Holly Mathieson conducts Farnborough Symphony Orchestra - Enigma Variations

For the final concert of the season Farnborough Symphony Orchestra is delighted to be working with the Assistant Conductor of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Holly Mathieson. The programme opens with an exciting work by up-and-coming composer, Charlotte Bray. Commissioned by the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and premiered in 2014, 'Black Rainbow' is a work in two movements inspired by the Pageant Amphitheater in New Hampshire. In describing it, the composer wrote: "A rainbow seen at night can be referred to as a black rainbow; difficult to see, the colours are often hidden; a metaphor for something sought after but impossible to attain, an alluring ongoing search." The listener cannot fail to be intrigued by the prospect of the musical expression of these ideas.

The first half of the concert concludes with the Walton Viola Concerto, a classic work of the twentieth century, and it is a pleasure to welcome Nicholas Bootiman to perform it. Written in 1929 at the suggestion of Sir Thomas Beecham. the concerto was greeted with great enthusiasm and established the composer at the forefront of British music.

The season concludes with the familiar Enigma Variations. Elgar dedicated the work 'to my friends pictured within', each variation being a musical sketch of one of his circle of close acquaintances. In naming his theme ‘Enigma’, Elgar posed a challenge which has generated much speculation but has never been conclusively answered. As you listen to the characteristic melodies, why not see if you can decipher the enigma?