Local and international composers are celebrated in Plymouth Symphony Orchestra’s next concert, which also features well known, charismatic and versatile soprano Nadine Benjamin (formerly Mortimer-Smith).
From the dramatic tors of Dartmoor, to the beautiful rolling hills of the French Auvergne and on to the streets of Rome, this programme takes the audience on a tour from the South West of England through continental Europe.
Local compositions include Judy Whitlock’s ‘Dartmoor Letterboxes’. This work is inspired by the moody contrasts of the moor with each of the movements representing a different tor. ‘The Soldier’, composed by Stephen Brown and sung by Nadine Benjamin, is a setting of one of Rupert Brooke’s well known war poems. The work begins with some of the most famous and widely quoted works of patriotism and self-sacrifice in the English Language. Our final West Country composer is Steven Lunn. His composition ‘Be Who You Are!’ was inspired by a samba band in Spain during the fiesta season. It is scored for a standard orchestra but with an extended percussion section. Many instruments are given their opportunity to shine – perhaps reflecting the title of the piece.
Crossing to the continent the opening work of the concert is Austrian Franz von Suppe’s overture from the operetta ‘Light Cavalry’. The Operetta itself is now rarely performed, but the overture is very well known and is one of Suppe’s most popular compositions. Nadine then takes the solo role in the fourth series of the ‘Songs of the Auvergne’ - a collection of folk songs from the Auvergne region of France, arranged for soprano and orchestra by Joseph Canteloube. Then to Italy and the popular symphonic poem the ‘Pines of Rome’, written by Italian composer Ottorino Respighi in 1924. Each of the contrasting four movements depicts pine trees in various locations of Rome, at different times of the day.
Nadine Benjamin is much sought after as a soloist and has recently made her New York recital debut with a programme of Verdi songs and arias. In November 2014 Nadine was hailed by Opera Now as one of their favourite top ten sopranos in ‘a new generation of sopranos who are destined to have impressive careers’.
The Plymouth Symphony Orchestra is one of the longest-established orchestras in the country and the present conductor, Anne Kimber, is only the sixth conductor to have taken up the baton in 138 years. The orchestra attracts many distinguished soloists, with Ralph Kirshbaum, Guy Johnston, Tasmin Little, Joanna MacGregor and Jennifer Pike amongst the most recent performers to play with the orchestra.