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My Beloved English Conductor John Wilson’s Concert Schedule, 13 Oct 2024 – 29 Jun 2025 Including His Tour of Rodgers & Hammerstein Just for the Limeys

What did I tell you? I had to piece this schedule from emails from The Glasshouse and the Sinfonia of London.

[JOHN’S PAST AND PRESENT CONCERT SCHEDULES]

WHAT YOU’LL HEAR
A message from John Wilson

The centrepiece of our concert is Rachmaninov’s rarely heard First Symphony. Why it’s rarely heard is a mystery to me, I’d even say it’s the greatest of his three symphonies. It’s a work of tremendous emotional power and drama and I’m telling everyone I know about this because I want them to come and hear it. Sinfonia of London have recorded the Second Symphony and we’ve played quite a lot of Rachmaninov over the past few years, I feel like it’s become part of our DNA.

Kenneth Hesketh is a great friend of mine, we were at college together, and he’s the most marvellous composer. I love his music. PatterSongs, a short piece to open the concert, is taken from his opera The Overcoat and has all the qualities I associate with Ken’s music. It’s mercurial, dazzling, brilliantly orchestrated, quirky and the perfect way to open the concert.

The great cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason won the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition when he was 16 years old, playing Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto. We’re thrilled he’s invited us to play the Second Cello Concerto on this tour, it’s a real masterpiece, the kind of pure music that gets under your skin. Once you’ve heard it, it’s a difficult piece of music to leave.

This is an evening of really great music, some of which is rarely played, and it’s a real thrill for me to be performing it with Sinfonia of London. I hope to see you there.

Tue 13 Oct 2024 16:00
Bristol Beacon
Bristol, UK
Sinfonia of London
Sheku Kanneh-Mason (cello)

  • Kenneth Hesketh: PatterSongs
  • Dmitri Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No 2
  • Sergei Rachmaninov: Symphony No 1

___

Tue 15 Oct 2024 19:30
Barbican Hall
London, UK
Sinfonia of London
Sheku Kanneh-Mason (cello)

  • Kenneth Hesketh: PatterSongs
  • Dmitri Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No 2
  • Sergei Rachmaninov: Symphony No 1

___

Fri 18 Oct 2024 19:30
The Glasshouse
Gateshead, UK
Sinfonia of London
Sheku Kanneh-Mason (cello)

  • Kenneth Hesketh: PatterSongs
  • Dmitri Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No 2
  • Sergei Rachmaninov: Symphony No 1

___

Sat 19 Oct 2024 19:30
Royal Concert Hall
Nottingham, UK
Sinfonia of London
Sheku Kanneh-Mason (cello)

  • Kenneth Hesketh: PatterSongs
  • Dmitri Shostakovich: Cello Concerto No 2
  • Sergei Rachmaninov: Symphony No 1

___

Wed 13 Nov 2024 20:00
Philharmonie de Paris
Paris, France
Orchestre de Paris

___

Thu 14 Nov 2024 20:00
Philharmonie de Paris
Paris, France
Orchestre de Paris

___

Sun 05 Jan 2025 17:00
Konserthuset
Stockholm, Sweden
Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra
Julian Ovenden (dishy vocalist)

___

Wed 14 Feb 2025 19:30
Royal Academy of Music
London, UK
RAM Symphony Orchestra
Adriana Bec (violin)

  • Peter Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto in D, Op 35
  • Sergei Prokofiev: Suite from Romeo and Juliet

To John: …My love is deep / The more I give to thee / The more I have / For both are infinite…

___

Sat 29 Mar 2025 19:30
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Manchester, UK
Jonathan Scott (organ)
Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano)

___

And here starts John’s concert tour of his famous pop classics, in which he gets to butcher my dear old boss Mamoulian’s Okla-freakin-homa! all over again.

Prepare to be enchanted as John Wilson and Sinfonia of London bring the timeless music of Rodgers & Hammerstein to life in a spectacular concert featuring beloved songs from some of the greatest musicals of all time including South Pacific, The Sound of Music, Oklahoma! Carousel and The King and I. Audiences will be treated to classic hits such as ‘Oh What a Beautiful Morning’, ‘People Will Say We’re In Love’ ‘Some Enchanted Evening’, ‘Younger Than Springtime’ and more!!!

