University Symphony Orchestra

Event details

Please note the earlier start time of 7pm for this concert.

Grace Overvoorde  piano
John Stringer  conductor

Vítězslava Kaprálová   Suita rustica, op. 19
Poulenc   Piano Concerto in C-sharp minor, FP 146
Jonny Greenwood   Suite from There Will Be Blood
Britten   Symphonic Suite from Gloriana, op. 53a

Following the success of her Military Sinfonietta in 1937, the Czech composer Vítězslava Kaprálová was asked by her publisher, Universal Edition, to compose another orchestral work, based on the traditional folk songs and dances of her homeland. Suita rustica draws heavily on inspiration from Stravinsky, specifically his ballet Petrushka, which Kaprálová had studied as a student in Brno and later in Prague. The Czech composer completed the entire three-movement suite in a staggering nine days, beating the very tight deadline set by her publisher. Despite this and the exquisite lyricism of the work, Universal Edition ultimately chose not to publish it.

After completing a highly successful concert tour of the United States in 1948, Poulenc was commissioned by the Boston Symphony Orchestra to write a piano concerto to help restore relations between Paris and America following the Second World War. It was after the second performance of his Piano Concerto in 1950 that the music critic Claude Rostand famously referred to Poulenc, when describing the sharp contrasts in his music, as ‘something of a monk and something of a rascal.’

Britten’s Symphonic Suite is one of several works that the composer derived from his opera Gloriana, which was commissioned by the Royal Opera House to celebrate the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II in 1953. The work is divided into four contrasting movements drawn directly from major dramatic moments in the stage production. Also born from dramatic music, Jonny Greenwood’s 2012 orchestral suite adapts the Radiohead guitarist's acclaimed score for the Oscar-winning film There Will Be Blood.

If you would like to discuss any access requirements with us, please contact the Box Office. Information about our companion card scheme, group bookings and free tickets for under-16s can be found on our website.