RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra 2012-2013 Season

www.rte.ie/nso

MAKE IT YOUR SEASON

RTÉNATIONALSYMPHONYORCHESTRA

2012–2013

MAIN SEASON: Masterworks through the centuries. Symphonies, concerti,overtures, song cycles, operatic interludes and more. Mostly Fridays at 8pmwith 2 Sunday afternoons and 1 Tuesday for New Year’s Day.

SOUNDINGS: Free pre-concert talks and conversations before most Main Season concerts with season artists, composers and guest speakers.

EARLY EVENING CONCERTS: Free pre-concert events including organrecitals and choral performances.

LATE NIGHT CONCERTS: Free 30 minute concerts after selected Main Seasonconcerts with guest artists.

HORIZONS: Free Tuesday lunchtime concert series featuring music by ‘greenshoot’ young Irish composers and established figures. Free talks with thecomposers ahead of concerts.

FORTE: Musical discovery programme for audiences of all ages.

THE POPULAR STRAND: Classic rock anthems, Oscar winning hits, popularoperatic and vocal numbers all get the symphonic treatment.

WHAT’S WHAT

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RTÉ NATIONALSYMPHONYORCHESTRA

2012–2013

Tickets from €5 Packages from €28.50 85 eventsSave up to €300

Patron: Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland

ON MAIN SEASON FULL PACKAGE

THE CONTRIBUTION THAT THE RTÉ NATIONALSYMPHONY ORCHESTRA GIVES TO IRISH SOCIETYIS PRICELESS. Its level of musicianship, skill andcommitment is infectious, thus enthusing a whole new generation of participators and listeners.’EVELYN GLENNIE, percussionist 2011–2012 Season

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CONTENTSThe RTÉ NSO experience ...........................................3Find your event....................................................................6Season welcome: Christine Lee..........................10Artists, composers, strands.....................................12The Artistic Team .............................................................14The concerts.........................................................................16Summer tour ........................................................................61Pipeworks ..............................................................................62

Single concerts: prices...............................................64Buying options..................................................................66Concert packages: prices........................................68Subscriber rewards .......................................................70Subscriber card..................................................................71How and when to book.............................................72National Concert Hall seating plan..................73

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EXPERIENCE IRELAND’S NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAPERFORMING LIVE WITH RISING STARS, INTERNATIONAL ARTISTS

AND A RICH SPAN OF SYMPHONIC AND POPULAR REPERTOIRE

With our programmes, people, prices, packages and pre-concert dinner dealsYou will get choice You will get value

Whether you’re coming for the first time or the umpteenth time Whether you’re just curious or crazy about music

Whether you’re coming on your own or with friendsYou are welcome!

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THE RTÉ NSO EXPERIENCE

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EXPERIENCEFREE Early Evening concerts

FREE Late Night concerts

FREE Lunchtime concerts

FREE Pre-concert talks

FREE Open rehearsals

THE RTÉ NSO

5*Terms and conditions apply.

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€5LATE NIGHTCONCERTSFREE WITH 8PM TICKET

€5STUDENTSTAND-BYTICKETS€10MAIN SEASON

CONCERTSFROM

DISCOUNTS FOR STUDENTS, SENIOR CITIZENS, UNWAGED & GROUPS*

RTÉ NATIONALSYMPHONYORCHESTRA

2012–2013

THE MORE YOU BUY, THE MORE YOU SAVEPackages from €28.50

No booking fees

...WHERE VALUE MATTERS

*T&C apply, see p.64

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Fri 14 SepFri 21 SepSun 30 SepWed 03 OctFri 05 OctSat 06 OctFri 12 OctFri 19 OctFri 26 OctFri 02 NovFri 09 NovSat 10 NovFri 23 NovFri 30 NovWed 19 Dec

Tue 01 JanFri 04 JanFri 11 JanFri 18 JanTue 22 JanFri 25 JanTue 29 JanThurs 31 Jan

DATE TIME

8pm

8pm

5pm

6pm

8pm

5pm

8pm

8pm

8pm

8pm

8pm

12 & 5pm

8pm

8pm

3.15 & 8pm

2.30 & 6.30

8pm

8pm

8pm

1.05pm

8pm

1.05pm

8pm

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FORTE

Main Season

Main Season

Beyond Season

Main Season

Main Season

Main Season

Main Season

Beyond Season

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Beyond Season

Beyond Season

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TITLE

Viennese Whirls

Marching Towards Hope and Happiness

Tristan and Isolde

Tristan and Isolde

The Best of Symphonic Rock

Tristan and Isolde

From Poland with Love

Fate Knocking at the Door

The Noble, the Sentimental, and the Exotic

Songs in the Key of Life and Loss

Grace Out of Darkness

Rain Falling Up

Turkish Delight and Tartan

Dreams, Defiance and Leave-Taking

The Three Sopranos Christmas Gala

Strictly Come Waltzing

The Lord of the RIng

To Life! To Love!

Celestial Fields

Horizons 2013: LINDA BUCKLEY

The Agony and the Ecstasy

Horizons 2013: JONATHAN NANGLE

Veronica Dunne Singing Competition Final

Alan Buribayev Principal Conductor Series

Howard Shelley Soloist Directs Series

Fergus Sheil

Fergus Sheil

David Arnold

Fergus Sheil


Kenneth Montgomery

Hannu Lintu Principal Guest Conductor Series

Christopher Warren-Green


Fergus Sheil

Michael Francis

Rafael Payare

John Finucane

Gerhard Markson

Matthias Bamert


Finghin Collins Soloist Directs Series

Gavin Maloney

Gerhard Markson

Gavin Maloney

Patrik Ringborg

FIND YOUR EVENT SEPTEMBER–JANUARYCONDUCTOR

VENUES: NCH: National Concert Hall • BGET: Bord Gáis Energy Theatre • CC: Convention Centre

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SOLOIST(S)

Finghin Collins Associate Artist Series

Howard Shelley

Shay Byrne (presenter)

Hisako Kawamura

RTÉ Philharmonic Choir

Xavier de Maistre

Alan Smale


Baiba Skride

John Finucane

Celine Byrne, Regina Nathan,

Cara O'Sullivan

Orla Boylan

Miriam Murphy

Ilya Gringolts


Van Keulen + guest singers

COMPOSER(S)

Lehár, Mozart, R. Strauss, Ravel

Elgar, Schumann, Tchaikovsky

Wagner

Wagner

The Beatles, Meatloaf, Coldplay & more

Wagner

Glinka, Chopin, Tchaikovsky

Beethoven, Verdi

Ravel, Ginastera, Mussorgsky

Pärt, Frank Corcoran, Rachmaninov

Andrew Hamilton, Mozart, Brahms

Brian Irvine

Schnittke, Mozart, Mendelssohn

R.Strauss, Mozart, Shostakovich

Strauss family, Suppé, Lehár

Wagner

Dvořák, Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saëns

Mozart

Linda Buckley, Irene Buckley

Berg, Beethoven

Jonathan Nangle, Donald Sarsfield

EXTRAS

SOUNDINGS 7PM

Guest Talk

Guest Talk

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

Guest Talk

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

STRAND

Mozart Piano Concerti



Choral Masterworks

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EXTRAS: Early Evening Concert • Late Night Concert • World Premiere • Irish Premiere

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Fri 01 FebTue 05 FebFri 08 FebTue 12 FebFri 15 FebFri 22 FebSun 24 FebSun 03 Mar

Fri 08 MarFri 22 MarFri 12 AprFri 19 AprFri 26 Apr

Fri 03 May

Fri 10 MayFri 17 MayFri 24 May

Fri 31 MaySun 02 June03–08 June

DATE TIME

8pm

1.05pm

8pm

1.05pm

8pm

8pm

3.30pm

3.30pm

8pm

8pm

8pm

8pm

8pm

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VENUE

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Beyond Season

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Main Season

FORTE

Tour

TITLE

A Night at the Oscars

HORIZONS 2013: RAYMOND DEANE

Affairs of the Heart

Horizons 2013: ANN CLEARE

Journeys of the Imagination

Landmarks of Emotion

Beethoven for Mozart Lovers

Orpheus Taming the Wild Beasts

From Russia with Love

Classical Poise

Symphonic Matters

A Postcard from the New World and the Old

Heat, Holiness and Left-Hand Piano

Glory to God and Rugby

Beauty in Sunshine and Shadow

Romance Taken to Extremes

Fantasy Folk Music and Pure Cold Water

A Finale of Fanfares and Fireworks

Global Express

Three Sopranos Summer Gala On Tour

David Arnold

Gavin Maloney

Stefan Blunier

Gavin Maloney



Jonathan Cohen

Jonathan Cohen


Julian Rachlin Soloist Directs Series

Gavin Maloney

Gilbert Varga

Pascal Rophé

Pascal Rophé

Finghin Collins Soloist Directs Series




James Cavanagh

John Finucane

FIND YOUR EVENT FEBRUARY–JUNECONDUCTOR

VENUES: NCH: National Concert Hall

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SOLOIST(S)

Shay Byrne (presenter)

Celine Byrne

Elision Ensemble

Lilya Zilberstein

Alban Gerhardt


Finghin Collins, singers and choir AAS

Hideko Udagawa

Julian Rachlin

Eldbjørg Hemsing

Jean-Frédéric Neuburger

Mairéad Buicke, RTÉ Philharmonic Choir

F. Collins, D. Collins, H. Tinney AAS

Edoardo Zosi

Johanna Rusanen-Kartano,

Ville Rusanen, The Polytech Choir

Kirill Gerstein

Presented by Paul Rissmann

Celine Byrne, Regina Nathan,

Cara O'Sullivan

COMPOSER(S)

Raymond Deane, Carl Ruggles

Mahler

Ann Cleare, Xenakis

Grieg, Saint-Saëns, Prokofiev,

Dvořák, Rachmaninov

Beethoven

Beethoven

Tchaikovsky, Khachaturian, Prokofiev

Mozart, Mendelssohn

John Kinsella, Bruckner

Lalo, Dvořák

Messiaen, Ravel, Ibert

Franck, Honegger, Poulenc

Mozart

Wagner, Bruch, Brahms

Sibelius

Tchaikovsky, Shostakovich

Mussorgsky and more

EXTRAS

SOUNDINGS 7PM

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

Guest Talk

In Conversation

Post-Concert talk

Post-Concert talk

Guest Talk

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

In Conversation

Guest Talk

In Conversation

Guest Talk

In Conversation

In Conversation

STRAND

Beethoven Piano Concerti

Beethoven Piano Concerti

Choral Masterworks

Prokofiev Symphony Cycle

French Connection

Choral Masterworks

French Connection

Choral Masterworks


Choral Masterworks

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EXTRAS: Early Evening Concert • Late Night Concert • World Premiere • Irish Premiere

AAS: Associate Artist Series

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WELCOMETO OUR SEASON

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Welcome to the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra2012–2013 Season and another step in our journeyof musical discovery with an array of Irish andinternational artists, a continued focus on new Irishworks, and programmes demonstrating the rangeand scope of the RTÉ NSO.