18 Jun 2025 18:15
Brighton Dome Concert Hall
Brighton and Hove, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

19 Jun 2024 18:30
Lighthouse, Poole’s Centre for the Arts
Poole, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

21 Jun 2025 19:00
Royal Concert Hall
Nottingham, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

22 Jun 2025 19:30
The Bridgewater Hall
Manchester, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann, Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

23 Jun 2025 19:00
Bristol Beacon
Bristol, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann, Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

24 Jun 2025 19:30
The Anvil
Basingstoke, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann, Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

26 Jun 2025 19:30
The Royal Albert Hall
London, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann, Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

27 Jun 2025 19:00
Symphony Hall
Birmingham, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann, Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

28 Jun 2025 19:00
Royal Concert Hall
Glasgow, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann, Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

29 Jun 2025 19:30
The Glasshouse International Centre for Music
Gateshead, UK
Sinfonia of London
Louise Dearman, Nathaniel Hackmann, Scarlett Strallen (vocalists)

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John Wilson Conducts the Sinfonia of London, Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra in Richard Strauss’s “Metamorphosen” and Gives Me a Perfect Screenshot, 23 October 2020

I don’t know what I did to please the gods but on one October morning in 2020, somehow, I took a perfect screenshot of John conducting, while watching the (UK time) 7:30pm performance of the Royal Academy of Music (Finzi, Strauss). “Metamorphosen” is from his new album on Chandos.

Screening Room, SF 1979

It’s John’s “I mean business” look that keeps me going. Above: John conducting the Sinfonia of London in Strauss’s “Metamorphosen” (Chandos, 2022)

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My Beloved English Conductor John Wilson’s Concert Dates 27 January – 04 August, 2024 Now That Intermusica Has Ceased Publishing His Schedule

Since John’s management has long ago ditched his site johnwilsonconductor.com I went over to Bachtrack to find this info, and will probably end up going there and elsewhere evermore for more info on my bonny lad’s—w or w/o his Sinfonia of London—performances. (I also have John on Google Alert, plus I donate to the Royal College and the Royal Academy to get their email newsletters, plus I follow the Sinfonia and RTE on Facebook…plus if he’s scheduled to play movie music somewhere I can get that info from Juliet Rózsa…)

[JOHN’S PAST AND PRESENT CONCERT SCHEDULES]

Know why I like this picture? ‘Cause there’s a devil face in the red vainly trying to get at my beloved through the impenetrable white light of my love. So there, John. I told you The Queen of Heaven had her eye on you

UPDATE! Some kind soul in the UK (probably my travelling writer friend Helen Ducal, and if it is you, Helen, thanks!) subscribed me a few days ago to the John Wilson & Sinfonia of London website, which promptly sent me the ballot ClassicFM put out for best classical recordings of 2023. So okay, I voted for his Vaughan Williams but NOT his compleat Oklahoma! out of respect for the memory of my old boss, Rouben Mamoulian, who John—prompted I’m sure by the BBC—saw fit to throw a little shade on when he conducted R&H back in 2010. (John’s still my guy, though. I’m sooo used to snarky artistic types.) So I’ll probably be getting the SoL schedule as they know it. But I still have to hunt up his other appearances.

The dates link to the ticket sites. The other highlights link to available recordings and YT appearances.

Sat 27 Jan 2024 19:30
Sheldonian Theatre
Oxford, UK
Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra
Leonard Elschenbroich (cello)

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Fri 09 Feb 2024 19:30
Royal Academy of Music
London, UK
RAM Symphony Orchestra
Kasparas Mikužis (piano)

___

Fri 01 Mar 2024 19:30
National Concert Hall
Dublin, IE
National Symphony Orchestra
Peter Moore (trombone)

  • Lily Boulanger: D’un matin de printemps which my beloved conducted the RAM in last October
  • Joe Chindamo: Ligeia [Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra] the European premiere of this Australian composer’s work
  • Gustav Holst: The Planets op.32 (John-NYOGB)

___

Fri 19 Apr 2024 19:30
Usher Hall
Edinburgh, UK
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano)

