Nottingham Classics - City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra

Andris Nelsons  conductor
Lucy Crowe  soprano
Mihoko Fujimura  alto
Ben Johnson  tenor
Iain Paterson  bass
CBSO Chorus

Mendelssohn  Symphony No. 4 'Italian' Listen
Beethoven  Symphony No. 9 'Choral' Listen 

The matchless combination of Andris Nelsons and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra provides our final concert of this season beginning with Mendelssohn's sun-drenched 'Italian' Symphony. A ten month tour of Italy in 1830 left him with an overwhelming impression of the 'land of nature, delighting every heart,' and inspired him to write his most effervescent symphony three years later.

One of the most moving stories of Beethoven is that one of the soloists at the premiere of his 9^th Symphony in 1824 had to turn the deaf composer around so that he could witness the tumultuous applause. The choral finale, which proclaims the words of Schiller's Ode to Joy, is one of the most ecstatic moments in musical history.

Free pre-concert talk, 6.30pm in the auditorium:
Neil Bennison previews the 2013-2014 season.