Wagner: Siegfried Idyll, Strauss: Horn Concerto no.1, Webern: Langsamer Satz, Haydn: Symphony no.104 'London'

The HCO marked the bicentenary of Haydn's death with a performance of his last, and arguably, greatest symphony.

The other works in the programme belong very much to the great Austro-German tradition, of which Haydn can in many ways be considered the father.  Wagner is represented by the tender and intimate serenade which he wrote for his wife and new-born son, first performed on Christmas Day 1870.  Richard Strauss' father, Franz, was one of the great horn players of his time and played in the premieres of many of Wagner's operas (despite mutual enmity) - he was, therefore, practically born into the Wagnerian tradition. The first of his two horn concertos (here played by gifted young American horn-player, Meredith Moore), though an early work, is already marked by a typically 'Straussian' brilliance and panache.    

Anton Webern, as a pupil of Schoenberg, can also be said to belong to this musical lineage, and his beautiful early 'Langsamer Satz' still breathes the heady air of late German Romanticism.  

This, our sixth UK concert, took place on Saturday, 18th July 2009 at 7.30pm in the church of St Cyprian's, Clarence Gate.

The orchestra returned to St Cyprian's with a rare performance of Arthur Honegger's wonderfully lyrical 4th Symphony. The programme also featured Beethoven's great G major concerto, played by gifted young German pianist Jan Loeffler, Mendelssohn's captivating Fair Melusine - and a charming rarity in the form of the Vicomtesse Marie-Clémence de Grandval's Romance for oboe and cello, here presented in a new orchestration by Owen Leech.

This, our fifth UK concert, took place on Saturday, 18th April 2009 at 7.30pm in the church of St Cyprian's, Clarence Gate.

Grand Prix winner of The 2004 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels, Iwona Sobotka (left) is one of the most widely-acclaimed young sopranos in Europe. She has performed at some of the world's most prestigious concert halls and opera houses including the Vienna Konzerthaus and New York's Carnegie Hall, and her discography includes work with Sir Simon Rattle and the CBSO.

We were very fortunate to perform with Iwona in this, her London début, in which she sang two of Mozart's finest concert arias. In the second of these, she was joined by her compatriot, the Polish pianist Bartosz Barasinski (in his second appearance with the Orchestra) as well as going on to sing the beautiful Wunderhorn setting that forms the finale of Mahler's most joyful and intimate symphony.

This, our fourth UK concert, took place on Saturday, 1st November 2008 at 7.30pm in the church of St Cyprian's, Clarence Gate

The Orchestra's third concert took place on Saturday, 10th May 2008 at 7.30pm in the church of St Cyprian's, Clarence Gate. The French-themed programme opened with Mozart's spirited Symphony No. 31 'Paris' (composed during the composer's somewhat ill-fated visit to the French capital in 1778), and was followed by Saint-Saëns' elegant Cello Concerto No.1 -  played by gifted young cellist Laura Isaacson (left).

After the interval, Hannah Stone joined the strings for Debussy's exquisite showpiece for harp, Danse sacrée et danse profane.  The concert concluded with a somewhat  rare outing for the complete ballet version of Ravel's 'Ma mère l'oye' (Mother Goose) - a ravishingly orchestrated evocation of fairy tales and the enchantment of childhood.