BBC Philharmonic concert 'Romance in Bloom' with Ben Gernon conducting and violinist Ava Bahari, centred on Beethoven's Violin Concerto.
BBC Philharmonic are at Victoria Hall in Hanley on Friday 14 May, with violinist Ava Bahari joining the orchestra and Ben Gernon conducting. The whole thing is called Romance in Bloom, and it's built around Beethoven's Violin Concerto.
That concerto takes centre stage, with Bahari on the solo part and the full orchestra behind her. It's a long piece, and it's the main reason for the night. The rest of the programme fills out the evening: Mendelssohn's Die schöne Melusine overture and Schumann's Symphony No. 1, which is better known as the 'Spring' symphony. Between the three, you've got a violin concerto, an overture, and a full symphony, so it's a proper orchestral bill rather than a short recital.
It's a good spread of the standard repertoire, and the title Romance in Bloom points to the mood they're going for. The Schumann symphony, in particular, is one of those pieces that sounds exactly like its nickname suggests, and it sits alongside the Beethoven as the more lyrical side of the programme. The Mendelssohn overture is a shorter, more spirited opener to get things moving before the concerto takes over.
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Practical side: the performance runs about two hours and 35 minutes, and that includes the interval, so you've got a break in the middle to stretch your legs. The venue is Victoria Hall on Bagnall Street in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent ST1 3AD.
