PROGRAMME

Sibelius Finlandia
Rachmaninov Piano Concer to No 2
Tchaikovsky Symphony No 4

BIOGRAPHY - Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Patron: HRH The Duke of York

Music Director: Daniele Gatti

Founded in 1946 by Sir Thomas Beecham, with his vision of bringing world-class performances of the greatest music written to the length of the country, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra continues to maintain Beecham's legacy by offering audiences in the UK and abroad the highest possible standards of music-making, accompanied by some of the most acclaimed artists of the day.

Since its formation, the Orchestra has been directed by some of the world's finest conductors, most notably Rudolf Kempe, Antal Doráti, André Previn and Vladimir Ashkenazy. The RPO continues to thrive, undertaking a busy concert, touring and recording schedule, under the inspired leadership of Maestro Daniele Gatti (Music Director since 1996) and achieving unanimous acclaim from audiences and critics alike: 'Plays like a dream, with characterful wind soloists and much silvery, aristocratic string tone' - The Times. The Orchestra is pleased to announce that from the beginning of the 2009-2010 season, Charles Dutoit will become Artistic Director and Principal Conductor, with Daniele Gatti continuing as Conductor Laureate.

The Orchestra is London-based with a residency at London's newest concert venue, Cadogan Hall, Sloane Square. Recent performances have included internationally acclaimed artists such as Sir Andrew Davis, Tasmin Little, Leonard Slatkin and the Joyful Company of Singers. Complementing the intimate and luxurious surroundings of its resident season, the RPO also performs regularly in the magnificent of the Royal Albert Hall, presenting works of great magnitude in a varied series designed to suit the immensity of this grand venue. Highlights from the current season range from popular classics such as Vaughan Williams' The Wasps Overture, Elgar's 'Enigma' Variations and Dream of Gerontius and Debussy's La Mer to Symphonic Rock and Filmharmonic. In 2008, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra are delighted to return to the newly-refurbished Royal Festival Hall, where they will showcase a series of concerts of the highest calibre.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra uses its schedule in the capital as the springboard for a comprehensive regional touring programme including residencies in Northampton, Croydon, Lowestoft, Wimbledon, Catford and Crawley. The Orchestra also plays to tens of thousands of people across the country in open-air concerts throughout the summer months each year, including a newly launched series at Crystal Palace Bowl.

As an international orchestra, the RPO has toured more than thirty countries in the last five years, including performances for the late Pope John Paul II in the Vatican and the President of China in Tiananmen Square. Recent tours have included a month-long tour to the USA with Pinchas Zukerman, the RPO's first ever tour to Egypt, performing in the Cairo and Alexandria opera houses with Leonard Slatkin, and performances in Spain, Italy and Germany.

The RPO extends its artistic work through a vibrant and innovative Community and Education programme. Using music as a powerful and motivating force, the RPO works in a variety of settings including projects with young homeless people, youth clubs, the probation service, schools and families. RPO Community and Education projects promote live music-making, reflecting the diversity of the individuals involved, as well as the Orchestra's own background.

The RPO records widely for all the major commercial record companies, with no less than eight of its CDs featuring in the record charts last year. The Orchestra also has its own record label, which includes the popular Here Come The Classics™ series. These recordings reflect the versatility of the RPO's repertoire, ranging from popular orchestral and choral works to film classics and music from the musicals.

BIOGRAPHY - Michael Seal

In May 2005, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra announced the appointment of Michael Seal as its first Assistant Conductor. Michael had conducted the CBSO in a number of performances previously, and impressed audiences, critics and the Orchestra alike when he stood in for the CBSO's Music Director, Sakari Oramo, at extremely short notice in December 2004, producing a dramatic interpretation of the world première of Richard Causton's Between Two Waves of the Sea and conducting the CBSO's Benevolent Fund concert.

Michael Seal was born in London in 1970. He started learning the violin at the age of 9, going on to study at the Birmingham Conservatoire and joining the CBSO in September 1992. It was whilst studying at the Birmingham Conservatoire that Michael first started conducting, learning with Jonathan Del Mar. Since then he has had coaching and masterclasses from Sakari Oramo and Jorma Panula.

In 1996, he conducted his first concert with the Birmingham Philharmonic and has subsequently conducted them regularly in venues throughout the Midlands.

