| Fanfare for the Common Man | - | Copland | Pavane | - | Faure | Arrival of the Queen of Sheba | - | Handel | Romance in F minor op11 | - | Dvorak |
| Soloist: Katie Western | Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana | - | Mascagni | Horn Concerto No1 in E flat op11 | - | Strauss |
| Soloist: Katherine Medway | Finale from Swan Lake | - | Tchaikovsky | Music for the Royal Fireworks | - | Handel | Flight of the Bumble-Bee | - | Rimsky-Korsakov |
| Soloist: David Hooson | Pomp and Circumstance March No1 in D | - | Elgar | Fantasia on British Sea Songs | - | Arr Wood | Jerusalem | - | Parry |
Reviews
Spirited Take On Classic Classicals
Harrogate Symphony Orchestra's Gala Concert opened with Copland's magnificent Fanfare for the Common Man.
The horns were edgy to start with, but received enthusiastic applause as the orchestra moved into Fauré's Pavane, an excellently lazy piece with superb performances by the wind section, and although the strings sounded discordant in places, the concert got off to a splendid start.
The conductor paused at this point, asking for a show of hands to estimate the number of Radio 1 fans in the audience... My raised hand felt rather lonely as he uncovered a large contingent of Classic FM listeners, before launching the orchestra into Handel's Arrival of the Queen of Sheba, a classical 'classic' with cheeky oboes and a lively pace. The orchestra found their voices here, and kept it with Mascagni's emotional Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana, the players seemingly happier with the more passionate pieces.
The first half ended with the Finale from Swan Lake, performed with vigour but - frustratingly - the final blasts from the horn section jarred, denying them the triumphant ending they deserved.
At this point, special mention should go to the evening's young soloists. Katie Western on violin, Katherine Medway on horn and David Hooson on percussion all gave excellent performances, remaining composed but playing expressively, making it all the more enjoyable to hear.
Handel's celebratory Music for the Royal Fireworks opened the second half, the orchestra delivering a tremendous rendition and setting the mood for the mayhem that followed.
A lone clarinet battled the party horns in the mock 'tune-up' before 'Pomp and Circumstance' began.
There was a mighty hornpipe duel between audience and orchestra, which the orchestra won hands down, before the finale of Rule Britannia - with soprano soloist June Garbutt and a mass of rattling flags - and Jerusalem, which the audience demanded to be played twice.
It was a cheerful, noisy end to an evening of popular classics, not always perfect but played with great spirit and certainly enjoyed by all.
- Russel Thorne