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Sat 20 Apr 2024 19:30
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
Glasgow, UK
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano)

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09 Jun – 28 Jul 2024
Glyndebourne
Lewes, East Sussex UK

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Fri 26 Jul 2024 19:30
Concert Hall
Snape Maltings, UK
Sinfonia of London
Charlie Lovell-Jones (violin)

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Sun 04 Aug 2024 19:00
BBC Proms 21
The Royal Albert Hall
London, UK
Sinfonia of London

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Ralph Vaughan Williams’s “Greensleeves” Conducted by Sir John Barbirolli and Some Natter Between My Beloved John Wilson and Edward Seckerson; Plus Monty Python, Round the Horne and Polari

From June 2023. Sorry for my shaky handwriting but while listening to this I had a fantasy that gave me the giggles: John being interviewed by my favorite ohne palones—prime purveyors of the gay-gypsy-theatrical patois called polari—Julian and Sandy. Played of course by the inimitable Hugh Paddick and Kenneth Williams on Round the Horne. (This more-than-usual musical episode of Kenneth Horne’s 1967 radio show also includes Rambling Syd Rumpo, the Fraser Hayes 4 singing off-key not on purpose, and the screamingly funny takeoff sketch, “Young Horne with a Man”.)

Now John, John / Glorious John, I know that you know, and I know that you know that I know, that my long-distance lovemaking to you is being observed by a few; not many, just a few. So this rundown is for them, love:

In this very-recently posted pod chat with London-based culture maven Edward Seckerson, John talks about his idol, conductor Sir John Barbirolli; von Karajan; Leonard Bernstein; French romantic music of the early 20th century; conducting at Glyndebourne; reviving the Sinfonia of London; winning that BBC thingie for his Korngold Symphony (and confirming what I surmised in my review re his “austere” sound vs “chocolate sauce”); his other Korngold recording, the violin concerto, also with son vieil ami Andrew Haveron; Richard Rodney Bennett‘s compositional journey of self-discovery; and what we’re all waiting for, what’s up with The John Wilson Orchestra (seems like that psychic flash I had in April 2020 has proven true).

Here are the main points I took away from this podcast: “What I do try to do as a conductor is carry my sound around with me… It’s almost—I don’t really feel comfortable talking about because you know music is basically a doing thing and not a talking thing… My deepest musical creed is wrapped up with how an orchestra sounds…” Which pretty much confirms what I’ve suspected all this time about him.

John, fire of my loins, I respect your process.

Now, as heard on Monty Python:

Fantasia on “Greensleeves”
Ralph Vaughan Williams, composer
Barbirolli Conducts English String Music
RCA, 1963 first issue
The Sinfonia of London
John Barbirolli, conductor

23 JUNE 2020 UPDATE: Here’s Barbirolli again from that same album conducting Ralph Vaughan Williams’s Fantasia from a Theme by Thomas Tallis, which my beloved John Wilson will be conducting The Phiharmonia Orchestra in, in an online concert on 17 July.

EXTRA! Here are 2 interviews with John from BBC 2 Radio: one (8 min long) from 24 April 2016 with Michael Ball, and one (4 min long) from 4 November 2013 with Steve Wright.

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Erich Wolfgang Korngold’s Symphony in F-sharp—John Wilson Conducting the Sinfonia of London (Chandos, 2019)

I was an admirer of Korngold ever since I played violin in The Snowman in the orchestra in junior high (reduced score of course; here’s the full score of the Entr’acte), then as a solfeggist at ASCAP in NY around the time RCA was coming out with Charles Gerhardt‘s definitive recordings of Captain Blood, The Sea Hawk, Robin Hood, etc. Then years later in San Francisco I inherited a friend’s collection of Andre Previn and the London Symphony Orchestra, which included Korngold’s Symphony in F-sharp.

Maybe it was from associating the Previn recording with my friend’s death, but I grew to detest the sound of late Korngold. He began to sound false to me—the result, I reasoned, of all those corrupting years in Hollywood. And Previn was his perfect interpreter, of course, two Hollywood minds as one, you might say. Doesn’t, in fact, the first movement sound like a medley of The Ten Best TV Cop Show Themes and Their Underscorings? And then the ringer in the Adagio: The Private Life of Elizabeth and Essex (John Wilson+Sinfonia of London), so recognizable from the movie.

