The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) and Hull Integrated Community Stroke Service (HICSS), part of Humber NHS Foundation Trust, today revealed the significant impact of their STROKESTRA collaboration. The pioneering pilot programme established that creative music-making can be used to support rehabilitation in stroke patients with clear benefits for stroke survivors and carers.
October at Cadogan Hall sees the start of a fascinating series of four concerts under the baton of Alexander Shelley, the RPO’s Principal Associate Conductor. Called Symphonic Soundscapes, the series pairs those giants of twentieth-century music, Jean Sibelius and Sergei Prokofiev.
One Finnish, the other Russian – you’d think Finlandia, Sibelius’ famous cry for freedom from Russian oppression, would rule out this musical pairing at a stroke. Not so, says Shelley.
Earlier in our milestone year, we welcomed James Williams as our new Managing Director. Hannah Nepil caught up with him in a recent phone interview to find out more about how he’s settling in and future plans for the organisation.
James Williams sounds surprisingly relaxed. Perhaps, after only a couple of months as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra’s new Managing Director, the stress of the role hasn’t fully set in. Or perhaps he is just concealing it. After all, as he points out, it takes a lot of work ‘to get under the skin of these big, complicated organisations. You have to do a lot of listening to people to get a feel for the culture and the organisation’s values.’
To mark the Orchestra’s platinum season, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) will host its 70th Anniversary Gala Concert at the Royal Albert Hall on Monday 19 September, featuring three all-time prestigious artists: Martha Argerich, Charles Dutoit (Artistic Director and Principal Conductor) and Pinchas Zukerman (Principal Guest Conductor). The thrilling concert will include Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor with Martha Argerich and Bruch’s Violin Concerto No.1 with Pinchas Zukerman (Violin/Director), and will conclude with Stravinsky’s epic ballet score, The Firebird Suite (1919), conducted by Charles Dutoit.
