Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra at BBC Proms
Mid-August sees the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the oldest orchestral institutions in the world, performing works by Edvard Grieg at BBC Proms.
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, one of the oldest orchestral institutions in the world, will be performing works of Edvard Grieg with whom the orchestra had close ties during the composer’s lifetime.
The evergreen Piano Concerto by Grieg, boasting an illustrious Russian soloist, is paired with Grieg's funeral march for a fellow Norwegian composer who died tragically young – the piece which Grieg wished to be played at his own funeral.
The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra was established in 1765, thus being one of the oldest orchestral institutions in the world. Since 1996, the Bergen Philharmonic, together with the Oslo Philharmonic, have attained the status of National Symphony Orchestras.
Edvard Grieg had close ties to the Orchestra and was artistic director during the years 1880-1882. Artistic directors and chief conductors over the past century who have contributed to the international success of the Bergen Philharmonic have been Harald Heide (1908-1948), Karsten Andersen (1964-1985), Aldo Ceccato (1985-1990), Dmitri Kitajenko (1990-1998) and Simone Young (1998-2002). Leopold Stokowski, Ernest Ansermet, Pierre Monteux, Sir Thomas Beecham, and Sir John Barbirolli have all guest conducted the Bergen Philharmonic.
Since autumn 2003, American Andrew Litton has been the Orchestra's Principal Conductor. He is also Artistic Director with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and Artistic Director for the Minnesota Orchestra Summerfest. Maestro Litton is one of very few Americans to head a major American symphony and is the first American to lead one of Europe’s oldest established orchestras.
Prom 43: Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra
Time: Thursday 16 August, 7.00pm - c9.00pm
Venue: Royal Albert Hall
Grieg, orch Halvorsen: Funeral March for Rikard Nordraak (8 mins)
Grieg: Piano Concerto in A minor Op.16 (30 mins)
Walton: Symphony No. 1 in B flat minor (43 mins)
Boris Berezovsky piano
Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra
Broadcasts
Live on BBC Radio 3
Available as audio on demand for the following week
Headlines:
Himmelkvad
Celebrated vocal ensemble Nordic Voices is currently out on its promo tour for their new outing ‘Himmelkvad’, a critically acclaimed album presenting Norwegian composer Lasse Thoresen’s unique vocal universe. MIC Norway takes a closer look at the cutting-edge vocal ensemble and ground-breaking composer.
I was the devil in my younger years
Late Feb sees Enslaved heading out on a month-long European tour. MIC Norway hooked up with Enslaved’s Ivar Peersen to talk about musical cross pollination, inspirational sources, humour and his fascination for singer-songwriter Stein Torleif Bjella.
