CANCELLED – The New World Symphony
Booking for Friends of the Philharmonia opens at 10am on Thursday, 1 July. General booking opens Thursday, 8 July.
Unfortunately due to the Red weather warning from the Met Office, and their advice to avoid travel, we have taken the decision to cancel tonight’s concert. We are so sorry to disappoint you, but hope you will understand that we cannot risk the safety of our players or our audiences.
If you have booked a ticket, you have three options:
- You can request a refund for the full value of your ticket(s)
- You can request a credit voucher, valid for two years, to use for future Philharmonia concerts in Bedford or London
- You can donate the value of your ticket(s) to support the Philharmonia, a registered charity, as we recover from the pandemic
Please complete this simple form by the end of February to let us know.
There are still tickets available for our performance of the same programme at the Royal Festival Hall in London on Sunday 20 February at 5pm – we’d love to welcome you there if you are able to come.
A chance to hear Dvořák’s best-loved symphony as we return to Bedford for our first performance of 2022 with conductor Roderick Cox and British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor.
The programme opens with the most lyrical piece Wagner ever wrote. Composed for his wife’s birthday, he first performed it for her on the steps of their villa with a small ensemble on a cold Christmas morning. With tender melodies and small secret moments inspired by their family, it stands as a deeply personal work.
By contrast, Liszt’s First Piano Concerto is bold, thrilling and almost symphonic in scale. Its virtuosity serves as the perfect showpiece for the talent of Benjamin Grosvenor, spanning the full expressive range of the instrument in the space of just 20 minutes. Grosvenor makes his first appearance with us since taking centre stage at our 2020 BBC Proms performance – “Grosvenor brought to the party exactly the right sort of steely-toned power”, The Times.
After the interval we venture across the Atlantic for that timeless masterpiece, Dvořák’s New World Symphony. Blending his trademark Czech style with the Native American music and African-American spirituals Dvořák came to love and admire during his time in the United States, the symphony packs drama, excitement and hope into one unforgettable work. From the quietly optimistic melody of the Largo to the blazing finale, it’s easy to see why this symphony remains popular across the world.
This concert was originally advertised with Eun Sun Kim conducting. Unfortunately she is unwell and has had to withdraw. We are grateful to Roderick Cox for stepping in at short notice.
Need to know
Prices & Discounts
£14 – £38
Multi-buy offer available; under-16s and concession discounts available
Running time
1 hour 50 minutes, including 20-minute interval
Recommended age
From 7+
Box office
Philharmonia box office: 0800 652 6717
Venue Covid information
Venue