Michael has been Principal Conductor of the Sinfonia of Birmingham since 2002, frequently performing concerti with CBSO members and leading them on highly successful tours of the Rhine and Mosel Valleys in 2002, Tuscany in 2004, Holland in 2006 and Poland in 2008. Michael has also worked with the Midland Concert Orchestra, the Birmingham Schools Symphony Orchestra, Birmingham University Symphony Orchestra and the CBSO Youth Orchestra.

His work with the CBSO has included Schools and Family concerts, giving a performance of Lutoslawski "Chain 1" in the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, appearing with the CBSO on 3 separate occasions at the Aldeburgh Festival, recording 3 tracks for the promotional CD, "Classic Discoveries", as well as recording tracks for the CBSO website.

During the first two years of his three year tenure as Assistant Conductor, Michael conducted Family, Schools and Matin? concerts and led the CBSO during Artsfest in Centenary Square. Outside Birmingham he has appeared with them in Aldeburgh, Milton Keynes, Sutton Coldfield and Wolverhampton. His first Subscription Concert in March 2007 with a programme including Hugh Wood's Piano Concerto, with Joanna MacGregor as soloist, and Walton Symphony No.1 was broadcast by BBC Radio 3.

In June 2007, Michael made his debut with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. Future engagements include debuts with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Orquesta Filarmonica de Buenos Aires and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and with the CBSO he will conduct concerts at Artsfest, the Malvern Festival, the Aldeburgh Festival and a Subscription Concert in January 2009.

BIOGRAPHY - Peter Donohoe

Peter Donohoe was born in Manchester in 1953. He studied at the Royal Northern College of Music with Derek Wyndham and then in Paris with Olivier Messiaen and Yvonne Loriod. Since his unprecedented success as joint winner of the 1982 International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow, he has developed a distinguished career in Europe, the USA, the Far East and Australasia. He is acclaimed as one of the foremost pianists of our time, for his musicianship, stylistic versatility and commanding technique. In 2006 he was invited by the Netherlands to be Ambassador for Music in the Middle East.

During the 2007/8 season Peter Donohoe's performances include the City of Birmingham Symphony and Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestras, an extensive tour to South America and concerts in Moscow and St Petersburg. He will also take part in a major Messiaen Festival in the Spanish city of Cuenca, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the composer's birth and performs solo recitals throughout the UK, including London's Cadogan Hall. Last season Peter Donohoe's engagements included the complete works for piano and orchestra by Tchaikovsky with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.

Peter Donohoe played with the Berliner Philharmoniker in Sir Simon Rattle's opening concerts as Music Director. He has also recently performed with all the major London Orchestras, Royal Concertgebouw, Leipzig Gewandhaus, Munich Philharmonic, Swedish Radio, Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, Vienna Symphony and Czech Philharmonic Orchestras. He was an annual visitor to the BBC Proms for seventeen years and has appeared at many other festivals including six consecutive visits to the Edinburgh Festival, La Roque d'Anth?ron in France, and at the Ruhr and Schleswig Holstein Festivals in Germany. In the United States, his appearances have included the Los Angeles Philharmonic, Boston, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit Symphony Orchestras. Peter Donohoe has worked with many of the worlds' greatest conductors including Christoph Eschenbach, Neeme Jarvi, Lorin Maazel, Kurt Masur, Andrew Davis and Yevgeny Svetlanov.

Peter Donohoe is a keen chamber musician and performs frequently with the pianist Martin Roscoe. They have given performances in London and at the Edinburgh Festival and have recorded discs of Gershwin and Rachmaninov. Other musical partners have included the Maggini Quartet, with whom he has made recordings of several great British chamber works.

In 2001 Naxos released a disc of music by Finzi, the first of a major series of recordings which aims to raise the public's awareness of British piano repertoire through concert performance and recordings. Discs of music by Rawsthorne, Bliss, Darnton, Rowley, Ferguson, Gerhard, Alwyn, Pitfield and Harty have now also been released to great critical acclaim.

Peter Donohoe has made many fine recordings on EMI Records and has won awards for them including the Grand Prix International du Disque Liszt and the Gramophone Concerto award for the Tchaikovsky Piano Concerto no. 2. His recordings of Messiaen with the Netherlands Wind Ensemble for Chandos Records and Litolff for Hyperion have also received widespread acclaim.