Highlights for me include the culmination of ourAssociate Artist Finghin Collins’ survey of all thepiano concerti of Mozart and Beethoven begun backin 2010; Principal Guest Conductor Hannu Lintu’sbrand of musical electricity in dynamic orchestralscores, this season focusing on largely romanticrepertoire; and, for our central strand, PrincipalConductor Alan Buribayev’s concerts, promising adistinctive blend of charismatic and colourfulperformances.

The season will see the orchestra welcome newnames as well as artists with whom we have enjoyedworking and presenting to audiences in previousseasons. They include Julian Rachlin, Baiba Skride,Ilya Gringolts, Xavier de Maistre, Kirill Gerstein, AlbanGerhardt, Hideko Udagawa, Lilya Zilberstein andrising stars Jonathan Cohen, Eldbjørg Hemsing,Hisako Kawamura, Rafael Payare and Edoardo Zosi. Irish artists/conductors/composers include OrlaBoylan, Celine Byrne, Miriam Murphy, Regina Nathan,Cara O’Sullilvan, Hugh Tinney, Gavin Maloney, John

Kinsella and Raymond Deane. In addition to choralperformances featuring the RTÉ Philharmonic Choir,we also welcome for the first time the PolytechChoir from Finland.

2013 marks some key dates. We celebrate the 200th anniversary of Wagner’s birth with an eveningdedicated to some of his greatest music and wemark the 50th anniversary of Poulenc’s death with a performance of his celebratory and joyous Gloria.

As I hand over to my successor, I hope that you haveenjoyed, and will continue to enjoy, the many eventsdesigned to increasingly engage with you, ouraudience. Early Evening and Late Night concerts,Horizons, our Contemporary Music Series, FORTE,our Musical Discovery programme, pre and postconcert talks, events presented in partnerships withthe National Concert Hall, Pipeworks and Wide OpenMusic and a breadth of repertoire – including theRTÉ NSO letting its hair down in Beyond the Seasonevents such as The Best of Symphonic Rock and A Night at the Oscars – will hopefully ensure thatyou will find much here to excite, engage, entertainand move you.

Thank you for your continued support, and enjoy! Christine Lee, General Manager, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra

David Adams / David Arnold / Matthias Bamert / Stefan Blunier / Orla Boylan /Katherine Broderick / Mairéad Buicke / Alan Buribayev / Celine Byrne / ColmCarey /James Cavanagh /Jonathan Cohen /Dearbhla Collins /Finghin Collins /Jennifer Davis/Xavier de Maistre /Mark Duley /Elision Ensemble /John Finucane/ Andrew Foster-Williams / Michael Francis / Alban Gerhardt / Kirill Gerstein /Ilya Gringolts/Eldbjørg Hemsing/Claudia Huckle/Patrick Hyland/Eoin Hynes/ Hisako Kawamura / David Leigh / Hannu Lintu / Gavin Maloney / GerhardMarkson / Kenneth Montgomery / Nicola Mulligan / Laura Murphy / MiriamMurphy /Regina Nathan /Jean-Frédéric Neuburger /Cara O'Sullivan / RafaelPayare/Julian Rachlin/Gavan Ring/Patrik Ringborg/Paul Rissmann/PascalRophé /RTÉ Philharmonic Choir /Ville Rusanen /Johanna Rusanen-Kartano/ Howard Shelley / Baiba Skride / Alan Smale / The Guinness Choir / ThePolytech Choir of Finland/Hugh Tinney/Robin Tritschler/Hideko Udagawa/ Isabelle van Kuelen / Gilbert Varga / Christopher Warren-Green / LilyaZilberstein /Edoardo Zosi /

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WHO’SWHOPERFORMERS

FROM CLASSICAL AND CONTEMPORARY / J.S. Bach / Beethoven / Berg /Brahms /Bridge /Bruch /Bruckner / Irene Buckley /Linda Buckley /Chopin/ Ann Cleare / Frank Corcoran / Raymond Deane / Dvořàk / Elgar / Franck /Ginastera / Glinka / Grieg / Andrew Hamilton / Hampton / Hindemith /Honegger / Ibert / Khachaturian / John Kinsella / Lalo / Philip Lane / Lehár /Liszt / Mahler / Mendelssohn / Messiaen / Mozart / Mussorgsky / JonathanNangle / Arvo Pärt / Poulenc / Prokofiev / J. Strauss I / J. Strauss II / R. Strauss/ Rachmaninov / Ravel / Carl Ruggles / Saint-Saëns / Donald / Sarsfield /Schnittke / Schoenberg / Schumann / Shostakovich / Sibelius / Suppé /Sweelinck / Tchaikovsky / Verdi / Wagner / Whitlock / Xenakis /TO THE POPULAR / Alford / Barry / Berlin / Bernstein / Bon Jovi / Eric Clapton /Copland / Coldplay / Deep Purple / Fain & Webster / Hamlisch / Harline &Washington / Procol Harum / Michael Jackson / Jarre / Kander & Ebb / Legrand,Bergman & Bergman / Meatloaf / Menkin / Bette Midler / John Miles / Newman /Queen / Schwartz / Sherman / Stevie Wonder / Simon and Garfunkel / Survivor /The Beatles /Tina Turner /Vangelis /Warren & Dubin /Williams /Robbie Williams /

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WHO’SWHO

THE MUSIC

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FOLLOW ALAN14 September • 12 October15 February • 22 February8 March • 17 May • 31 May

FOLLOW FINGHIN14 September • 9 November18 January • 24 February3 March • 10 May

FOLLOW HANNU26 October • 9 November11 January • 24 May

THE RTÉ NSO’sARTISTICTEAM

ALAN BURIBAYEVPRINCIPAL CONDUCTOR‘The eclectic Buribayev elicits gripping intensity from the RTÉ NSO’The Irish Times on Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 2011–2012 Season

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HANNU LINTUPRINCIPAL GUEST CONDUCTOR‘Under Hannu Lintu, the RTÉ NSO is totally absorbed... the endresult is compellingly magnetic’The Irish Independent on Zemlinsky’s Lyric Symphony 2011–2012 Season

FINGHIN COLLINSASSOCIATE ARTIST‘Consummate artist Finghin Collins…intuitive interpretations…channelled…without compromise or contention.’Irish Independent on Mozart Piano Concerti Cycle2010–2011 Season

FRIDAY 14 SEPTEMBERNational Concert Hall

PRICELESS MELODIES PRAISING PRECIOUS METALS INLEHÁR’S INFECTIOUSLY SPARKLING GOLD AND SILVERWALTZ PROVE THE PERFECT CURTAIN RAISER FOR OURNEW SEASON, opening under Principal Conductor AlanBuribayev. The mood of Viennese gaiety and glitter continueswith a suite of glorious music from Richard Strauss’ seductive‘comedy for music’ Der Rosenkavalier, and the sardonic,waltz-like rapture of Ravel’s La valse. And Associate ArtistFinghin Collins returns to his distinguished survey of Mozart’spiano concertos with the brilliantly amiable and suitablycelebratory ‘Coronation’ Concerto.

VIENNESECELEBRATING A NEW SEASON

LEHÁRGold and Silver Waltz, Op. 79 [8’]

MOZARTPiano Concerto No. 26 in D, K537 ‘Coronation’ [28’]

R. STRAUSSDer Rosenkavalier Suite, Op. 59 [22’]

RAVELLa valse [12’]

FINGHIN COLLINS PIANO ALAN BURIBAYEV CONDUCTOR

Principal Conductor Series Associate Artist Series Mozart Piano Concerti Cycle MAIN SEASON | SEPTEMBER

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7pm: SOUNDINGSGUEST TALKAustrian Ambassador Dr Walter Hagg on the evening’s programme

8pm: CONCERTEnds: 9.55pm approx.

TICKETS FROM €10 See p. 64

FRIDAY 21 SEPTEMBER

National Concert Hall

PIANIST/CONDUCTOR HOWARD SHELLEY MAKES AWELCOME RETURN for three works full to the brim withyouthful dreams of adventure and love. Described by thecomposer as ‘shameless in its rude good health’, Elgar’stune-filled Froissart Overture is a sumptuous romance ofknightly endeavours, while Schumann and Tchaikovskyprovide two of the greatest expressions of musicalRomanticism: the Piano Concerto joyfully dynamic andspontaneous, the Fourth Symphony an emotional tour de force that blazes with passion.

MARCHING

ELGARFroissart Overture, Op. 19 [12’]

SCHUMANNPiano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54 [31’]

TCHAIKOVSKYSymphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36 [44’]

HOWARD SHELLEY PIANO /CONDUCTOR

Soloist Directs Series MAIN SEASON | SEPTEMBER

TOWARDSHOPEANDHAPPINESS

6.10pm: FREE CONCERTPipeworks Organ recitalwith Mark Duley, see p. 62

7pm: FREE CONCERTRTÉ Cór na nÓg in the John Field Room



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CULTURE NIGHT100 free tickets will beavailable from August.

See www.rte.ie/nso

SUNDAY 30 SEPTEMBER 5PMWEDNESDAY 3 OCTOBER 6PMSATURDAY 6 OCTOBER 5PM

Bord Gáis Energy Theatre

TICKETS FROM €15–€85 See p. 65

BEYOND THE SEASON | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER

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REGARDED BY MANY AS THE GREATESTOPERATIC ACHIEVEMENT OF ALL TIME, Wagner’sTristan und Isolde is presented by new Irish operacompany Wide Open Opera in a productionoriginating from Welsh National Opera, originallydirected and designed by Yannis Kokkos. A once ina lifetime event – just three performances of opera’smost ravishing love story.

Spanning a performance time of five hours, this epic production features the RTÉ NationalSymphony Orchestra, the chorus of Wide OpenOpera and leading Irish singers Miriam Murphy(Isolde) and Imelda Drumm (Brangäne) alongsideinternational artists Lars Cleveman (Tristan), BrettPolegato (Kurwenal) and Manfred Hemm (KönigMarke). Owen Gilhooly (Shepherd), Eugene Ginty(Melot), Eamonn Mulhall (Sailor) and Gavan Ring(Steersman) also perform. Fergus Sheil conducts.

Opening on a voyage between Ireland and England,the Irish princess Isolde has been captured by theEnglish knight Tristan as a trophy wife for his uncleKing Mark. The unintended drinking of a love potion sets the couple off on the most passionatebut illicit relationship – an all-consuming love affairthat causes devastation and can only be fullyconsummated through death.

For more see www.bordgaisenergytheatre.ie

WIDE OPEN OPERA, IN ASSOCIATION WITH BORD GÁIS ENERGY THEATRE, DUBLIN THEATRE FESTIVAL AND THERTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA,PRESENTS A PRODUCTION ORIGINATED IN WELSH NATIONAL OPERA

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BEYOND THE SEASON | OCTOBER

GET THE ROCK AND POP STAR TREATMENT as weunleash the full power of the RTÉ National SymphonyOrchestra performing awesome rock and pop classics fromQueen, Coldplay, Robbie Williams, The Beatles and more.Includes Can’t Buy Me Love, Eye of the Tiger, Thriller,Fix You, Wind Beneath My Wings, We Will Rock You,Simply The Best and much much more.

GO ON! LET YOUR HAIR DOWN AND ROCK OUT TO THEICONIC ANTHEMS OF YOUR FAVOURITE SUPER GROUPS.

WITH THERTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRADAVID ARNOLD CONDUCTORPRESENTED BY SHAY BYRNE RTÉ RADIO 1

FRIDAY5 OCTOBER


ROCKSYMPHONIC

LETUSENTERTAINYOU!8pm: CONCERTEnds: 10.10pm approx.


THE BEST OF

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MAIN SEASON | OCTOBER

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FRIDAY 12 OCTOBERNational Concert Hall

BRILLIANT PIANO WRITING AND RAVISHINGORCHESTRAL ACCOMPANIMENT shot through with the vitality of traditional Polish dances are the hallmarks of the Second Piano Concerto byChopin, Poland’s greatest composer, with its haunting nocturne a soulful declaration of unrequited love. Polish dances feature prominently, too, in Glinka’s opera A Life for the Tsar and in Tchaikovsky’s colourful and lyrical Third Symphony, where we hear a gracious waltz and a rousing polonaise.

POLANDHISAKO KAWAMURA PIANO ALAN BURIBAYEV CONDUCTOR

LOVEFROM

WITH7pm: SOUNDINGSGUEST TALKPianist Conor Linehan onChopin’s writing for solopiano and for solo pianowith orchestra



Principal Conductor Series

GLINKAPolish Dances from A Life for the Tsar [15’]

CHOPINPiano Concerto No. 2 in F minor, Op. 21 [32’]

TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 3 in D, Op. 29 ‘Polish’ [45’]

HISAKO KAWAMURA

TWO MIGHTY AND MAJESTIC WORKS, GLORIOUSHYMNALS TO THE SACRED AND THE PROFANE,demonstrate the imaginative and emotional power ofmusic to excite and to comfort. With its tumultuousopening motif – famously described as ‘thus fate knocks at the door’ – Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony is a masterpiece of propulsive energy that makes full use of a symphony orchestra at its most expressive. Verdi’ssublime Four Sacred Pieces combines unaccompaniedvoices and voices-and-orchestra (the RTÉ PhilharmonicChoir) in moments of serene and breathtaking beauty.

BEETHOVENSymphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 [31’]

VERDIFour Sacred Pieces [39’]

KNOCKING AT THEDOORFATE

RTÉ PHILHARMONIC CHOIRMARK HINDLEY CHORUS MASTER

KENNETH MONTGOMERY CONDUCTOR


MAIN SEASON | OCTOBER

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7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ Philharmonic Choir Chorus Master Mark Hindleywith RTÉ Choral Officer LesleyBishop on his first season atthe helm of the choir



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Choral Masterworks

SUAVE FRENCH HARPIST XAVIER DE MAISTRE TAKESCENTRE STAGE for Argentinian Alberto Ginastera’sexotic and exciting Harp Concerto, which puts hiscountry’s native folk melodies and rhythms tomagnificently colourful use. No less rich and dynamic is Mussorgsky’s masterful Pictures at an Exhibition,which brings 10 paintings by the Russian painter Viktor Hartmann to enthralling and vivacious life.Ravel’s deliciously tongue-in-cheek set of Schubert-inspired waltzes will keep you guessing to the endabout which of them is ‘noble’ and which ‘sentimental’.

THE

RAVELValses nobles et sentimentales [16’]

GINASTERAConcerto for Harp, Op. 25 [23’]

MUSSORGSKY (ORCH. RAVEL)Pictures at an Exhibition [35’]

XAVIER DE MAISTRE HARP HANNU LINTU CONDUCTOR

Principal Guest Conductor Series MAIN SEASON | OCTOBER


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AND THEEXOTIC

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7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONDIT Head of OrchestralStudies Dr Cliona Doriswith Xavier de Maistre



XAVIER DE MAISTRE

‘The RTE National SymphonyOrchestra’s sound is captivating,powerful and emotive and themusicians are as warm andwelcoming as they are dedicatedto their art, providing the heartand harmony audiences havecome to enjoy.’

JASON SINCLAIRRTÉ NSO SECTION LEADER, TROMBONE

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WORD FROM AN ARTISTJULIAN RACHLIN, violinist2011–2012 Season

FRIDAY 2 NOVEMBERNational Concert Hall

RTÉ NSO LEADER ALAN SMALE GIVES THE FIRSTPERFORMANCE of Frank Corcoran’s ‘taut, lean, lyrical,leppin’’ and song-like Violin Concerto that combines, the composer says, ‘fiddling fun, violinistic seriousness and art’s sorrow, and fast, furious, last orchestral thoughts’.Estonian Arvo Pärt’s bewitching, prayer-like elegy forBritten is a haunting recognition of a lost kindred spirit, and Rachmaninov’s swooningly beautiful SecondSymphony could have no better champion than thedynamic conductor Christopher Warren-Green.

SONGS

ARVO PÄRTCantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten [6’]

FRANK CORCORANViolin Concerto [17’]

RACHMANINOVSymphony No. 2 in E minor, Op. 27 [60’]

ALAN SMALE VIOLIN CHRISTOPHER WARREN-GREEN CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | NOVEMBER

IN THE KEY OFLIFE LOSS

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6.10pm: FREE CONCERTPipeworks Organ recital withDavid Leigh, see p. 62

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONConductor Colman Pearcewith Irish composer Frank Corcoran

8pm: CONCERTEnds: 10pm approx.


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WORLD PREMIERE

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ lyric fm’s Bernard Clarke with Irish composerAndrew Hamilton



FRIDAY 9 NOVEMBER


PRINCIPAL GUEST CONDUCTOR HANNU LINTUAND ASSOCIATE ARTIST FINGHIN COLLINS TEAMUP FOR THE FIRST TIME. Mozart’s grandest PianoConcerto, its dark, menacing atmospheres soundinglike storm clouds lit up by brilliant lightning flashes,is the focus. Starting in defiance and ending intragic resignation, Brahms’ final symphony offersmusic of bleak but beautiful gracefulness. Theworld premiere of Dubliner Andrew Hamilton’sRTÉ-commissioned The True Truths feeds ‘asong into the orchestra and becomesdestroyed, mangled and bashed’ to explore‘the meanings that can hide behindseemingly simple ideas’.

GRACE

ANDREW HAMILTONThe True Truths RTÉ Commission [10’]

MOZARTPiano Concerto No. 24 in C minor, K491 [31’]

BRAHMS Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98 [39’]

FINGHIN COLLINS PIANO HANNU LINTU CONDUCTOR

Principal Guest Conductor Series Associate Artist Series Mozart Piano Concerti Cycle MAIN SEASON | NOVEMBER

DARKNESSOUT OF

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WORLD PREMIERE

SATURDAY10 NOVEMBERConvention Centre,Dublin FALLING

RAIN UP

‘It was brilliant!’Conal McCord, St Kieran's Primary School, Poleglass, Co Antrim

FREE PRE-CONCERT FOYER PERFORMANCESWorld premiere of a new orchestral work composed for the occasion byBrian Irvine. Performed by the Julianstown Youth Orchestra andconducted by the composer.

RTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAAND WIDE OPEN MUSIC PRESENT

MUSIC BY BRIAN IRVINE WORDS BY JOHN McILDUFFANIMATION BY MATTHEW ROBINSCONDUCTOR FERGUS SHEIL

A MODERN ORCHESTRAL, CHORAL AND VISUAL PERFORMANCE FOR CHILDREN

11.30am & 4.30pmFREE PRE-CONCERT FOYER PERFORMANCES

12 noon & 5pmCONCERTDuration: 50 minutes

TICKETS FROM €10See p. 65

Performed with live, big-screen animation, symphony orchestra, a 500-strong children’s chorus, a narrator and a chorus of older singers.1,000 school children from Carlow, Meath, Offaly, Dublin, Westmeath and Wickloware involved in Rain Falling Up. The older singers come from South Dublin and Wicklow.‘astonishing…

captivating...inspiring’Sounds Classical, BBC

FOR THE FIRST TIME IN DUBLIN!TWO PERFORMANCES ONLY

THE RTÉ NSO’S MUSICAL DISCOVERY PROGRAMME | NOVEMBERPRESENTED AS PART OF

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‘Jake knew things. He knew that theworld weighed 6 septillion kilos –that’s a six with 24 zeros – but in fact he knew that it weighed nothing at all!’

And so the story begins…Jake is a little boy who knows things. Jake is a walking encyclopedia and his speciality is gravity. One day, however,after being blamed for breaking his mum's favourite vase, he comes to the conclusion that gravity isn’t his friend anymore. So he builds himself a gravity switch so he can turn gravity off. Life seems so much more fun when you can float but when Jake finds himself drifting alone through the darkest corners of the universe he realises that perhaps he has made a mistake.

Supported by the Arts Council and local authorities in Carlow, Meath, Offaly, South Dublin, Westmeath and Wicklow.

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‘The RTE National Symphony Orchestrais an absolute cultural treasure’The Irish Times, 2012

WORD FROM AN ARTISTRONAN GUILFOYLE, composer2011–2012 Season

CATRIONA RYANRTÉ NSO SECTION LEADER, FLUTE

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ NSO Associate Artist Finghin Collins withBaiba Skride on MozartConcerti cycles



TWO OF TODAY’S MOST SOUGHT-AFTER YOUNGTALENTS – VIOLINIST BAIBA SKRIDE ANDCONDUCTOR MICHAEL FRANCIS – TEAM UP asour survey of Mozart’s violin concertos continueswith the ‘Turkish’, a magnificently colourful dialoguebetween soloist and orchestra brimming with wildexoticism. Schnittke’s Moz-Art à la Haydn takesplayful delight in reworking a Mozart fragment with a liberal helping of Haydn for added humour.Mendelssohn’s glorious picture postcard of histravels in Scotland, the effusive and evocative Third Symphony, is every bit as rich and romanticas the Scottish Highlands.

SCHNITTKEMoz-Art à la Haydn [12’]

MOZARTViolin Concerto No. 5 in A, K219 ‘Turkish’ [31’]

MENDELSSOHNSymphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 56 ‘Scottish’ [40’]

BAIBA SKRIDE VIOLIN MICHAEL FRANCIS CONDUCTOR

FRIDAY 23 NOVEMBER



TURKISH DELIGHTTARTANAND

BAIBA SKRIDEBAIBA SKRIDE 29

RTÉNATIONAL

SYMPHONYORCHESTRA

MENTORING SCHEMEFOR ADVANCED YOUNG MUSICIANS

THE RTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA HAD A GREATWEEK IN NOVEMBER 2011 WITH THE 2011 MENTORING SCHEMEPARTICIPANTS. Eight of Ireland’s leading young instrumentalstudents, ranging in age from 19 to 23 and at stages from first yearthrough to final year degree and recent graduates, made it throughthe audition process. From counties Cork, Dublin, Galway andKilkenny, they were students of violin, viola, clarinet, trombone andpercussion at either the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama, theRoyal Irish Academy of Music or the CIT Cork School of Music.

All performed with the orchestra in ‘Russian Colours’ on Friday 4 November and, with conductor Matthias Bamert, all took part inSoundings, the free pre-concert talk.

2011 FEEDBACK

‘The mentoring scheme marked my first time to rehearse and perform with a professional orchestra. Thanks for such a great week. It was an amazing experience!’Rónán Scarlett, percussion, Clonsilla, Dublin

‘Preparing for the audition gave me theopportunity to improve on my auditionskills and was a very positive experience.’Mary Morgan, trombone, Glenamaddy, Co. Galway

‘The RTÉ NSO’s Mentoring Scheme is one of the most important outreachinitiatives developed by the orchestra.The opportunity for our students torehearse and perform with seasonedprofessionals in a supported environmentcreates a meaningful transition betweeneducation and real life.’Deborah Kelleher, Royal Irish Academy of Music Director

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‘A valuable innovation’

The Irish Times, 2011

THE RTÉ NSO’S MUSICAL DISCOVERY PROGRAMME | NOVEMBER

The scheme continues in 2012 Find out more:

[email protected] | 01 208 2530

PRESENTED AS PART OF

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRoyal Irish Academy of MusicDirector Deborah Kelleherwith 2012 Mentoring Schemeparticipants



FRIDAY 30 NOVEMBER



RTÉ NSO PRINCIPAL CLARINET JOHN FINUCANE ANDTHE YOUNG RISING-STAR, VENEZUELAN CONDUCTORRAFAEL PAYARE, STEP INTO THE LIMELIGHT forMozart’s hauntingly beautiful Clarinet Concerto, regardedby many as among the finest music ever written for theinstrument. Taking delight in a youthful virtuosity that all but boils over with incident, drama and wit, RichardStrauss’s heroic tone poem Don Juan boasts enormousvim and irresistible vitality. And Shostakovich’s mightyTenth Symphony offers a powerful and moving ‘testament of misery’ to life under Stalin’s thumb.

R. STRAUSSDon Juan, Op. 20 [17’]

MOZART Clarinet Concerto in A, K622 [25’]

SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 10 in E minor, Op. 93 [55’]

DEFIANCEDREAMS, ANDLEAVE-TAKING

JOHN FINUCANE CLARINET RAFAEL PAYARE CONDUCTORWITH 2012 MENTORING SCHEME PARTICIPANTS

RAFAEL PAYARE

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MENTORINGSCHEME

2012

BEYOND THE SEASON | DECEMBER

IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE JOHN MURRAY SHOW, RTÉ RADIO 1

RTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PRESENTS

THE

CHRISTMAS GALATHREESOPRANOS

Now it’s back for another glorious and uplifting mix of vocaland orchestral seasonal favourites without which Christmaswould not be complete – Silent Night, O Holy Night, LeroyAnderson’s festive Christmas Festival and more.

‘A feast for the soul and the spirit. I even forgot there were seriousfinancial worries in Ireland for those two blissful hours’.

So said one satisfied customer about The Three Sopranos Christmas Gala 2011, one ofthe RTÉ NSO’s runaway successes last year with two sold-out shows, standing ovationsand lots of smiling faces greeting the festive mix of operatic favourites, seasonal carols,Christmas songs and orchestral music.

3.15pm & 8pm Ends:

CONCERT


CELINE BYRNE SOPRANO REGINA NATHAN SOPRANO CARA O’SULLIVAN SOPRANO JOHN FINUCANE CONDUCTOR

PRESENTED BY JOHN MURRAY, RTÉ RADIO 1

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WEDNESDAY 19 DECEMBERNational Concert Hall

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2.30pm & 6.30pm:CONCERT


TUESDAY 1 JANUARY


MAIN SEASON | JANUARY

PUT YOUR GLAD RAGS ON AND JOIN THE CELEBRATIONS TO WELCOMEIN THE NEW YEAR IN STYLE as we sing and dance our way to 19th-centuryVienna for a thrilling mix of opera and operetta favourites, waltzes and polkasby Suppé and the Strauss family. Luxuriate in the polished, martial splendourof the Light Cavalry Overture and Radetzky March; surrender to the beauty ofthe Blue Danube Waltz, swoon to love-lit songs from Die Fledermaus(Czardas), My Fair Lady (I Could Have Danced All Night) and by Franz Lehár(Meine lippen, sie küssen so heiss). A New Year’s Day to sparkle and glitteraccompanied by some of the most vivacious and tuneful music ever written.

WALTZING

ORLA BOYLAN SOPRANOGERHARD MARKSON CONDUCTOR

PRESENTED BY LIZ NOLAN, RTÉ lyric fm

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STRICTLY COMENEW YEAR’S DAY CELEBRATION

Orla Boylan… ‘Thrilling’ The Guardian ‘Superb... electrifying singing’ Opera Britannia


WAGNERRienzi Overture [12’]

Wesendonck Lieder [21’]

Ride of the Valkyries [5’]

Tannhäuser Overture [14’]

Prelude and Liebestod (Tristan and Isolde) [17’]

Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg [9’]

THE OFTHELORD RING

FRIDAY 4 JANUARYNational Concert Hall

Hailed as a soprano ‘born to sing Wagner’ (The Irish Times),Tralee-born Miriam Murphy received a standing ovation on herlast appearance with the RTÉ NSO. She returns to mark the200th anniversary of Wagner’s birth as we celebrate histowering genius with some of his greatest music. Wallow inTristan’s swooning Prelude and soaring Liebestod, indulge in the magnificence of the Tannhäuser and MeistersingerOvertures, thrill to the vertiginous Ride of the Valkyries(popularised in the film Apocalypse Now), and melt with theWesendonck Lieder, ravishing expressions of love at its mostinfatuated and intense, about which the composer declared: ‘I have done nothing better than these songs’.

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONFormer Director of theNational Concert HallJudith Woodworthwith Matthias Bamerton Wagner and his music



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MIRIAM MURPHY SOPRANO MATTHIAS BAMERT CONDUCTOR

WAGNER 200th BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION

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FRIDAY11 JANUARYNational Concert Hall


ILYA GRINGOLTS

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ NSO Principal ClarinetJohn Finucane with Ilya Gringolts



Principal Guest Conductor Series

A TRIO OF WORKS THAT SPARKLE AND POP with all the delicious effervescence of fine champagne promise an intoxicating evening. Regarded as ‘one of the mostinspirational violinists today’ (The Financial Times), Ilya Gringolts returns for the ecstatic love song that isTchaikovsky’s luxurious Violin Concerto. And Principal Guest Conductor Hannu Lintu guarantees fireworks aplentyfrom both Dvořák’s brilliantly boisterous celebration of life –the Carnival Overture, and the glorious ‘Organ Symphony’ of Saint-Saëns, a highlight of the charming film about thatloveable ‘sheep-pig’, Babe.

DVOŘÁKCarnival Overture, Op. 92 [10’]

TCHAIKOVSKY Violin Concerto in D, Op. 35 [33’]

SAINT-SAËNS Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78 ‘Organ Symphony’ [36’]

TO LOVE!TO LIFE!ILYA GRINGOLTS VIOLIN HANNU LINTU CONDUCTOR

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DOMINIC DUDLEYRTÉ NSO SECTION LEADER, DOUBLE BASS

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‘It is always something special to work with the RTÉ NationalSymphony Orchestra. As a groupthey perform with a power andenergy that almost hits you tothe ground, but you can getequally spellbound by theirmagic sound in pianissimo’

WORD FROM AN ARTISTCHRISTIAN LINDBERG, trombone

2010-2011 Season

FINGHIN COLLINS CONTINUES HIS JOURNEY INTO THE VERY HEART OF MOZART’S SENSEOF HIMSELF as a composer with three of the sixpiano concertos he composed in 1784. Operaticallyintense, the dark and melancholic 14th ushered in aperiod of astonishing maturity and innovation,Mozart describing the 16th, which echoes Haydn

and revels in ingenuity of the most entertaining kind,as a work ‘to make the performer sweat’. The 17th,one of the wittiest and richest of all his pianoconcertos, delightfully evokes ‘celestial fieldswhere the flocks of gods go grazing’.

MOZARTPiano Concerto No. 14 in E flat, K449 [21’]

MOZARTPiano Concerto No. 16 in D, K451 [21’]

MOZARTPiano Concerto No. 17 in G, K453 [30’]

FINGHIN COLLINS PIANO/DIRECTOR


CELESTIAL FIELDS

Mozart Piano Concerti CycleSoloists Directs SeriesAssociate Artist Series


7pm: SOUNDINGSGUEST TALKUCD Choral Scholar DirectorDesmond Earley on Mozartand his travels



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TUESDAY 22 JANUARYNational Concert Hall

BEYOND THE SEASON | JANUARY

12.30pm: COMPOSERS IN CONVERSATION †Contemporary Music Centre Director EvonneFerguson with composer Linda Buckley

1.05pm: CONCERTEnds: 2pm

FREE EVENTSee p. 65

HORIZONS 2013

‘MUCH OF THIS MUSIC IS INSPIRED BY LANDSCAPE AND POETRY – from the cleanpure haiku of Japan in chiyo (“cool clear water, the beauty of hidden things”) to thework of thirteenth-century Persian poet Rumi in turn (‘Turn as the earth and moon turn,circling what they love’) to the gaelic psalmody of Stórr evoking the Outer Hebrides ofScotland. The poetic landscape of Iceland inspires Fall Approaches with the ancientpractice of rimur chant (“Soon we will not see the sun, soon the river will be frozen”).This is a concert presenting the work of two sisters, born on a barren and isolatedpeninsula of haunting beauty, jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean – a connecting thread of dramatic geography, at once wild and rugged.’ Linda Buckley

LINDA BUCKLEY chiyo (RTÉ commission) [9’]

LINDA BUCKLEY turn, 2nd movement [6’]

IRENE BUCKLEY Stórr for orchestra without percussion [9’]

LINDA BUCKLEY Fall Approaches for string orchestra and electronics [9’]

LINDA BUCKLEY Surge (RTÉ commission) [10’]

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GAVIN MALONEY CONDUCTOR

FEATURED COMPOSER: LINDA BUCKLEY RTÉ lyric fm and RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra Composer-in-Residence

IRISH PREMIERE

IRISH PREMIERE

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† In association with

CONTEMPORARY MUSIC SERIES


A HEART-WRENCHING REQUIEM, A GARGANTUANSYMPHONIC HYMN. Alban Berg’s Violin Concerto – aheart-wrenching requiem for the death of a young child,dedicated to ‘the memory of an angel’ – and Beethoven’sgargantuan symphonic hymn, with its ecstatic choralsetting of Schiller’s Ode to Joy, are two monumentalmusical milestones whose astonishing intensity andawesome scale are without compare. Former PrincipalConductor Gerhard Markson returns to lead virtuoso Dutch violinist Isabelle van Keulen, the RTÉ PhilharmonicChoir, and a quartet of vocal talents in what is sure to be a night to remember.

BERG Violin Concerto [22’]

BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125 ‘Choral’ [65’]

AGONYTHEAND THE

ISABELLE VAN KEULEN VIOLIN KATHERINE BRODERICK SOPRANO CLAUDIA HUCKLE ALTO ROBIN TRITSCHLER TENOR ANDREW FOSTER-WILLIAMS BASSRTÉ PHILHARMONIC CHOIR MARK HINDLEY CHORUS MASTER

GERHARD MARKSON CONDUCTOR



6.10pm: FREE CONCERTPipeworks Organ recital with David Adams, see p. 63

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONFormer RTÉ NSO GeneralManager and Principal Clarinet Brian O’Rourke withconductor Gavin Maloney



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Choral Masterworks

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TUESDAY 29 JANUARYNational Concert Hall


12pm: SOUNDINSTALLATION Jonathan NangleTrip the Light Fantastic

12.30pm: COMPOSERS IN CONVERSATION † Contemporary Music Centre Director EvonneFerguson with composer Jonathan Nangle


FREE EVENTSee p. 65

FEATURED COMPOSER: JONATHAN NANGLE

‘DAPPLED SUNLIGHT CAST THROUGH SUMMER FOLIAGEand the complex, evolving interplay between light and shadowas the breeze ruffles the treetops, the squeak of an old chair,night rain, white harmony, flowing lines, a shuffling iPod andslow moving chords. A peal of bells derived from the light castby the afternoon sun and the enveloping blackness as day turnsgently into night.’ Jonathan Nangle

DONALD SARSFIELD Between Wood and Waterfor string orchestra and tape [10’]

JONATHAN NANGLE New Work [10’]

JONATHAN NANGLE Then falls thy Shadow for chamber ensemble and random shuffle playback system [5’]

JONATHAN NANGLE Now is night come quietly [8’]


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HORIZONS 2013 CONTEMPORARY MUSIC SERIES

WORLD PREMIERE


THURSDAY31 JANUARYNational Concert Hall

8pm: COMPETITION


Join us and give them your support as theyperform a selection of operatic arias with the RTÉ NSO before a jury chaired by JaneCarty and including Christa Ludwig, RichardBonynge and the Wexford Festival OperaArtistic Director David Agler.

For more information: www.vdiscompetition.com

FOLLOWING THREE PRELIMINARY ROUNDS, THE7th VERONICA DUNNE INTERNATIONAL SINGINGCOMPETITION FINAL will see six singers battle itout for the coveted title and first prize of €10,000.

With a prize fund in excess of €30,000 and over 12 different prizes, the Veronica Dunne InternationalSinging Competition has established itself as acompetition attracting some of the most excitingyoung voices emerging internationally.

VeronicaDUNNEFINAL OF THE

INTERNATIONAL SINGING COMPETITION

Previous prizewinners include Pumeza Matshikiza,

Sarah-Jane Brandon, Norah Amsellem, Tara Erraught,Simon O'Neill and Orla Boylan,

now working in opera housessuch as the Stuttgart Opera

House; Bavarian State Opera,Munich; Deutsche Oper, Berlin;

Vienna Staatsoper and theMetropolitan Opera, New York.

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FRIDAY 1 FEBRUARYNational Concert Hall

BEYOND THE SEASON | FEBRUARY



NIGHTA AT THEOSCARS

ALL-TIME ICONIC MOVIE SCORE FAVOURITES

Once again, the full forces of the RTÉ NationalSymphony Orchestra give the orchestraltreatment to all-time iconic movie-scorefavourites, from the 1930s through to recenttimes. Old and new, funny and sad, animatedclassics, movie musicals, romantic comedies,dramas and Disney hits.

Everything from Beauty and the Beastand Mary Poppins to Cabaret, Chariots of Fire, Out of Africa, Doctor Zhivago and Bridge on the River Kwai.

JUST SOME OF THE LOVELY COMMENTS WE RECEIVED WHEN WE FIRSTPRESENTED A NIGHT AT THE OSCARS IN 2011. NOW IT’S BACK, REMINDINGUS AGAIN WHY THERE REALLY IS NO BUSINESS LIKE SHOW BUSINESS.

‘A fabulous show’ ‘A wonderful night’ ‘Superb’ ‘We had a ball’ ‘Everyone loved hearingtheir favourite movie themes played by an orchestra of this size’ ‘The RTÉ NSO made an incredible sound’ ‘David Arnold’s arrangements were stunning’

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WITH THE RTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRADAVID ARNOLD CONDUCTORPRESENTED BY SHAY BYRNE RTÉ RADIO 1

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TUESDAY5 FEBRUARYNational Concert Hall


12.30pm: COMPOSERS IN CONVERSATION †Contemporary Music Centre Director EvonneFerguson with composer Raymond Deane


FREE EVENTSee p. 65

‘COMPOSERS BYPASSED BY HISTORY DEPEND ON POSTERITY TO WAGE THEIR STRUGGLE FOR RECOGNITION. Carl Ruggles(1876–1971) was an uncompromising American pioneer who completed only 10 musical works in his long life. Portals for strings (1925) is typically intense and contrapuntal.

My Epitomes, written for the Dublin Orchestras for Young Players, is 20 years old. An elegy for my father is framed by two almostminimalist miniatures. Ripieno (1999), by contrast, is my longest and most elaborate orchestral work to date.’ Raymond Deane

CARL RUGGLES Portals [7’]

RAYMOND DEANE Epitomes [8’]

RAYMOND DEANE Ripieno [30’]



HORIZONS 2013 CONTEMPORARY MUSIC SERIES

FEATURED COMPOSER: RAYMOND DEANE 60th BIRTHDAY YEAR CELEBRATION

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STRADDLING THE 19TH AND 20TH CENTURIES,MAHLER’S MUSIC EXPLORED THE AFFAIRS OF THEHEART WITH A PASSIONATE INTENSITY that takes theintrospective and deeply felt to expansive and expressiveends. Shot through with dark emotions, sweet-scentedmelodies and sylvan beauty, the sublime Rückert Liederare exquisitely inspired by the immediacy of nature andthe intimacy of love. Moving from bleakest terror toluminous, transcendent peace, the monumental TenthSymphony was his mighty leave-taking of the world and surely one of the greatest love letters ever written.

MAHLERRückert Lieder [18’]

MAHLERSymphony No. 10 (Cooke version) [72’]

CELINE BYRNE SOPRANO STEFAN BLUNIER CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | FEBRUARY

AFFAIRSOF THEHEART

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ lyric fm’s Paul Herriottwith Stefan Blunier



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HORIZONS 2013FEATURED COMPOSER: ANN CLEARE

‘The idea of light travelling through a space permeates this programme. In thecolossal Dämmerschein (Rays of Twilight) by Xenakis, sounds are luminously sculptedand diffused throughout the orchestra, like beams of light flickering on a sky ofrapidly transforming stars. phôsphors divides the orchestra into four insular islandsthat communicate by igniting matter into sonic colours, in an alchemical transfer ofenergy. to another of that other combines the orchestra with three soloists from theAustralian ensemble ELISION, exploring an angular geometry of a bass clarinet,trumpet and trombone as they modulate identities in the orchestral landscape.’Ann Cleare

ANN CLEARE phôsphors [13’]

XENAKIS Dämmerschein (Rays of Twilight) [12’]

ANN CLEARE to another of the other for bass clarinet, trumpet, trombone and orchestra [16’]

ELISION ENSEMBLE RICHARD HAYNES | BENJAMIN MARKS | TRISTRAM WILLIAMS


WORLD PREMIERE

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FREE EVENTSee p. 65


WORLD PREMIERE

CONTEMPORARY MUSIC SERIES


TAKEN FROM HIS MUSIC FOR IBSEN’S PEERGYNT, the story of a boastful and vain outlaw whofinds love in old age, Grieg’s Suites boast some ofthe most atmospheric and beautiful music everwritten, from the sublime ‘Morning’ and haunting‘Solveig’s Song’ to the fiery ‘Arabian Dance’ andvivid depiction of grotesque mountain trolls andgnomes. No less exotic is Saint-Saëns’ ‘Egyptian’Concerto, a magical voyage full of Middle Easternscents with brilliantly descriptive piano writing forvirtuoso Lilya Zilberstein. Finally Prokofiev’sFourth Symphony provides drama and emotionaplenty in rich and relishable music.

JOURNEYS

GRIEG Peer Gynt Suite No. 2, Op. 55 [15’]

SAINT-SAËNS Piano Concerto No. 5 in F, Op. 103 ‘Egyptian’ [29’]

PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 4 in C, Op. 47 (original version) [23’]

GRIEG Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, Op. 46 [15’]

LILYA ZILBERSTEIN PIANO ALAN BURIBAYEV CONDUCTOR

Principal Conductor Series MAIN SEASON | FEBRUARY

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7pm: SOUNDINGSGUEST TALKTCD Head of Music Simon Trezise on Prokofiev’s Fourth Symphony



FRIDAY 22 FEBRUARY


TWO MESMERIC LANDMARKS OF THE ORCHESTRALREPERTOIRE ELOQUENTLY ILLUSTRATE THEENORMOUS VARIETY AND VITALITY OF THE FORM.Dvořák’s glorious late-19th-century Concerto is ahaunting blend of American-Negro folk tunes andthrilling, heart-on-sleeve writing for the cello (played by the remarkable, always unmissable, Alban Gerhardt).Completed in 1936, Rachmaninov’s Third Symphony is a work of large emotions underpinned by the brittlepoignancy of plain-chant and expressed in music thatmoves from brooding melancholia to searing lyricism to thrilling defiance with irresistible energy.

LANDMARKS

DVOŘÁKCello Concerto in B minor, Op. 104 [40’]

RACHMANINOV Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 44 [39’]

ALBAN GERHARDT CELLO ALAN BURIBAYEV CONDUCTOR


EMOTIONOF

ALBAN GERHARDT


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7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ NSO Principal CelloMartin Johnson withAlban Gerhardt onpopular cello concerti



JONATHAN COHEN

3.30pm: CONCERTEnds: 5.20pm approx.

POST-CONCERT TALKWith the performers in the John Field Room


SUNDAY 24 FEBRUARYNational Concert Hall

BEETHOVEN’S FIRST AND LAST PIANOCONCERTOS OWE A GENEROUS DEBT TO THERADIANT BRILLIANCE OF MOZART. The First is an infectious display of youthful playfulness andswagger that pits soloist against orchestra in anentertaining game of cat and mouse. No lessdelightful is the Sixth Concerto (Beethoven’s own transcription of his Violin Concerto). After last season’s revelatory beginning to his completesurvey of Beethoven’s piano concertos, AssociateArtist Finghin Collins nears the end of the cycle inscintillating fashion. Les Arts Florissants AssociateConductor Jonathan Cohen is one to look forward to.

BEETHOVEN

BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 1 in C, Op. 15 [36’]

BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 6 in D, Op. 61 [42’]

FINGHIN COLLINS PIANO JONATHAN COHEN CONDUCTOR


MOZART LOVERSFOR

Beethoven Piano Concerti CycleAssociate Artist Series

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SUNDAY 3 MARCH


ASSOCIATE ARTIST FINGHIN COLLINS’ FINAL BEETHOVENPROGRAMME features the exhilarating ingenuity andcaptivating melodic invention of the Fourth Piano Concerto,whose voluptuous second movement Liszt memorablydescribed as ‘Orpheus taming the wild beasts’. The majesticCoriolan Oveture offers up a clenched fist of emotion and high drama, and The Guinness Choir and a sextet of soloistsjoin us for the sublime Choral Fantasy, where piano, voice andorchestra combine with muscularity and musicality.

ORPHEUS

BEETHOVEN Coriolan Overture, Op. 62 [8’]

Piano Concerto No. 4 in G, Op. 58 [34’]

Choral Fantasy, Op. 80 [19’]

FINGHIN COLLINS PIANO JENNIFER DAVIS SOPRANO NICOLA MULLIGAN SOPRANO LAURA MURPHY ALTOEOIN HYNES TENOR PATRICK HYLAND BASSGAVAN RING BARITONE THE GUINNESS CHOIR DAVID MILNE CHORUS MASTER

JONATHAN COHEN CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | MARCH

WILD BEASTSTAMING THE

Beethoven Piano Concerti CycleAssociate Artist Series

3.30pm: CONCERTEnds: 5.00pm approx.

POST-CONCERT TALKWith the performers in the John Field Room


Choral Masterworks

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PASSIONS, PLEASURABLE AND PAINFUL, RUNHIGH IN THREE MAJESTIC WORKS THAT SPRINGFROM THE RUSSIAN SOIL AND SOUL. Drawn from Dante’s Inferno, Tchaikovsky’s searingly tragicFrancesca da Rimini tells of murdered lovers locked inpoignant embrace for all eternity. Prokofiev describedhis mighty and moving Fifth Symphony as ‘a song ofpraise of free and happy mankind’, its soaring dramaconjuring the moment of victory in World War II.Hideko Udagawa is sure to delight with Khachaturian’srichly characterised love song for violin and orchestra,the Concerto-Rhapsody.

FROM RUSSIA

TCHAIKOVSKYFrancesca da Rimini, Op. 32 [22’]

KHACHATURIANConcerto-Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra [23’]

PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 5 in B flat, Op. 100 [46’]

HIDEKO UDAGAWA VIOLIN ALAN BURIBAYEV CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | MARCH

7pm: SOUNDINGSGUEST TALKTCD Head of MusicSimon Trezise on theevening’s programme



Principal Conductor Series Prokofiev Symphony Cycle

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6.10pm: FREE CONCERTPipeworks Organ recital with Colm Carey, see p. 63

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ NSO Co-Leader, ElaineClark with Julian Rachlin



FRIDAY 22 MARCH


CHARISMATIC VIRTUOSO JULIAN RACHLINMAKES A WELCOME RETURN AS BOTH SOLOISTAND CONDUCTOR FOR ARGUABLY THEGREATEST OF ALL VIOLIN CONCERTOS.Mendelssohn’s masterpiece is a passionate helter-skelter ride laced together by heart-stoppingmelodies and thrilling orchestral writing, while hisFourth Symphony is a colourful snapshot of travelsin Italy that calls to mind his nickname as ‘theMozart of the 19th century’. Offering scintillatingproof of the comparison is Mozart’s own brilliantand energetic Symphony No. 29 and themagnificent Overture to The Marriage of Figaro.

CLASSICAL

MOZART The Marriage of Figaro Overture, K492 [4’]

MOZART Symphony No. 29 in A [28’]

MENDELSSOHN Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64 [26]

MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 4 in A, Op. 90 ‘Italian’ [27]

JULIAN RACHLIN VIOLIN /CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | MARCH

POISE

Soloist Directs Series

JULIAN RACHLIN

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FRIDAY 12 APRILNational Concert Hall

MAIN SEASON | APRIL

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A SECOND CHANCE FOR IRISH AUDIENCES TOHEAR JOHN KINSELLA’S TENTH SYMPHONY,DESCRIBED BY THE COMPOSER AS ‘VERY MUCHAN EXPRESSION OF MYSELF’. First heard in 2012 just weeks before Kinsella’s 80th birthday, it was hailed by The Irish Times for its ‘spare linear style, moments of fierce, trumpet-topped intensity’and a finale that ‘moves with foot-tapping clarity’.Bruckner’s expansive ‘Romantic’ Symphony is amagnificent exercise in recreating the medievalcountryside of his native Austria, complete withvivid hunting scenes, evocative birdsong, pastoralcolour and an altogether blazing climax.

SYMPHONICMATTERS

JOHN KINSELLASymphony No. 10 [30’]

BRUCKNERSymphony No. 4 in E flat, ‘Romantic’ [70’]


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FRIDAY 19 APRIL


JOIN ACCLAIMED CONDUCTOR GILBERTVARGA FOR A MUSICAL JOURNEY betweenthe Old World of Europe – in Lalo’s rhapsodiccelebration of Spanish folk songs – and theNew World of America in Dvořák’s stirringNinth Symphony, with its unforgettably stirringblend of Native American and African-American melodies and tunes from his nativeBohemia. Heard in countless television advertsand films, it remains a work of epic dimensions,with music that is gloriously fresh, vital, andalive to the ear. Sensational young Norwegianviolinist Eldbjørg Hemsing is our soloist.

A POSTCARD FROMAND THE OLDTH

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LALOSymphonie espagnole, Op. 21 [33’]

DVOŘÁKSymphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95 ‘From the New World’ [40’]

MAIN SEASON | APRIL

NEW WORLD7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONThe Irish Times music criticMichael Dervan with Gilbert Varga


9.45pm: LATE NIGHTNorwegian folk music and more with Eldbjørg Hemsingviolin/Hardanger fiddle


ELDBJØRG HEMSING

ELDBJØRG HEMSING VIOLIN GILBERT VARGA CONDUCTOR

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FRIDAY 26 APRILNational Concert Hall

FRENCH MUSIC SPECIALIST PASCAL ROPHÉ CONDUCTSA COLOURFUL PROGRAMME OF MUSIC FROM HISHOMELAND with Messiaen’s moving, devout and joyoussetting of Catholic liturgy and Biblical texts, L’Ascension, Ravel’s effervescent Piano Concerto for the Left Hand – featuring Jean-Frédéric Neuburger at the piano –looks west towards America to dazzlingly embrace the improvisatory brilliance of jazz. Ibert’s magical ‘Ports of Call’, meanwhile, revels in the captivating colour and exotic heat of Italian, Spanish and Arabicinfluences on a musical tour around the Mediterranean.

LEFT-HAND PIANO

MESSIAENL’Ascension – 4 méditations symphoniques [27’]

RAVELPiano Concerto for the Left Hand [19’]

IBERTEscales (Ports of Call) [14’]

JEAN-FRÉDÉRIC NEUBURGER PIANO PASCAL ROPHÉ CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | APRIL

HEAT, HOLINESS

The French Connection

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7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONEugene Downes withPascal Rophé


9.45pm: LATE NIGHTMessiaen L’Ascensionfor solo organ [27’]with Mark Duley organ


Choral Masterworks

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7pm: SOUNDINGSGUEST TALKOrganist Mark Duley onFranck’s Symphony and legacy for organists



FRIDAY 3 MAY


WITH ITS COMPELLING BLEND OF FRENCH ANDGERMAN INFLUENCES, FRANCK’S ONLY SYMPHONYcontributed to a revival of the form in his native France inthe late 19th century. And no wonder: it brims over withdrama, emotion and rich, ripe melodies that catch the earand the imagination. Pascal Rophé returns to conduct it,together with Honegger’s spirited Rugby, which offers allthe thrills and spills of a game in full flow, and Poulenc’scelebratory, gloriously ebullient and joyous Gloria, with theRTÉ Philharmonic Choir and Limerick-born sopranoMairéad Buicke.

GLORY RUGBY

FRANCKSymphony in D minor [37’]

HONEGGERRugby [8’]

POULENCGloria [28’]

MAIRÉAD BUICKE SOPRANORTÉ PHILHARMONIC CHOIR MARK HINDLEY CHORUS MASTER

PASCAL ROPHÉ CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | MAY

GOD

The French Connection

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Choral Masterworks

50TH ANNIVERSARY OF POULENC’S DEATH

FRIDAY 10 MAYNational Concert Hall

THREE OF IRELAND’S FINEST PIANISTS COMETOGETHER FOR A NIGHT OF PHENOMENAL MUSICMAKING as Dearbhla Collins and Hugh Tinney joinAssociate Artist Finghin Collins for the bracingconclusion to his Mozart piano concerto cycle. The Concerto in F for Three Pianos is an affectionateportrait of the composer’s patron and her twodaughters, complete with a delightfully witty surpriseending. The early, buoyant Fifth Concerto (composedby a 17-year-old Mozart), and the very last – theintrospective, valedictory 27th – reveal beauty cast in both sunshine and shadow.

BEAUTY INSHADOW

MOZARTPiano Concerto No. 5 in D, K175 [21’]

MOZARTPiano Concerto No. 27 in B flat, K595 [32’]

MOZARTConcerto for Three Pianos in F, K242 [20’]

FINGHIN COLLINS PIANO/DIRECTORDEARBHLA COLLINS PIANO HUGH TINNEY PIANO

MAIN SEASON | MAY

SUNSHINE

Mozart Piano Concerti CycleSoloists Directs SeriesAssociate Artist Series

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7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONRTÉ Performing GroupsExecutive Director SéamusCrimmins with Finghin Collinson the scale of his 2010– 2013Mozart Piano Concerti Cycle



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FRIDAY 17 MAY


BRUCH’S FIRST VIOLIN CONCERTO IS SELDOMABSENT FROM ‘TOP 10’ LISTS FOR GOOD REASON.It’s a sublime concoction of sweet, soaring violinmelodies and red-blooded orchestral writing – aperfect combination for the young Italian virtuosoEdoardo Zosi and Principal Conductor Alan Buribayevin his third season with the RTÉ NSO. From itsstorm-tossed beginning and stately themes to itssoaring conclusion, the Overture to Wagner’s TheFlying Dutchman provides romantic drama inabundance, while the Third Symphony by Brahms isa bold and brilliant work of pulsing and powerfulemotions.

ROMANCE

WAGNER The Flying Dutchman Overture [11’]

BRUCHViolin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26 [24’]

BRAHMS Symphony No. 3 in F, Op. 90 [33’]

EDOARDO ZOSI VIOLIN ALAN BURIBAYEV CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | MAY

TAKEN TOEXTREMES


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7pm: SOUNDINGSGUEST TALKUCD Head of Music JulianHorton on the evening’sGermanic repertoire.



7pm: FREE CONCERTThe Polytech Choir, Finland



FRIDAY 24 MAYNational Concert Hall

SINGING SIBLINGS JOHANNA RUSANEN-KARTANO ANDVILLE RUSANEN JOIN FORCES WITH FELLOW FINNSTHE POLYTECH CHOIR AND PRINCIPAL GUESTCONDUCTOR HANNU LINTU, ‘a dynamic figure on therostrum’(Irish Independent). Making extensive use of Finnishfolk tunes, Kullervo and Tapiola revel in all the romanticverve and dramatic impact of a modern film soundtrack.Sibelius pours what he called ‘the pure cold water’ of hismusic to bewitching effect: Kullervo churning and boilingwith mysterious incantations; Tapiola, the composer’s last major work, a powerful evocation of mythic landscapes.

Supported by the Embassy of Finland

FANTASY FOLK MUSIC

SIBELIUSTapiola, Op. 112 [18’]

SIBELIUSKullervo, Op. 7 [72’]

JOHANNA RUSANEN-KARTANO SOPRANO VILLE RUSANEN BARITONE THE POLYTECH CHOIR OF FINLAND JUHA KUIVANEN DIRECTOR

HANNU LINTU CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | MAY

PURECOLDWATER

Principal Guest Conductor Series

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Choral Masterworks

FRIDAY 31 MAY


SEASON FINALE: THE CURTAIN CLOSES

TWO OF THE MOST POPULAR AND EXCITINGWORKS IN THE REPERTOIRE BRING OURSEASON TO A GLORIOUS END. With its big,bold, heart-on-sleeve melodies, Tchaikovsky’stempestuous tug of war between orchestra andsoloist offers pianist Kirill Gerstein opportunitiesaplenty for displays of firework virtuosity. No less powerful is Shostakovich’s mighty FifthSymphony, a dramatic 20th-century masterpiecebrimming over with one memorable melody afteranother that gets close to boiling point with itsbold intensity and striking contrasts.

TCHAIKOVSKY Piano Concerto No. 1 in B flat minor, Op. 23 [32’]

SHOSTAKOVICHSymphony No. 5 in D minor, Op.47 [44’]

KIRILL GERSTEIN PIANO ALAN BURIBAYEV CONDUCTOR

MAIN SEASON | MAY

A FINALE OFAND

6.10pm: FREE CONCERTPipeworks Organ recital. with Mark Duley, see p. 63

7pm: SOUNDINGSIN CONVERSATIONJournalist Ian Fox on the finalconcert of the season




FANFARESFIREWORKS

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SUNDAY 2 JUNENational Concert Hall

EXPRESS

PRESENTED BY PAUL RISSMANN CONDUCTOR JAMES CAVANAGH

A FAMILY CONCERT FOR YOUNG CHILDREN Concert with on screen presentation and audience participation

3pm: CONCERTDuration: 1 hour


MUSIC TO ENGAGE, EXCITE AND ENTERTAIN THE WHOLE FAMILY! Prepareto be transported into space by Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra and backdown-to-earth again (the Wild West, to be exact) to become a cowboy inCopland’s Rodeo, a bullfighter in Bizet’s Carmen, a Pirate of the Caribbeanin music from the film, before losing yourself in Mussorgsky’s magical andmysterious Pictures at an Exhibition. You’ll even get an opportunity to singalong with the audience as the orchestra performs the curiously namedMeerkat Tango written by our presenter Paul Rissmann.

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GLOBALTHE RTÉ NSO’S MUSICAL DISCOVERY PROGRAMME | JUNEPRESENTED AS PART OF

R. STRAUSS Introduction (Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30) [2’]

COPLAND Hoe down (Rodeo) [3’30]

BIZET Habanera (Carmen Suite No. 2) [2’]

BIZET Les Toréadors (Carmen Suite No. 1) [2’]

ANDERSON The Irish Washerwoman (Irish Suite) [3’]

MUSSORGSKY (ORCH. RAVEL) Pictures at an Exhibition (excerpts) [15’]

PAUL RISSMANN The Meerkat Tango [4’]

ZIMMER (ARR. LAVENDER & LONGFIELD) Pirates of the Caribbean (highlights) [3’]

BEYOND THE SEASON | JUNE

IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE JOHN MURRAY SHOW, RTÉ RADIO 1

RTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA PRESENTS

THE

SUMMER GALA ON TOURTHREESOPRANOS

Orchestral and operatic favouritesMONDAY 3 JUNE – SATURDAY 8 JUNE, 2013Leisureland GALWAYUniversity Concert Hall LIMERICKCity Hall CORKWIT Campus WATERFORD

For more information see www.rte.ie/nso (from September 2012)

CELINE BYRNE SOPRANO REGINA NATHAN SOPRANO CARA O’SULLIVAN SOPRANO JOHN FINUCANE CONDUCTOR

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PIPEWORKSFREE PRE-CONCERT ORGAN RECITALSLinked to Main Season programmes

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FRIDAY 21 SEPTEMBER, 6.10pmMARK DULEY ORGAN

MENDELSSOHNSonata No. 1 in F minor, Op. 65 [16’]

SWEELINCK Onder een linde groen [6’]

LISZTWeinen Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen [8’]

Tchaikovsky famously outlined a programmaticelement to the first movement of his FourthSymphony (to be heard in the evening’s MainSeason concert); tonight’s programme presentsorgan works which follow a similar broadoutline of fate/despair moving to resignation/hope. Tchaikovsky’s final movementincorporates the folk song The little birch tree,here mirrored in Sweelinck’s set of variations onUnder the linden tree.

FRIDAY 2 NOVEMBER, 6.10pm DAVID LEIGH ORGAN

WHITLOCKSonata in C minor [45’]

This complex and monumental work is linkedwith Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony, firstheard by Whitlock in 1934 and referred tocryptically in the Sonata’s dedication. Whitlock’sunashamedly lush romantic style owes much tothe older composer, and marks him out as animportant if somewhat neglected figure in thetwentieth-century canon of organ music.

RTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA AND THE NATIONAL CONCERT HALL PRESENT

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FRIDAY 25 JANUARY, 6.10pmDAVID ADAMS ORGAN

SCHOENBERGVariations on a Recitative, Op. 40 [9’]

LISZTFantasy and Fugue on the ChoraleAd nos, ad salutarem undam, S259 [28’]

Two aspects of the evening’s Main Seasonconcert are amplified in this precedingPipeworks event. Berg’s concerto and his teacher Schoenberg’s variations aretwelve-tone works, both with a strongtonal undercurrent. Berg’s use of thechorale Es ist genug in the Concerto andBeethoven’s famous hymn of joy aremirrored in Liszt’s use of the revolutionaryhymn Ad nos from Meyerbeer’s opera Le Prophète.

FRIDAY 22 MARCH, 6.10pmCOLM CAREY ORGAN

HINDEMITHSonata No. 1 [17’]

MOZART(arr. Best/Carey)Larghetto (from Clarinet Quintet, Op. 108) [6’]

MENDELSSOHNSonata No. 4 in B flat, Op. 65 [14’]

This evening’s programme explores theorgan's interaction with classical form and style, as experienced in the linearcounterpoint of Hindemith, the poisedelegance of Mozart transcribed, orMendelssohn’s homage to Baroque modelsin reimagining the sonata as a suite ofcontrasted movements.

FRIDAY 31 MAY, 6.10pmMARK DULEY ORGAN

J.S. BACHPrelude and Fugue in E minor BWV 548 [16’]

HAMPTONEveryone Dance!from Five Dances for Organ [4’]

BRIDGEAdagio in E [7’]

FRANCKPièce Héroïque [8’]

This programme follows the generalemotive outline of the four movements of Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 5,highlighting in particular the tersecounterpoint and melodic profiles of thefirst, the satirical dance of the second, theelegiac intensity of the third, and thebombast of the fourth.

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SINGLE CONCERT TICKET PRICES

Main Season Concerts (full price) €35.00 €30.00 €24.00 €18.00 €10.00Main Season Concerts (concessions)* €32.00 €27.00 €22.00 €16.00 €9.00

New Year’s Day (full price) €38.00 €33.00 €27.00 €21.00 €12.00New Year’s Day (concessions)* €34.00 €30.00 €24.00 €19.00 €11.00

Early Evening Concerts Free ticketed events

Late Night Concerts Free to people attending that evening's 8pm Main Season concertLate Night only: €5 per concert

Soundings Free as part of the Main Season concert

MAIN SEASON

BAND EBAND DBAND CBAND BBAND A

*CONCESSIONSLimited concessions available for students, unwaged and senior citizens.Early booking advisable. ID required. One concession ticket per person. Concessions not requested at the time of booking cannot be applied later.

STUDENT STAND-BY€5 tickets available from one hour before performance. Subject to availability. ID required. One stand-by ticket per person.

GROUP BOOKINGDiscounts available when booking for 5 people or more.Please contact NCH Group Booking on Tel.: 01 408 6793 or Email: [email protected]

INTERESTED IN MORE SAVINGS? Main Season concert package buying options and subscriber rewards and discounts: pp.66–71

65

SINGLE CONCERT TICKET PRICESBEYOND THE SEASON

Date Type Venue Price

Friday 21 September Pipeworks: Mark Duley National Concert Hall Free ticketed event30 Sept / 03 Oct / 06 Oct Wagner's Tristan and Isolde Bord Gáis Energy Theatre €15, €35, €45, €65, €85

To book: 0818 719 377 • www.ticketmaster.ie

Friday 05 October The Best of Symphonic Rock National Concert Hall €10, €18, €24, €24, €30, €35 (Conc. €9, €16, €22, €27, €32)

Friday 02 November Pipeworks: David Leigh National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventSaturday 10 November Rain Falling Up Convention Centre €15 (full price) | €10 (children)Wednesday 19 December Three Sopranos Christmas Gala National Concert Hall €15, €27, €34, €42.50

(Conc. €13.50, €24, €31, €38)Tuesday 22 January Horizons: Linda Buckley National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventFriday 25 January Pipeworks: David Adams National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventTuesday 29 January Horizons: Jonathan Nangle National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventThursday 31 January Veronica Dunne International National Concert Hall €12, €20, €25

Singing Competition Final (Conc. €11, €18, €22)Friday 01 February A Night at the Oscars National Concert Hall €10, €18, €24, €24, €30, €35

(Conc. €9, €16, €22, €27, €32)Tuesday 05 February Horizons: Raymond Deane National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventTuesday 12 February Horizons: Ann Cleare National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventFriday 22 March Pipeworks: Colm Carey National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventFriday 31 May Pipeworks: Mark Duley National Concert Hall Free ticketed eventSunday 02 June FORTE! Family Concert National Concert Hall €10 child | €15 adult

€40 family (family of 4 to include 1 adult)

Mon 03 – Sat 08 June Three Sopranos Summer Tour Various To be announced

HOW TO BOOK: National Concert Hall Box Office for all concerts unless stated otherwise • 01 417 0000 • www.nch.ie

YOUCHOOSE

Main Season concertsWant to know what’s what? See inside front cover.Full Main Season concert listing, see pp.6–9.

Buy as you goMain Season concerts from €10. 5 price options. Top price still €35.

To get the best value buy a Main Season Concert PackageSavings up to €305!Packages from €28.50 Discounts from 5%–30%

Full Main Season Concert Package 29 concerts for the price of 20. Save up to €305!Exclusive benefits and discounts include priority booking, discounts on programmes, dining and CDs plus insider access.

RTÉ NSO MAIN SEASONBUYING OPTIONS

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WHETHER YOU WANT TO FOLLOW A PERSON, APROGRAMME STRAND OR JUST FIND YOUR OWN MIX OF CONCERTS, WE HAVE PACKAGES FOR YOU.

RTÉ NSO MAIN SEASONBUYING OPTIONS

67

MAIN SEASON CONCERT PACKAGE DISCOUNTSFor Main Season concert package prices see p.68.

Buy 3–4 concerts SAVE 5% Up to €7Buy 5–9 concerts SAVE 10% Up to €31Buy 10–14 concerts SAVE 15% Up to €73Buy 15–16 concerts SAVE 20% Up to €112Buy all 29 concerts SAVE 30% Up to €305

DON’TFORGET!

Get your Late Nights for freeBuy the Main Season concert on the evening of the Late Night and get it for free.

Early Evening concertsFree ticketed events.

DON’TFORGET!

FULL MAIN SEASON SUBSCRIBER PACKAGE (29 concerts)With one New Year’s Day concert included as part of your package

MAIN SEASON CONCERT PACKAGES† (3–9 concerts)

Package price 29 €712.60 €611.10 €489.30 €367.50 €204.40Saving 30% €305.40 €261.90 €209.70 €157.50 €87.60

BUY SAVE BAND E*BAND DBAND CBAND BBAND A






Package price 8 €252.00 €216.00 €172.80 €129.60 €72.00Saving 10% €28.00 €24.00 €19.20 €14.40 €8.00Package price 9 €283.50 €243.00 €194.40 €145.80 €81.00Saving 10% €31.50 €27.00 €21.60 €16.20 €9.00


MAIN SEASON PACKAGE PRICES

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See Seating Plan on inside back cover for price band breakdown

SEASON CONCERT PACKAGES† (10–16 concerts)









Want to include New Year’s Day with your (3–16) concert package?If you wish to purchase New Year’s Day as part of aMain Season Concert Package (3–16 concerts) pleasenote that due to the slightly higher ticket prices forNew Year’s Day, there will be a small additional cost(not exceeding €3) depending on the seat band andpackage size chosen.

Beyond the Season concerts Beyond the Season Evening Concerts, Late Night✦

concerts and FORTE events are individually priced andare not part of the Main Season concert packages.Please see p.65 for ticket prices.

✦ If there is a Late Night concert on the night you areattending a Main Season concert, entry is free to you.

* Due to choral performances on 19 October, 25 January, 3 March, 3 May and 24 May the Choir Balcony will be closed. Dueto stage extensions on 25 January, 8 February and 3 March Rows B and C in the Stalls will be closed. Please note Row Din the Stalls can be purchased as a Full Season Package, but Choir Balcony and Rows B and C in the Stalls cannot.

† Excluding New Year’s Day.

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RTÉ NSO SUBSCRIBER REWARDSEXCLUSIVE BENEFITS FOR 2012–2013 MAIN SEASON CONCERT PACKAGE SUBSCRIBERS WHEN YOU SHOW YOUR RTÉ NSO SUBSCRIBER CARD

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†

CARD

With a full Main Season concert package you get:✔ Exclusive early booking for RTÉ NSO 2013–2014 Season

Giving you the opportunity to book ahead of everybody else.✔ Keep the same seat from one season to the next

We will hold your current seat during the exclusive early booking period so that you can have first refusal on your favourite seat.

With a 3–16 Main Season concert package you get:✔ Priority booking period for RTÉ NSO 2013–2014 Season

Book your new package ahead of general public booking.

Insider Access for all RTÉ NSO Main Season Concert Package subscribers.✔ Invitations to free selected open rehearsals for you and a friend

Exclusive discounts for all 2012–2013 Main Season concert package subscribers✔ RTÉ NSO season concert programmes: €1 off regular price✔ 10% discount at:

The Terrace Café (NCH)Alex Restaurant (The Conrad Hotel)The Music Box (NCH)

✔ 5% discount on tickets: Selected evening concerts presented by the RTÉ NSO & the RTÉ CO August 2012–May 2013 at the National Concert Hall.Offer excludes the RTÉ CO New Year’s Eve concert. Limited to 2 per person. Subject to availability.

How to receive your RTÉ NSO Subscriber Card? See p.71.

† Terms & conditions apply.

To enjoy your exclusive discounts and benefits, you need to register forthe RTÉ NSO Main Season Subscriber Card. Start saving immediately!

HOW TO GET YOUR CARDSimply choose from the options below.

Tell the National Concert Hall• By phone/in person: At the time of booking instruct the box-office

to pass your contact information onto RTÉ so your Subscriber Card can be sent to you directly

• In writing: Tick the consent box on the Ticket Order Form. You can download this from www.rte.ie/nationalsymphonyorchestra

ORTell RTÉ directly• You can call or email RTÉ directly to request your Card and we will send it

to you. Tel: 01 208 2530 | Email: [email protected]

THE RTÉ NSOSUBSCRIBER CARDThe card that saves you money

PLEASE NOTE: In accordancewith the Data Protection Act2003, information provided tothe National Concert Hall at thetime of booking cannot bepassed onto RTÉ without your permission.

As the RTÉ NSO Main SeasonSubscriber Card has to be issuedby RTÉ directly, it is importantthat you choose one of theoptions outlined in order to receive the card which saves you money.

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SUBSCRIBER CARD Valid from: 09/2012 • Expires: see reverse

RTÉNATIONALSYMPHONYORCHESTRA

2012–2013

†

†

WHEN TO BOOKMain Season Concert PackagesFull Main Season Subscribers*: Wed 18 JulyAll Subscribers*: Mon 23 JulyPublic package booking: Tue 31 July

Single Concerts All Subscribers*: Tue 31 JulyFull public booking: Sat 4 AugBooking opens at 10am on all dates*Previous Season’s Subscribers

HOW TO BOOKTelephone bookingTel: 01 417 0000 • Fax: 01 417 0078Box office opening hours: 10am–6pm Monday–Saturday (open 2 hours prior to concerts on Sundays/Bank Holidays)Online bookingwww.nch.ie • No booking feesPlease note: Packages can be booked online but same seat renewal option is not available.In personBooking in person at the National Concert Hall box office, Monday–Saturday, 10am–6pm (open 2 hours prior to concerts on Sundays/Bank Holidays)

METHODS OF PAYMENTCredit & debit cardVisa, Mastercard, American Express and LaserCheque/postal order/bank draftPlease make crossed cheques/postal orders/bank drafts payable to the National Concert Hall.

WHEN ORDERINGIndicate your preferred seat location and your secondpreference. Every effort will be made to accommodate your

request. In the event of neither of your preferred locationsbeing available you will be allocated the nearest availableseat(s) in your selected price bracket.

For telephone bookingsIf buying an RTÉ NSO Main Season subscription package,please advise the National Concert Hall box office that yourcontact information may be passed on to RTÉ in order toreceive your subscriber benefits and further information onother performances by the RTÉ Performing Groups.For in-person bookings Tick the CONSENT box on the TICKET ORDER FORM, indicating your wish to receive your subscriber benefits and further information on other performances by the RTÉ Performing Groups.

Please note: Ticket order forms are available from the NCH box office.

CONDITIONS OF SALEOnce purchased, tickets cannot be exchanged or refunded.Programme and artist details are subject to change.

SPECIAL ASSISTANCEWheelchair/accessible seating Seating is available for wheelchair users and their companions.Early booking is advisable. Please contact the National ConcertHall box office. For those who are hard of hearing please indicatethis when booking your seats with the box office to benefitfrom the National Concert Hall’s induction loop system.

HOW AND WHEN TO BOOK

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RTÉ NATIONAL SYMPHONY ORCHESTRAActing General Manager: Séamus CrimminsMarketing & Communications Manager: Assumpta LawlessMarketing & Communications Assistant: Maria BuckleyOrchestra Manager: Helena PlewsPlanning & Projects Administrator: Jane DavyLibrarian: Niamh O’ConnorOrchestra Administration Assistant: Norma O’ConnorSenior Orchestral Assistant: Liam HennessyOrchestral Assistant: Andy Dunne

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JK

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27

22 23 24 25 26 27

28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

22 23 24 25 26 27 H H H H

22 23 24 25 26 27 H H H H

22 23 24 25 26 27 H H H H

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29

22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29

22 23 24 25 26 27 28

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 104 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

H H H H 5 6 7 8 9 10

H H H H 5 6 7 8 9 10

H H H 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

H H H H 5 6 7 8 9 10

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

11

11

11

11

13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

11

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

21

21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

1211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 211211 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

21

21

21

21

21

2121

21

21

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

STAGE

CHOIR BALCONY136 SEATS UNRESERVED

YELLOW BALCONY

GR

EE

N S

IDE

BA

LCO

NY R

ED

SID

E B

ALC

ON

Y

2829

3031

3233

3435

4857

3938

3740

4142

4344

4546

4748

3635

3433

3231

3029

28

4927

5026

5125

5224

5323

5422

5521

5620

5719

1817

1615

1413

1211

10

1817

1615

1413

1211

10

98

76

54

32

1

98

76

54

32

147

4645

4443

4241

36

BAND ASTALLS ROWS L–U BALCONY ROWS A–F

BAND BSTALLS ROWS J–K & V-YBALCONY ROWS G–K

BAND C STALLS ROWS G–H SIDE BALCONY SEATS 19–57

BAND DSTALLS ROWS E–F SIDE BALCONY SEATS 1–18

BAND ESTALLS ROW B–DCHOIR BALCONY SEATS

NATIONAL CONCERT HALL SEATING PLAN

CONNECT www.rte.ie/nso /rtenso /rte_nso

Documents

RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra 2012-2013 Season