COLCHESTER  SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Next concert

Saturday, 8th July 2023: American Programme

Copland: Fanfare for the Common Man

Bernstein: Overture to Candide

Gershwin: Piano Concerto

Soloist: Tim Carey

Barber: Adagio for Strings

Copland: Appalachian Spring Suite for Orchestra

Tickets are £15. Under 25s free.

Tickets may be purchased at the door or reserved in advance by either

‘phoning 01206 271128 or emailing a.j.arnold@outlook.com

We are delighted to welcome back Tim Carey, our

soloist in Gershwin’s Piano Concerto, who lives in

Chelmsford. Tim enjoys a career full of variety, as

solo performer, chamber-music player, orchestral

keyboard player, and teacher.

He now spends his time partnering many different

instrumentalists, especially flautists, in a large

variety of chamber-music combinations, as well as

giving the occasional solo recital or concerto

performance. He is the regular pianist for many flute

events all over the world.

As an orchestral keyboard player Tim has worked with the London Symphony Orchestra, the Bournemouth Orchestras, the Philharmonia, Ulster Orchestra, Scottish Opera and the BBC Concert Orchestra. He is also much in demand as a teacher.

When not actively involved in musical pursuits, Tim still finds time for his other interests  which include languages, collecting and restoring cars, aircraft, boats, and spending time with friends and family.

Gershwin’s Piano Concerto is dominated by rhythm, mood and atmosphere. Gershwin noted that the slow movement “has a poetic nocturnal atmosphere which has come to be referred to as the American blues, but in a purer form than that in which they [blues] are usually treated.”

Our concert opens with Copland’s ‘Fanfare for the Common Man’ – a very well-known concert opening piece. Copland wrote it at the request of Eugene Goosens as a musical tribute honouring those engaged in World War II.

Bernstein created a spectacular opening to the show Candide with his Overture. Candide is in love with Cunégonde, the daughter of the house in which Candide is brought up. Their tutor teaches them that everything in the world is for the best, and Candide is subjected to a series of disasters to test his theory.

In contrast to the lively music in the first half of our concert, Barber’s Adagio for Strings is often played in the USA on solemn occasions. It has become a classic and features on many film and television soundtracks.

The ballet ‘Appalachian Spring’ is about a young frontier couple on their wedding day. Copland wrote the ballet in 1943 – 44. It captured the imagination of Americans who ere beginning to believe in a more prosperous future. Copland’s Suite for symphony orchestra is a condensed version of the ballet that keeps all the essential features but omits sections that are primarily choreographic.