Monthly Archives: July 2015

Sibelius Study Day, London, 15th August 2015

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Saturday 15th August, 10 am – 4 pm, at St Andrew’s Fulham Fields, London

Celebrate the 150th anniversary of Sibelius’s birth with a study day before the three BBC Proms devoted to his seven symphonies.

David Nice, whose Building a Library on the Fourth Symphony was broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s CD Review earlier this year, takes you on a lifetime’s journey from early, Tchaikovsky-inspired epic to the late, concise landscapes of the soul, fully illustrated by a wide range of recordings from the great Sibelius interpreters.

Come to St Andrew’s in Fulham before the first of the Sibelius symphonies Proms at the nearby Albert Hall. There will be an hour’s break for lunch between 1 pm and  2pm.

Fee: £50
Venue: St Andrew’s Fulham Fields,
Greyhound Road,
London W14 9SA
West Kensington, Barons Court

Book: Email david.nice@usa.net to confirm a place.

Peter Fischerbauer’s ‘Wiener Musikzimmer’

 

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Symphony No. 4
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Symphony No. 4

The Munich-born painter Peter Fischerbauer, in collaboration with the cellist Liina Leijala, is mounting an exhibition, ‘Wiener Musikzimmer – na Sumave / im Böhmerwald’ to mark the 150th anniversary of Sibelius’s birth. In retrospective he follows Sibelius’s study year in Vienna. Paintings in the exhibition are inspired by Sibelius Fourth and Fifth Symphonies.

The exhibition runs from 16th to 20th August 2015, each day from 4 pm until 8 pm./
Venue: Pavillon 1 Otto-Wagner-Spital, 1140 Wien, Baumgartner Höhe 1, Austria

Further information (in German): click here.

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Symphony No. 5
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Symphony No. 5

Summer Sibelius at Merton Abbey

MErton-Abbey-Mills-www

A concert will take place on Sunday 26th July 2015, at 7.30 pm, at the Colour House Theatre at Merton Abbey Mills, Wimbledon, London, featuring a varied collection of Sibelius chamber music rarities in addition to his famous ‘Voces intimae’ string quartet.

The concert forms part of the series ‘Sunday Evening Music Among Friends’, now in its nineteenth year,  a monthly series of informal chamber concerts in which both seasoned professionals and gifted young players perform the music they love. The concert lasts about ninety minutes including the interval, when you can enjoy a free drink next door in the historic Wheelhouse. The series is noted for its friendly informal atmosphere as well as the highest standard of performance of a wide range of repertoire.

The programme is as follows:
Nielsen: At the Bier of a Young Artist
Sibelius: Vattendroppar, JS 216, for violin and cello
Sibelius: Moderato – Allegro appassionato in C sharp minor, JS 131, for string quartet
Sibelius: Lullaby, JS 222, for violin and kantele
Tchaikovsky: Andante cantabile
Sibelius: Duo, JS 66, for violin and viola
Sibelius: String Quartet in D minor, ‘Voces intimae’, Op. 56

The performers will be Anya Birchall and Rebecca Totterdell (violins),
Toby Hawks (viola/kantele) and Kate Leigh (cello).

Tickets cost £14, or £10 for concessions.
Sibelius One members will receive the concession price.

Further information and directions: click here.

This concert is included in the official Sibelius 150 calendar of events.sibelius150_cmyk_2015www

Ainola railway station

Ainola Railway Station (photo © Junafani / Wilimedia Commons)
Ainola Railway Station (photo © Junafani / Wilimedia Commons)

The closest railway station to Jean Sibelius’s home, Ainola, has been renamed Ainola to mark the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth.

The station was named Kyröla until 30th June 2015, and is situated between Kerava and Järvenpää on the line from Helsinki to Riihimäki. It takes approx. 20 minutes to walk from the station to Ainola.

This is not the first time that Sibelius and his world have featured on Finnish railways. From 1992 until 2010 a daily train from Helsinki to St Petersburg bore the name ‘Sibelius’.