Elizabeth and Essex Warners 1939
Bette Davis portrays Queen Elizabeth, Errol Flynn her faithful but ambitious lover in this sumptuous costume drama. Warner Bros, 1939

The complete THE PRIVATES LIVES OF ELIZABETH AND ESSEX is available to watch here

And so I was content to continue in this apprehension, until Chandos came out last week with a new recording of Korngold’s symphony, played by the newly re-formed Sinfonia of London and conducted by—wait for it—John Wilson. By now, I think I’ve made my feelings clear about John just a little. Whenever he gets really irritating though there’s one thing that I do: I make myself remember the times my bonny lad has absolutely astonished me. The first time was fourteen, fifteen years ago in a screening room in LA when the band from nowhere just ripped into that hack hit “Beyond the Sea” and made it truly soar. The second time was a few years later when I heard the sound, THE EXACT SOUND!!!, of that ultra-Judy number from Meet Me In St Louis, “The Trolley Song”, only bigger, more vibrant, more—present.

This is the third time. Who would have thought that a smaller, tighter orchestra, conducted by someone coming in without preconceptions but with a determination to follow through with the composer’s intent, could make a composition sound like an entirely different composition? John said somewhere once that he endeavors to give each musical piece he “takes on board” its correct coloring (which I might believe if he weren’t so maddeningly inconsistent) but here he does the remarkable: Where Previn colors all over the place, trying to make the music into something it’s not, John colors very little. Rather it sounds like, as I say, he actually worked out the composer’s intent to carry him through, and it’s pretty clear that Korngold meant for Symphony in F-sharp to take its rightful place in the Great Central European Repertoire, with its traditional wealth of tonal expressiveness.

So why oh why do some people insist this piece is movie trash? Is it because of that handful of notes from E+E? I swear to God I didn’t hear any other filmic callbacks, and I’m pretty good at catching tunes. But so what if there were? Korngold, unlike the majority of movie composers, retained legal possession of his studio work, which gave him the freedom to rework any of his past themes and phrases as he saw fit. He certainly wasn’t thinking of the flicks once he returned to Europe. Maybe his attachment to these notes was purely sentimental. We’ll never know. It’s a mystery, and I choose to believe that John, consummate musician, respects that mystery.

Anyway John, my signal, my flame, as you’ve done with so many other composers, thanks for leading me back to Erich Korngold. It’s a wonderful recording, a keeper, now the standard against which I’m judging every Korngold Symphony in F-sharp out there (and there are a lot of them, not just Previn’s, as you know), and I would’ve bought it even if I weren’t crazy in love with you.

I Moderato
II Scherzo Allegro
III Adagio Lento
IV Allegro Finale

NOTES for Korngold: Symphony in F (Chandos, 2019) can be found here.

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Adam Pounds’s Symphony No.3, Inspired by the Farkakte Lockdown and Dedicated to My Beloved John Wilson and His Sinfonia of London

From February 2023: The three composers whose works appear in this album are interconnected—Ravel was a mentor to Lennox Berkeley, and Berkeley to Pounds.

Adam Pounds studied privately with Berkeley in London during the late 1970s, and in his own music has perpetuated the firm commitment of the two earlier composers to clarity and accessibility in everything they wrote.* His Third Symphony was written in 2021 and is a response to the national [UK] lockdowns in 2020 and 2021 prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Pounds states that the piece captures the ‘sadness, humour, determination and defiance’ which everyone faced at this time—not least musicians. Scored for relatively modest orchestral forces, the work is dedicated to Sinfonia of London and John Wilson, who give the work its world première recording.

*I’ve read this twice, and I still don’t know what the hell it means.

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Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé Now in the Hands of My Beloved John Wilson

From November 2023. As promised by John in “My Beloved Conductor John Wilson’s Lockdown Listening List: Keely Smith, Teddy Wilson, Ravel, Walton, Elgar, Brahms, Ireland, Debussy, Peter Ackroyd; Plus Yusef Lateef”: Once it became apparent that we would all be spending our days at home, I decided to embark on a project I had been putting off for years: correcting all of the many thousands of errors in Ravel’s masterpiece, Daphnis et Chloe. I soon became thoroughly absorbed in this rather epic task and ended up completing a brand new edition of the whole ballet which I will be recording next year for Chandos.

Well, here it is. Very promising indeed. (Thousands, huh?)

Part 01 // Part 02 // Part 03 // Part 04 // Part 05 // Part 06 // Part 07 // Part 08 // Part 09 // Part 10 // Part 11 // Part 12 // Part 13 // Part 14

EXTRA! John Discusses Maurice Ravel with Francois Dru!

EXTRA EXTRA! This schlemiel named Hurwitz hates this recording and loathes John. “Of course it’s sexless,” he fumes. “Look who we’re dealing with!” Hilarious.

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“They Call the Wind Mariah” by Lerner + Loewe Sung by the Smothers Brothers, Rescuing a Fine Song from the Smelliest, Most Offensive Movie Musical Ever

Of course there’s no “h” in the actual title but I’m putting it in anyway to alert singers to the long vowel because the money-grubbing whore who wrote the lyrics to this Broadway musical standard didn’t give two shits for singers.

Above: After some silliness, the boys deliver a splendid rendition of the Frederick Loewe standard, “They Call the Wind Mariah” from Paint Your Wagon (Broadway, 1951)

I, however, have a lot of affection and admiration for Berlin-born-and-trained composer Frederick Loewe, who wrote the most tuneful, singable melodies on Broadway, up there with Richard Rodgers and Jerome Kern. Loewe was right not to want to have anything to do with the big-screen disaster, Paint Your Wagon, which plowed on without him (Paramount, 1969), messing up Josh Logan, Paddy Chayefsky(!), Jean Seberg, Lee Marvin, Clint Eastwood, et al, in its trail…

The only way to read the 1969 film (and I don’t recommend watching it for pleasure ever ever ever, not even for yummy Clint) is to look at it like a late-60s hippie festival, complete with trees, mud, and crazy sex. (You know, like Woodstock…) The absolutely unreal pluralism of the background characters—Jews, Italians, whites (but no blacks), Chinese dressed in brocade with their wives(!?) all living in this dirty mining camp (a dirty mining camp where men politely doff their hats to white women) peacefully together—is another hippie fantasy, with a dollop of Chayefsky the liberal (of Marty and Network fame) added.

The one good thing in this pile of offal is the song, “They Call the Wind Mariah”, sung incongruously by Harve Presnell; but beautifully and hauntingly here by, of all people, the Smothers Brothers, the shining jokester-balladeer heroes of my youth. (Adding to their luster: as wartime US Army brats, they spent part of their childhood in the Philippines.)

Here’s hoping you haven’t watched/heard Paint Your Wagon. If you have, and the Andre Previn interpolations made you (like me) sick*, here are two lovely selections from the pen of Frederick Loewe, rendered by my bonny John Wilson and his various orchestras:

*…And that blustering Hollywood chickenshit should’ve punched Woody Allen in the nose.

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My 2nd Anniversary of Being In Love with John Wilson, Royal College of Music Alumnus, Who Conducts His Alma Mater’s Symphony Orchestra in 2018, and the Sinfonia of London in 2022, in Ravel’s “La valse”

From 4 May, 2020. For two years, longing for my beloved John Wilson has impinged on my usual output of actual writing, which once dealt mostly with The Assassinations+the occult and I have got to channel that particular energy somewhere…

Now, on the second anniversary of The Day I Fell In Love With John Wilson, what should I stumble upon but this video of the Royal College of Music playing Ravel conducted by my beloved alumnus (1990-94).

RCM Symphony John Wilson.jpgMaurice Ravel described his work, written in 1919: “Through whirling clouds, waltzing couples may be faintly distinguished. The clouds gradually scatter: one sees at letter A an immense hall peopled with a whirling crowd. The scene is gradually illuminated. The light of the chandeliers bursts forth at the fortissimo letter B. Set in an imperial court, about 1855.” In the accompanying podcast bonny John asserted that “La valse” is about social disintegration. Another reason for me to get into his head. Above: Audio of John conducting the Sinfonia of London in this piece for Chandos (2022).

