sun 6 Sep, horsecross.co.uk Concert performance of the most well known
of Wagner’s quartet of operas which make up the Ring cycle. With staged lighting and image projection, Jonathan Dove’s re-scoring for 15 players is a remarkable take on the usual opera orchestra. COCKENZIE
CELLOS AT SETON Seton Collegiate Church, Seton Mains, Sat 12 Sep, lammermuirfestival.co.uk With the venue at least as interesting as the music, Lammermuir Festival offers the opportunity to experience the medieval acoustic of one of the finest historic collegiate churches in Scotland. Should be ideal for solo and duo music for cello.
DUNBAR
STEVEN OSBORNE Dunbar Parish Church, Queen’s Road, Wed 16 Sep, lammermuirfestival.co.uk Just one of the many delights of this year’s Lammermuir Festival, Scottish pianist Steven Osborne’s concert is a solo recital featuring two of the finest composers for the piano, Schubert and Rachmaninov.
80 THE LIST 3 Sep–5 Nov 2015