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Newbury Spring Festival
Artists appearing at this year’s Newbury Spring Festival include Jess Gillam, Steven Osborne, Lucy Crowe, Sir John Tomlinson, Symphonic Brass of London, The Tallis Scholars, Barry Douglas, Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Doric String Quartet, Ben Goldscheider,...
Oxford Lieder Festival
The Oxford Lieder Festival (from 14 – 29 October) will celebrate its 21st birthday this autumn, coming of age in a fortnight that focuses on song as an intimate art form with its origins in friendship and conviviality. An array of artists will appear in around 80...
2022 Presteigne Festival
After two years of uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Presteigne Festival celebrates its 40th anniversary in late August. With an international reputation for the commissioning of important new work and the support of young generation performers and...
Leslie Howard: Great Russian masters at Wigmore Hall
Leslie Howard’s all Russian programme for his annual concert at Wigmore Hall on July 18th at 7.30pm should be warmly welcomed. At such a time of international tension, it is of course unproductive to blame a whole country for the malpractices of its leaders, and...
A New Bliss Biography and celebratory Recital
The Arthur Bliss Society presents a Talk and Recital featuring Arthur Bliss and Ian Venables at the Birmingham and Midland Institute (9, Margaret Street, Birmingham) on Saturday October 29 at 2.30pm. Paul Spicer will talk about his recently-published biography – Sir...
Beethoven Birthday Marathon from Julian Jacobson
On November 12th, Julian Jacobson will perform the Beethoven Marathon – all 32 piano sonatas from memory - in celebration of his 75th birthday at St. John’s Church Waterloo London SE1, from 9 am to 10 pm. The performance will be in three sessions (morning, afternoon,...
Oxford Lieder Festival’s 21st Year
This year’s Oxford Lieder Festival will contain nearly 80 events. The Festival’s title, Friendship in Song: An Intimate Art, focuses on song as an art-form that grew up around the piano, at social gatherings and salons, among friends. Nearly 200 singers,...
New Recital Series from Lisa Peacock Concert Management
Lisa Peacock Concert Management Ltd announces the greatly anticipated appearance in London of Juan Pérez Floristán, Gold Medallist of the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition 2021 in music by Chopin, Liszt, Wagner/Liszt and Beethoven on Saturday...
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The Second African Concert Series
Wifnmore Hall
Saturday May 13th
The Second African Concert Series at the Wigmore Hall will be held on Saturday May 13th under the directorship of the Series founder, Dr Rebeca Omordia, who begins the day’s three concerts at 11.30 with a solo piano recital, ‘African Pianism’. Dr Omordia opens her programme with the Second Piano Sonata, The Passion, by Ayo Bankole, followed by music from Christian Onyeji and Nabil Banabdekjali. Music by the white South African composer David Earl – his ‘Princess Rainbow’ from the suite Scenes from a South African Childhood – is followed by six Studies (from a set of 24 Studies in African Rhythms) by Fred Onovwerosuoke, which concludes Dr Omordia’s programme.
Much of the music in this solo recital has been recorded by Rebeca Omordia on her SOMM CD ‘African Pianism’ [SOMM 0647 – described by Gramophone magazine as ‘richly rewarding’]
The second programme – at 3.00pm – in the day’s events, is of a wide-ranging collection of ‘African Art Songs – Journeys from Home’, performed by Omo Bello, soprano, with Rebeca Omordia, piano and Richard Olatune Baker, percussion. The concluding evening concert, beginning at 7.30, will be given by Louise Lansdown viola, Leon Bosch double bass, Moussa Dembele percussion, Andre Swanepoel violin, Elliott Bailey cello, Tessa Uys piano, Theo Magongoma baritone and Claudia Dehnke violin, featuring music by Grant McLachlan, Mokale Koapeng, Moussa Dembele, Fodé Lassana Diabaté, Grant McLachlan, David Earl and Klatzow.
No-one has done more than prize-winning pianist Rebeca Omordia to promote African classical music and it is, therefore, with some justifiable pride that she is able to announce that her pioneering African Concert Series, now supported by Arts Council England’s National Lottery Grants, has joined Wigmore Hall’s Family of Partners with a day of concerts on May 13 2023 at the famous concert venue. The Hall’s distinguished Director, John Gilhooly, has “welcomed Rebeca’s inspiration and initiative.”
With her mixed heritage of Nigerian and Romanian parentage she is ideally qualified to bridge the gap between Western classical music and traditional African music. In 2019 she curated the widely acclaimed first series, since when it has now become an essential part of the London musical calendar. As Patron Julian Lloyd Webber has said: “I was honoured to be asked by Rebeca to be Patron of her wonderful initiative The African Concert Series. Since its pioneering early days, it has gone from strength to strength and I look forward to hearing more fantastic music and performances during the coming seasons.”
