"A SUMMMER SERENADE"
Saturday July 10 at 8.00pm At St James Concert Hall
Guest Conductor: Richard Balcombe
Guest Soloist: Lucy Wakeford
Programme:
Stravinsky - Ballet Suite Jeu de cartes
Rodrigo - Concierto Serenata for harp and orchestra
Dvorak - Symphony No. 8 in G major
For the second concert of The 2010 Credit Suisse Series, The Guernsey Symphony Orchestra presents "A Summer Serenade".
A rare opportunity to hear the harp played as a solo concerto instrument. The orchestra is delighted to welcome Lucy Wakeford to perform the exciting and exhubarant Concierto serenata by Rodrigo. Lucy has performed with many of the U.K.'s top orchestras and during her studies has won top prizes at numerous national and international competitions including 1st Prize at the Charpentier Competition held in Paris, and 1st Prize at the World Harp Festival Competition held in Cardiff. Returning to Guernsey to direct the orchestra for this concert is Internationally renowned conductor Richard Balcombe. The programme also includes music by Dvorak, celebrating the old world with lilting tunes and irresistible charm.
Ticket prices : £15 £12.50 £10.00 Students half price and £6.00 restricted view
Lucy Wakeford
Appointed principal of the Philharmonia Orchestra in 2002, Lucy Wakeford is one of the most outstanding harpists of her generation.
Much in demand as a soloist, recitalist and ensemble player she has performed at major venues and festivals throughout Europe, appearing as guest artist with musicians including Roger Vignoles, John Mark Ainsley, Michael Chance, James Galway and the Belcea Quartet. She is principal harp of the Britten Sinfonia and harpist of the Nash Ensemble.
Lucy's engagements have included visits to the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Wigmore Hall, both as soloist and in performances of works by Britten with Roger Vignoles and John Mark Ainsley. She has appeared at the City of London and Cheltenham International Festivals and gave several performances of Mozart's Flute & Harp Concerto with the London Chamber Orchestra conducted by Christopher Warren-Green. Lucy also undertook an Arts Council England "Around the Country" tour with the Wakeford Ensemble and gave recitals in Tunisia.
As a concerto soloist Lucy has appeared with the London Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Guildhall String Ensemble, Ulster Orchestra, City of London Sinfonia, London Festival Orchestra and BBC Concert Orchestra, among many others.
She has recorded the Mozart Concerto for Flute & Harp with the Britten Sinfonia and Dohnanyi Concertino with the English Sinfonia on the BMG and ASV labels respectively. In 2008 she recorded the Lutoslawski Concerto for Oboe and Harp with Nicholas Daniels and with the Lutoslawski Philharmonic Orchestra in Poland
Lucy studied with Daphne Boden and Marisa Robles at the Royal College of Music and with Gerard Devos in Paris and Skaila Kanga in London and was selected for representation by Young Concert Artists Trust in 1998. During her studies she won top prizes at numerous national and international competitions including 1st Prize at the 1996 Charpentier Competition held in Paris, 1st Prize at the 1991 World Harp Festival Competition held in Cardiff and 2nd Prize at the 1988 Tenth International Harp Competition in Israel.
Richard Balcombe
Richard Balcombe is firmly established as one of the most versatile musicians of his generation.
In opera he has conducted The Gondoliers (English National Opera), Barber of Seville (Ulster Orchestra), Magic Flute and Offenbach's Bluebeard (English Chamber Orchestra), Rigoletto (English Touring Opera), Madama Butterfly and Magic Flute (Central Festival Opera), Falstaff, Tosca, Cosi fan Tutte, The Marriage of Figaro (London Opera Players), Die Fledermaus, The Merry Widow, The Mikado, HMS Pinafore, The Gondoliers and Pirates of Penzance (Carl Rosa) and HMS Pinafore & The Mikado (D'Oyly Carte Opera Company in the UK and America). He has also conducted for Bryn Terfel, Jose Carreras and Roberto Alagna and Angela Gheorgiu on BBC TV.
He has been privileged to work with some of the world's leading orchestras including Gothenburg Symphony, Orchestre National de Lille, Odense Symphony, Stavanger Symphony, Estonian National Symphony, Stockholm Sinfonietta, Sonderjyllands Symphony, Prague Chamber Orchestra, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and Orquesta Sinfonica Gran Mariscal (Venezuela); and in the UK the London Philharmonic, Royal Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National, English Chamber, Halle, Ulster, National Symphony, BBC Concert, London Pro Arte, East of England, Northern Chamber, London Concert and London Musicians Orchestras and the Orchestra of Scottish Opera.
In the West End he was Music Director for Phantom of the Opera, Aspects of Love, Carmen Jones, Cats, and Once on this Island; he was Music Director for Divorce me Darling, Out of this world, The Gondoliers and How to succeed in business (Chichester Festival), Babes in Arms (Cardiff International Festival), Follies in Concert (London Palladium), Wonderful Town and South Pacific (Grange Park Opera), Anton and Erin Steppin Out (national tour 2010) and Musical Supervisor for Promises and Lies (Birmingham Rep; world premiere), and the 2004/2005 national tour of Kiss me Kate.
Richard is also a prolific orchestrator and arranger and has provided orchestrations for the LSO, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, RSNO and the BBC and London Concert Orchestras; for artists including Lesley Garrett, Willard White, Michael Ball, Sir Cliff Richard, Will Young and Ronan Keating and for projects including The Sound of Musicals (Barbican), Fred Astaire: His daughter's Tribute (London Palladium), Children will listen (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane), Hollywood Symphonic (France); Can you feel the love tonight, The Magnificent Musicals (with Ruthie Henshall) and Something Wonderful (UK tours); Out of this world, How to succeed in business, Babes in Arms and The Gondoliers (Chichester Festival), Promises and Lies (Birmingham Rep) and The Merry Widow (Carl Rosa). In 2009 he arranged and orchestrated the score for Adam Cooper's Shall we Dance (Sadlers Wells) and he has created reduced orchestral versions of 25 complete operas which are now used worldwide.
His recording credits (as conductor and/or orchestrator) include The Martyr of Antioch (Sullivan), Love Unspoken, The Musicality of Irving Berlin, Showstoppers from Broadway, original cast albums of City of Angels, Once on this Island and Divorce me Darling, This time it's personal (Michael Ball), The Rutter & Gadd Family album, The London Cello Sound, Fred Astaire: His Daughter's Tribute, Short Stories (Mario Frangoulis); Brideshead Revisited and Merciless Beauty (as co-producer) and the DVD Sometimes I dream (Mario Frangoulis).