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John Wilson and His Sinfonia of London Tour UK, Including His Home Town of Gateshead, with Hollywood’s Greatest Hits, 04 – 15 November 2023

John’s pop fans in Britain have nothing to worry about—all the goodness of The John Wilson Orchestra (1994-2019) is now squeezed into his new/old/new group, the Sinfonia of London in their brand-new “Hollywood’s Greatest Hits” tour. Thank Kennedy Street Productions, who brought Barry Manilow and Gladys Knight to UK’s shores, for this shrewd spectacular run aimed at the 2023 Holiday Season. Now we’ll hear the rest of the movie music John’s been transcribing all these years.

[JOHN’S PAST AND PRESENT CONCERT SCHEDULES]

Above: John’s own overture, “Hooray for Hollywood” for his 2011 appearance at the Royal Albert.

More info to come as I find it. I understand since 2 December 2022 tickets have been flying off the box office shelves.

Glad you asked. Here’s the Sinfonia’s jam-packed “Hollywood’s Greatest Hits” tour schedule:

Sat 4 November 2023 19:00

The Anvil Theatre
Basingstoke UK
Get Tickets Here

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Sun 5 November 2023 19:00

Brighton Dome
Brighton and Hove UK
Get Tickets Here

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Mon 6 November 2023 19:30

Royal Albert Hall
London UK
Get Tickets Here

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Tue 7 November 2023 19:00

St David’s Hall
Cardiff UK
Get Tickets Here

___

Thu 9 November 2023 19:30

Symphony Hall
Birmingham UK
Get Tickets Here

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Sat 11 November 2023 19:30

Sage Gateshead
Gateshead UK
Get Tickets Here

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Sun 12 November 2023 19:30

Philharmonic Hall
Liverpool UK
Get Tickets Here

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Mon 13 November 2023 19:30

Royal Concert Hall
Glasgow UK
Get Tickets Here

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Tue 14 November 2023 19:30

Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall
Nottingham UK
Get Tickets Here

___

Wed 15 November 2023 19:30

The Bridgewater Hall
Manchester UK
Get Tickets Here

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My Darling John Wilson Conducts The John Wilson Orchestra in a Semi-Staged Concert of My Fair Lady at the Royal Albert Hall, BBC Proms, 14 July 2012

From 2020: Completely bummed out that John’s 21 January concert with the LSO at the Barbican was completely canceled, so here’s my bonny lad at the 2012 BBC Proms with his eponymous orchestra in a really classy (for once) semi-staged concert of the complete 1956 Broadway musical, My Fair Lady, book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe; orchestration (for the movie score) by Andre Previn, orchestration enhancement by John Wilson. Cast: Anthony Andrews, James Fleet, Alun Armstrong, Julian Ovenden etc, and as Eliza, Annalene Beechey.

EXTRA! John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London play the Embassy Waltz from their new album, Hollywood Soundstage (Chandos, Sep 2022)

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My Beloved Conductor John Wilson’s Concert Schedule 14 September 2022 Through 25 June 2023

After wading through the unsurprising reviews of John’s 16 July concert at the Royal Albert, I thought I’d list his upcoming performances:

[JOHN’S PAST AND PRESENT CONCERT SCHEDULES]

Above: I’m afraid nothing on this list arouses my delight except the Martin-Blane standard, “Love”, here suavely sung by the co-composer himself, Ralph Blane; kickass arrangement by Ralph Burns, who 6 years later orchestrated Richard Rodgers’s No Strings.

The dates link to the ticket sites. The other highlights link to available recordings.

