The Chester Philharmonic Orchestra is set to kick off its new season with an inaugural concert at Chester Cathedral on Saturday, November 9, at 7:30 p.m.
The evening’s program will showcase works by composers Sergei Prokofiev, Doreen Carwithen, and Ralph Vaughan Williams. The orchestra will be joined by solo violinist Lucy Holmes for Prokofiev’s “Violin Concerto No. 1.”
A graduate of the Royal College of Music, Ms. Holmes began her violin studies at the age of nine at Chetham’s School of Music. It was during her undergraduate years that she discovered her passion for composition, resulting in several notable works. Among them are “Pink Mosaics,” an octet for strings, woodwinds, and electronics; “Static Reflections,” composed for the Fidelio Piano Trio; and “Blind Dreams,” written for the RCM String Quartet Platform.
Diana Anderson, chair of the Chester Philharmonic Orchestra, expressed enthusiasm for Holmes’s return. “This will be Lucy’s second performance with the orchestra, the first being her rendition of Schindler’s List in 2016. We are delighted that she is joining us once again, this time for the first concert of our new season.”
The concert will also feature Doreen Carwithen’s “Men of Sherwood Forest,” a suite inspired by the legendary tales of Robin Hood. This piece showcases Carwithen’s unique style, blending cinematic elements with themes from the English pastoral tradition.
The evening will conclude with Ralph Vaughan Williams’s “Job: A Masque for Dancing,” an orchestral work based on the biblical story of Job.
Richard Howarth will conduct the Chester Philharmonic Orchestra for this season’s opening concert. With a long career as a violinist, he has recently gained recognition as a conductor. He has conducted various ensembles, including the Manchester Camerata, Ulster Orchestra, and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Currently, he serves as the principal conductor of both the Sale Chamber Orchestra and the Westmorland Orchestra and has recently been appointed as the conductor and music director of the Blackburn Symphony Orchestra. Additionally, he regularly guest conducts for both the Chester Philharmonic Orchestra and the Wrexham Symphony Orchestra.
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