Pictured is Marc Gascoigne conducting the Fulham Symphony Orchestra
A musical treat awaits as the Fulham Symphony Orchestra stages its first full-scale concert in H&F for more than two years.
Spanning 120 years of orchestral compositions from Hector Berlioz, Richard Wagner, Olivier Messiaen and Arvo Pärt, the concert will showcase renowned pieces from the European composers.
Fulham Symphony Orchestra’s 75 musicians will fill St Paul’s Church in Queen Caroline Street, Hammersmith, with a collection of works linked by themes of spirituality and transcendence.
Opening the event at 7.30pm on Saturday 26 March will be music from German composer Wagner’s 1882 opera Parsifal, which depicts the Arthurian knight Parsifal’s quest for the Holy Grail – the chalice that held the wine of Christ at the Last Supper.
The orchestra will also perform music from Wagner’s earlier opera Lohengrin, which tells the tale of a mysterious knight helping a noble lady in distress.
Sharon Robinson, chair of Fulham Symphony Orchestra, says: “Mysterious and radiant music from Parsifal uses a sacred six-note sequence known as the Dresden Amen as a leitmotif to represent the Holy Grail, while his prelude to Lohengrin depicts the grail’s descent to Earth with an angelic host.”
Also on the bill is Les Offrandes Oubliées, composed in 1930 by French composer Olivier Messiaen at the age of 22.
Described as an ‘early masterpiece’, Sharon added the symphony features his “distinctive spiritual intensity, mysticism and colourful, innovative harmonies”.
The orchestra – which features Tom Evans as its leaders and Marc Dooley as conductor – will continue the evocative performance with Hector Berlioz’s Scène d’amour from Roméo et Juliette. First performed in 1839, the sprawling choral symphony was a significant influence on Wagner, who attended the premiere.
The concert closes with Estonian composer Arvo Pärt’s joyous Third Symphony, composed in 1971 and inspired by Gregorian chant and Renaissance polyphony.
Tickets are available through TryBooking priced at £12 (under-18s £8), with a booking fee of 15p per ticket.
For more details, visit the Fulham Symphony Orchestra website.
Want to read more news stories like this? Subscribe to our weekly e-news bulletin.
