Bristol Metropolitan Orchestra

Bristol Metropolitan Orchestra is delighted to be back at St George’s in an autumn concert combining a thrilling mix of delicacy and audacity.

Camille Chaminade’s Callirhoe Suite is rarely played.  It is typical of late French romanticism, ranging from magical, spooky and fairy-tale-like to grand and heroic.

For our latest commissioned piece by a local composer we’re proud to be working with saxophonist Sophie Stockham. Following her successful debut album, Ria, for solo saxophone and string quintet, Sophie is expanding her ideas for full orchestra for the first time. Ria was described as ‘an effective amalgam of jazz and classical music that draws on the traditions of both genres.’ Tonight’s work, ‘Selene’s awakening’ is a collection of pieces taking you on a journey through the highs and lows of a lunar month.

The concert ends with Mahler’s impressive 1st symphony. One of the leading conductors of his day, Gustav Mahler was intent on continuing the symphonic tradition of Beethoven, Brahms and Bruckner, simultaneously immersing himself in the late romantic and modernist ideas of Liszt and Wagner.  In Mahler, joyous moments become clownishly candid and the sad expressions, utterly heart-wrenching. This symphony, nicknamed ‘Titan’, is a hero’s journey.  It involves a large orchestra which Mahler uses to create individualistic instrumental textures.