Brandon Hill Chamber Orchestra
Guy Johnston plays Barber
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Catherine Larsen-Maguire Conductor
Guy Johnston Cello
Barber Adagio for Strings
Barber Cello Concerto
Dvorak Symphony No 8
Catherine Larsen-Maguire teams up with BHCO, enlisting the virtuoso talents of Guy Johnston, to present this double bill from composers both acknowledged as the supreme lyricists of their respective eras.
Guy Johnston is one of the most exciting cellists of his generation. His early successes included winning the BBC Young Musician of the Year and receiving a Classical Brit. He has performed with many leading international orchestras and in 2018 he was appointed Associate Professor of Cello at the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. He is honoured to have the loan of a Stradivarius cello.
Barber’s Adagio, his most well-known work, typifies his commitment to vocally-inspired lyricism. It brought him early success from 1938 onwards, and has endured as an American national classic, achieving a similar status there to Elgar’s Nimrod in England. His Cello Concerto [1945] combines his characteristically generous romantic melodic invention with an exciting use of dissonance and angular rhythms.
Dvorak had achieved considerable financial success with his 7th Symphony, such that he was able to purchase a rural summer residence for himself, where in the space of a couple of months in 1889, he composed his 8th Symphony. The work breathes with folk music-infused lyricism. Its many moods encompass both radiance and melancholy: its jubilant conclusion a suitably sunny end to this summer celebration!
“Johnston seems to have it all. His communication is direct, his playing lyrical and unmannered, his tone robust and soulful. He plays with the kind of understated (but technically perfect) virtuosity and charisma that makes it all look effortless.” Pierre Ruhe, ARTS ATL
A young person’s take on getting into Classical Music and listening to Guy – Read more here…
Listen to Catherine’s interpretation of Barber’s beautiful Adagio for Strings
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Pre-event Food & Drink
Enjoy delicious drinks and light bites from our Café Bar ahead of the event.
Available to pre-order when booking your tickets, you can choose from a selection of house drinks on arrival, accompanied by a board of bread, olives and dips (all Vegetarian). Just select which option – for one or two people – you would like, before checkout.
Your pre-ordered food and drink will be available to collect from the Café Bar from 60 minutes before the event. It’s the perfect way to begin your event experience at St George’s!