Wed 14 September 2022 19:30
Göteborgs Konserthus
Gothenburg, Sweden
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra
Leonard Elschenbroich (cello)

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Thu 15 September 2022 19:00
Vara Konserthus
Vara, Sweden
Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra
Leonard Elschenbroich (cello)

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Wed 21 September 2022 14:00
BBC Philharmonic Studio
MediaCityUK, Salford
BBC Philharmonic
Timothy Rideout (viola)

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Sat 08 October 2022 13:30
Duke’s Hall, RAM
London UK
Royal Academy of Music Orchestra

  • Lili Boulanger: D’un matin de printemps
  • Robert Schumann: Symphony No 3 in E flat, op 97, ‘Rhenish’

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Thu 20 October 2022 19:30
Sheldonian Theatre Oxford
Oxford UK
Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra
Louis Schwizgebel (piano)

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Sat 11 November 2022 19:30
Duke’s Hall, RAM
London UK
Royal Academy of Music Orchestra

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So speaks my beloved conductor John Wilson: ‘I am delighted beyond words to be taking Sinfonia of London on our first live tour, playing in some of the UK’s most exciting venues.  All ninety of us are looking forward to welcoming audiences who know the orchestra through our recordings, our televised appearances at the BBC Proms, as well as anyone coming to hear us for the first time. We hope our programme will thrill and inspire you!’

Sat 26 November 2022 19:30
Symphony Hall Birmingham
Birmingham, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Martin James Bartlett (piano)

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Mon 28 November 2022 19:30
St David’s Hall
Cardiff, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Martin James Bartlett (piano)

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Thu 1 December 2022 19:45
The Anvil Theatre
Basingstoke, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano)

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Fri 2 December 2022 19:30
Barbican
London, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Alice Coote (mezzo-soprano)

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Sun 4 December 2022 19:30
Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall
Nottingham, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Martin James Bartlett (piano)

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Sat 31 December 2022 15:00
Berlin Tempodrom
Berlin, Germany
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
Circus Roncalli

  • Nino Rota: Musik aus dem Film ›Der Pate‹
  • Leroy Anderson: ›The Typewriter‹ und ›Fiddle Faddle‹
  • Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Musik aus dem Film ›Robin Hood‹
  • Maurice Ravel: ›Boléro‹
  • Henry Mancini: Musik aus dem Film ›The Pink Panther‹
  • …und mehr…

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Sat 31 December 2022 19:00
Berlin Tempodrom
Berlin, Germany
Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin
Circus Roncalli

  • Nino Rota: Musik aus dem Film ›Der Pate‹
  • Leroy Anderson: ›The Typewriter‹ und ›Fiddle Faddle‹
  • Erich Wolfgang Korngold: Musik aus dem Film ›Robin Hood‹
  • Maurice Ravel: ›Boléro‹
  • Henry Mancini: Musik aus dem Film ›The Pink Panther‹
  • …und mehr…

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Thu 5 January 2023 17:00
Stockholm Concert Hall
Stockholm, Sweden
Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra
Kim Criswell (vocals)

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Thu 9 March 2023 19:30
Caird Hall
Dundee, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Timothy Orpen (clarinet)

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Fri 10 March 2023 19:30
Usher Hall
Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Timothy Orpen (clarinet)

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Sun 12 March 2023 19:30
Glasgow City Halls
Glasgow, United Kingdom
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Timothy Orpen (clarinet)

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Thu 11 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Thu 12 May 2023 11:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra

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Sat 13 May 2023 14:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Wed 17 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Thu 18 May 2023 13:30
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Fri 19 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Sat 20 May 2023 20:00
Sydney Opera House
Sydney NSW, Australia
Sydney Symphony Orchestra
Stephen Hough (piano)

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Wed 7 June 2023 19:00
Queen Elizabeth Hall
London, United Kingdom
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

EXTRA! John’s interview with viola player Annette Isserlis (Netty), 16 February 2024 Looking forward to your Offenbach, querido.

Conductor, composer and arranger John Wilson joins “Netty for Tea” in the latest episode. They delve into themes that are close to the heart of the OAE. John also recalls some interesting memories including his revelational trips to HMV, and his (nervous) first encounter with the OAE…

John Wilson, who joined us in the summer as conductor for our Princess Ida production, shares his journey into the world of music. There are compelling conversations about his skilful ability to piece back together scores that were destroyed, experiences of orchestrating a film and the intersection of discipline, expression and freedom in performance and composition.

Tea with Netty is our podcast hosted by viola player Annette Isserlis (Netty). Over a cuppa (or something a little stronger…), Netty chats with a variety of conductors, players and other guests as she ‘spills the tea’ on the side of classical music you don’t normally hear.

