Chopin & Mendelssohn
Monday 29th May, 7.30pm
St Thomas Church, Lymington
Programme
MENDELSSOHN The Hebrides, Op. 26
CHOPIN Piano Concerto No. 1 in E minor, Op. 11
I. Allegro maestoso
II. Romanze – Larghetto
III. Rondo – Vivace
Interval
MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 3 in A minor Op. 56 (Scottish)
I. Andante con moto
II. Vivace non troppo
III. Adagio
IV. Allegro vivacissimo
The Solent Music Festival Orchestra
Sam Haywood, piano
Rebecca Tong, conductor
We’re delighted that Rebecca Tong is returning to SMF to conduct our wonderful SMF Orchestra, assembled by clarinettist Katherine Spencer. This time it’s a romantic programme of Chopin and two works by Mendelssohn, inspired by his first visit to Scotland in 1829.
Rebecca Tong
Rebecca is Resident Conductor of Jakarta Simfonia Orchestra and is Artistic Director and Music Director of Ensemble Kontemporer, Jakarta (her home city). Rebecca recently completed her two-year tenure as Junior Fellow in Conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music, and previously studied at Cincinnati Conservatory of Music. During her studies, Rebecca worked extensively in assisting the BBC Philharmonic and the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. In addition, Rebecca frequently collaborates with the Hallé Orchestra and Manchester Camerata.
The 20/21 season features debuts with Orchestre de Paris, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, Opéra Orchestre national Montpellier Occitanie and Paris Mozart Orchestra.
Rebecca participates in mentorships and assistantships under Tugan Sokhiev, Pablo Heras-Casado, Marin Alsop, Sir Mark Elder, Case Scaglione and Leon Fleischer, among many others.
Rebecca recently awarded First Prize, French Concert Halls & Orchestras Prize and the ARTE Prize at the inaugural La Maestra Competition 2020.
Sam Haywood
Sam Haywood has performed in many of the world’s major concert halls, including Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, Philharmonie de Paris, Vienna Konzerthaus and the Wigmore Hall. The New York Times hailed his ‘Passionate flair and sparkling clarity’ and the Washington Post his ‘dazzling, evocative playing’. He has a special fondness for Indonesia, where he has performed and taught for many years.
He embraces a wide spectrum of the piano repertoire and is equally at home as a soloist, chamber musician or working with singers. He has toured extensively as a duo with American violinist Joshua Bell and also with cellist Steven Isserlis.
He has composed several instrumental miniatures, including ‘The Other Side’, first performed at the Konzerthaus in Vienna. His Song of the Penguins for bassoon and piano, dedicated to Roger Birnstingl, is published by Emerson Editions. He is currently working on a commission for piano and string quartet.
Passionate about early instruments, Haywood recorded a Chopin album on the composer’s own Pleyel piano, part of the Cobbe Collection, to celebrate his bicentenary in 2010. Other recordings include Stanford’s Preludes and the piano works of Julius Isserlis for Hyperion Records. For Sony he has recorded a selection of works by the child prodigy Alma Deutscher and he also features on Joshua Bell’s ‘Musical Gifts’ album.
This season he will be performing concerti, solo recitals and chamber music in UK, South America, Germany, Greece and Korea. Recording projects will include albums for Warner Classics and Deux-Elles, as well as a live broadcast for BBC Radio.
Haywood is also Artistic Director and co-founder of the Solent Music Festival, which takes place annually in the beautiful sailing town of Lymington, UK. 2022 will mark the festival’s tenth anniversary.
