Leys Orchestra Family Concert

Flute Concerto in G by Gluck is bright and cheerful, with strong melodic writing in the solo part. There are cadenzas in each of the three movements. The origins of this concerto are not entirely clear. It may have been written while Gluck was still a student, or possibly even written by another composer and incorrectly misattributed to Gluck.

Wolf-Ferrari was arguably the finest writer of Italian comic opera of his time. A Wikipedia contributor describes these operas as "musically eclectic, melodic, and utterly hilarious; every single one became an international success." He wrote fifteen operas in total, as well as vocal, chamber and orchestral music. His Idillio Concertino for Oboe and Orchestra can be regarded as a chamber symphony, with wonderful interplay between the orchestra and solo oboe.

14 years his junior, Ferdinand Ries was a pupil, protege and friend of Beethoven. He wrote in a transitional style bridging Classical and early Romantic music. Among a wide range of compositions, he wrote eight symphonies, with his second, written in 1814, exhibiting a growing individual style as his music evolved beyond Beethoven's powerful influence.

Juan Crisostomo Arriaga was a Spanish Basque composer whose influence on Basque music was far greater than his short life of just 20 years would suggest. His three string quartets show clear influences of ethnic Spanish music, and his tragic life story became a touchstone for Basque nationalism in the early nineteenth century. He wrote one symphony, which is in D major and D minor almost equally so as not to be dominated by either key. It has echoes of Mozart, Beethoven and Rossini, but nevertheless in an original style marking Arriaga's prodigious talent. After his death he was nicknamed the "Spanish Mozart".

Amy Woodforde-Finden was born in Chile in 1860, lived in London from her teenage years, and later in India with her husband who was an army surgeon. Kashmiri Song, for which she also wrote the lyrics, is one of her most famous works, which comes from a set of four songs, "Indian Love Lyrics". Her music transported her listeners to exotic and romantic worlds, bringing the sounds of faraway places to European audiences.

Admission is free.

Soloists: Kate Rendall (oboe); Emily Rendall (flute)

Programme:
Christoph Willibald Gluck - Flute Concerto in G
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari - 'Idillio' Concertino; Preambolo, Scherzo
Ferdinand Ries - Symphony No. 2; Andantino, Menuetto
Juan Crisostomo Arriaga - Symphony in D
Amy Woodforde-Finden - Indian Love Lyrics; Kashmiri Song, Till I Wake