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Wed 8 June 2023 19:00
Queen Elizabeth Hall
London, United Kingdom
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

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Sat 17 June 2023 19:30
Snape Maltings Concert Hall
Snape, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Roderick Williams (baritone)

  • Paul Dukas: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
  • Sally Beamish: Four Songs from Hafez (world premiere of orchestral version, Britten Pears Arts COMMISSION)
  • Ottorino Respighi: The Fountains of Rome
  • Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances

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Sat 18 June 2023 16:00
Snape Maltings Concert Hall
Snape, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Pavel Kolesnikov (piano)
Samson Tsoy (piano)

  • William Walton: Scapino
  • Frederick Delius: Summer Night on the River
  • Britten: Scottish Ballad, op 26
  • Elgar: Symphony No 2 in E flat, op 63

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Sat 24 June 2023 20:15
The Concertgebouw
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra
Howard McGill (saxophone)

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Sun 25 June 2023 14:15
The Concertgebouw
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra
Howard McGill (saxophone)

FULL DRESS // A gifted mesmerist—a sinister composer—a naive young conductor from the north…inspired by an episode from the life of Rachmaninoff // DOWNLOAD FREE BOOK POSTER

the lighter side of cantara on x

Posted on by Cantara Christopher

John Wilson Conducts the Sinfonia of London at the Royal Albert Hall in a Concert of Elgar, Vaughan Williams and Others, 16 July 2022

From The Guardian, Fiona Maddocks: “The final work, Elgar’s “Enigma” Variations, was one of the best, most alert and detailed performances you could hope for. Wilson, whose gestures on the podium are so unassuming he appears to do nothing more than beat time, had scrutinised the score, and asked probing questions about every familiar phrase, making it fresh. The Sinfonia of London, mostly a recording ensemble, is made up of leading principals or chamber musicians who want to play for Wilson. You can hear their devotion.”

MY BELOVED CONDUCTOR SPEAKS!

[Proms Director] David Pickard and I had a conversation about Sinfonia Of London’s connection in the past to English music, principally John Barbirolli’s famous record of English music for strings and it is as we know Ralph Vaughan Williams’s 150th anniversary so I thought opening with the Tallis Fantasia would be (a) good thing. And built that around I guess the English romantics and a fairly recent work by a living composer, Huw Watkins, who is Welsh and one of my favorite composers and a piece which he actually happened to write for Adam Walker, who’s our principal flute. The rest of the program con-sists of things you might know and you might not know. Walton’s Partita, which is a tour de force but it’s rarely done, and I think that’s because it’s so impossibly difficult. … Very difficult! One of the first violins came up to me and he said, “This is absolutely bloody murder!” We really sweated over it, and I—I hope to pull it off.

John & SOLAbove: Partita for Orchestra by William Walton (1957) written originally for the Cleveland Orchestra.

Sat 16 July 2022 18:30
Royal Albert Hall
London, United Kingdom
Sinfonia of London
Adam Walker (flute)

EXTRA! Available in PDF:

The entire audio of the BBC Proms 2 BRITISH CLASSICS can be downloaded here

FULL DRESS // A gifted mesmerist—a sinister composer—a naive young conductor from the north…inspired by an episode from the life of Rachmaninoff // DOWNLOAD FREE BOOK POSTER

the lighter side of cantara on x

Posted on by Cantara Christopher

Hollywood Soundstage; or, John Wilson and the Sinfonia of London Play Orchestral Music from the Movies (Chandos, 2022)

Love this cover. Actually, it’s kind of sophisticated. Look! It has the magic words Hollywood and John Wilson and nothing more need be said. Now I know what to get for Christmas for my other old lady friends.

Hollywood SoundstageAbove: John conducts the Sinfonia of London in Frederick Loewe’s “Embassy Waltz” from My Fair Lady.

Actually, I think that’s Musical Director Johnny “Two-Harps” Green up there with the MGM Orchestra.

FULL DRESS // A gifted mesmerist—a sinister composer—a naive young conductor from the north…inspired by an episode from the life of Rachmaninoff // DOWNLOAD FREE BOOK POSTER

the lighter side of cantara on x