This November Welsh National Opera will perform the first of three orchestral concerts which form part of the International Concert Series at St David’s Hall. WNO Music Director Tomáš Hanus will conduct this concert and will be joined by two superb soloists: young Armenian cellist Narek Hakhnazaryan and Slovak baritone Gustáv Beláček.
Tomáš returns to conduct the WNO Orchestra in a much-anticipated concert of Elgar’s poignant and contemplative cello concerto as well as Rossini’s famous William Tell overture, Janacek’s Sinfonietta and the ‘Forester’s Monologue’ from The Cunning Little Vixen.
Rossini’s final opera William Tell features music which has been used time and time again in popular films and television. The opera was the last to be composed by Rossini before he went into semi-retirement and was last performed by WNO in Autumn 2014.
Narek Hakhnazaryan joins the WNO Orchestra for the first time to perform Elgar’s Cello Concerto in E minor. Narek has performed with several high profile orchestras all over the world and also won the Cello First Prize and Gold Medal at the XIV International Tchaikovsky Competition in 2011 at the age of 22. From 2014-2016 he joined the prestigious BBC New Generation Artists scheme during which time he made a very successful BBC Proms debut. The cello concerto has become one of Elgar’s most memorable works despite the under rehearsed failure of its premiere which was performed almost a hundred years ago. The strikingly somber first chords of the piece are instantly identifiable. Affected by the tragedy of the First World War, Elgar wrote the concerto as a reflection having known several musicians, composers and close friends who died in the war which contrasts with his earlier Violin Concerto. After having his tonsils removed, when Elgar regained consciousness he immediately asked for pencil and paper and annotated what would become the first theme of the cello concerto.
The Second half of the concert consists of two Janáček works. Firstly Gustáv Beláček will perform the ‘Forester’s Monologue’ from the final scene of The Cunning Little Vixen, which features some of the most sublime and beautiful music of the opera. Gustáv performs regularly with the Slovak and Czech Philharmonic orchestras and has worked with many renowned conductors and has previously worked with Tomáš Hanus. Janáček often transcribed sounds from nature during his walks in the Moravian forest near his home and his influence from nature can be heard in the opera.
The afternoon will close with Janáček’s epic Sinfonietta. He was inspired to write the fanfares after listening to a military band and was later approached by the Sokol Gymnastic Festival for a commission in which he developed the fanfares into the Sinfonietta.
Tomáš Hanus said “I am thrilled to be able to do this concert with our fantastic WNO Orchestra. For musicians who most often play operas, a concert is always an opportunity to speak to the audience in a different kind of language. This time the language is extremely unique, because it’s Leoš Janáček. His music is so different than one could expect, almost as if he would not be a part of the history of music but would be standing aside, in his original place.”
“In the first half we have Rossini’s William Tell Overture, an amazing piece of music, as well as Elgar’s Cello Concerto, which can be listened to again and again and each time you always hear something new. The final scene of his opera The Cunning Little Vixen is one of the most beautiful, deep and poetic final scenes the world of opera knows. I would like to warmly invite our audience to share this unique experience with us, listening to his Sinfonietta, where he uses 12 trumpets among others.”
Following this concert, Carlo Rizzi will return to conduct the orchestra on 27 January in a concert featuring Mendelssohn’s Overture, The Hebrides(Fingal’s Cave), Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy and Rachmaninov’s stirring Symphony No 2. The orchestra will be joined by the Russian violinist Alexander Sitkovetsky, following his performance of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with WNO earlier this year.
For more information, visit wno.org.uk
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Notes to Editors
- Welsh National Opera is the national opera company for Wales with an international reputation for musical excellence. Funded by the Arts Councils of Wales and England, WNO connects with people through performances of fully staged opera and concerts, as well as through community and education work and digital projects. Full details are at www.wno.org.uk
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- The position of WNO Music Director is supported by Marian & Gordon Pell.