Mendelssohn A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Overture
Elgar Cello Concerto
Dvořák Symphony No.8
Rory MacDonald Conductor
Guy Johnston Cello
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra makes a much-anticipated return to the De La WarrPavillion for a concert of beautiful classics. The evening opens with Mendelssohn’s magical Overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The fairies and enchanted woodlands of Shakespeare’s play captivated Mendelssohn from an early age, inspiring him to write accompanying music. From the opening notes of the overture he perfectly captured the mood of bickering lovers, shimmering sprites and magical forests.
Guy Johnston will then perform Elgar’s famous and deeply heartfelt 1919 Cello Concerto. Partly a lament for the First World War, and written in the autumn of his life, it yearns for a simpler, untainted past.
Completing the programme, Rory MacDonald conducts Dvořák’s Symphony No.8. Infused with Dvořák’s Czech heritage, this Romantic symphony combines soaring string themes, roaring brass, atmospheric percussion and dancing woodwind.
