Academy of St Martin in the Fields present Spring 2023 programming
- Music Director Joshua Bell performs Paganini’s Violin Concerto No.1 for the first time in the UK in 38 years
- Performances with acclaimed soloists, including cellist Gary Hoffman, mandolist Avi Avital andpianist Seong Jin Cho
- Learning and participation projects in collaboration with Southbank Sinfonia and violinist Julia Fischer
The Academy of St Martin in the Fields leap into 2023 with a wide-ranging programme featuring collaborations with dynamic musicians from across the globe. The season includes a tour with Music Director Joshua Bell, guest artists including Gary Hoffman, Avi Avital and Seong Jin Cho; and a further commitment to learning and participation.
Welcoming the new year with a tour across Germany, Denmark and Luxembourg, the Academy of St Martin in the Fields (ASMF) will visit 12 venues with Music Director Joshua Bell before heading to the UK for a concert at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall (26 January). This concert marks Joshua’s first performance of Paganini’s Violin Concerto No.1 in D Majorin the UK for 38 years, in a glittering showcase that willbe bookended by Schumann’s Carnaval (surviving fragments) and Symphony No.2 in C.
Cellist Gary Hoffman joins ASMF for an enigmatic programme of chamber music at the church of St-Martin-in-the-Fields (9 February). Continuing an exploration of the music of Schumann, they will perform the lyrical and mesmerising Cello Concerto in A Minor, alongside a programme featuring Schubert’s Overture in C Minor, CPE Bach’s Cello Concerto no.3 and Tchaikovsky’s Serenade for Strings in C Major.
On Good Friday (7 April), ASMF will highlight the solemn and impactful themes of Easter in a powerful performance of Bach’s St John Passion with St Martin’s Voices and conductor Andrew Earis. Tenor Stephen Anthony Brown will perform the central role of the Evangelist, narrating the scenes reflected throughout the score.
Concluding their UK performances this season will be a special concert featuring arrangements for strings and solo mandolin with acclaimed mandolinist Avi Avital. This concert at St Martin-in-the-Fields (11 July) will see ASMF perform Tippett’s Fantasia Concertante on a Theme of Corelli, Vivaldi’s Violin Concerto No.3 in A Minor, Avital’s arrangement of Bach’s Violin Concerto No. 1 in A Minor and Anna Clyne’s Three Sisters, a work premiered by Avital.
The summer festival season will soon return with ASMF performing at Bravo! Vail with Joshua Bell and Anne-Marie McDermott (24 & 25 June), Bradfield Music Festival, Sheffield (1 July), Meckpomm (14 & 15 July) and Rheingau (21 July). Joshua Bell will also join for a performance in Meckpomm (16 July). Avi Avital (18 & 19 July) and Jan Lisiecki (20 July) showcase their virtuosity at Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival.