The eminent British pianist John Lill will perform at Cardiff’s St David’s Hall on Friday 9 May, alongside the much-loved conductor Tadaaki Otaka.
One of the leading pianists of his generation, celebrating his seventieth birthday this year, John Lill is a firm favourite with audiences across the globe – and is a regular soloist at the BBC Proms, performing in over 20 Promenade concerts.
He has worked with Tadaaki Otaka, BBC National Orchestra of Wales’s Conductor Laureate, on many occasions – and together with the Orchestra, they will perform Brahms’s Piano Concerto No 1, one of the greatest of romantic piano concertos.
John Lill is a regular visitor to Cardiff and to St David’s Hall; and he looks forward to returning to the capital: ‘It has been a privilege and pleasure to have given around seventy concerts in Cardiff during my career. Most of those have been performed in St David’s Hall, surely one of the finest halls in Britain and working with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales has always been a very special occasion. The orchestral members are as friendly and personable as they are outstanding musicians.
‘Although Maestro Otaka and the BBC NOW have collaborated with me in a wide range of repertoire over the decades, Brahms’s monumental D minor piano concerto will be a fresh challenge. It is therefore with the greatest of enthusiasm that I look forward to performing this wonderful work with this great conductor and orchestra. It remains one of my very favourite concertos and I know they will give it full justice!’
Tadaaki Otaka, now the Orchestra’s Conductor Laureate, was previously their Principal Conductor between 1987 and 1995, and now returns regularly to lead the Orchestra. He concludes the concert by conducting Beethoven’s Symphony No 7; a powerful and expressive symphony full of energy and life.
This concert is part of BBC NOW’s 2013-14 season, which has been a hit with audiences and critics alike. The season finale on Friday 13 June features Brahms’s Requiem, with Principal Conductor Thomas Søndergård – forming part of the Chorus’s 30th anniversary celebrations this year. Orchestra-in-Residence at St David’s Hall, they will be announcing concert details for their 2014-15 season in May.
Tickets for this concert, at St David’s Hall, Cardiff on Friday 9 May, 7.30pm, are £10-£29 (discounts available) and are available through the BBC National Orchestra of Wales Audience Line, by calling 0800 052 1812.
Alternatively, tickets are available through the St David’s Hall Box Office on 029 2087 8444, or online at stdavidshallcardiff.co.uk. Please note that the St David’s Hall online booking service carries an additional booking charge of £1.75 per transaction.
For more information about the Orchestra, visit their website at bbc.co.uk/now.
