City of Southampton Orchestra

The City of Southampton Orchestra are proud to welcome dynamic guest conductor Jonathan Lo to perform an exciting concert of classical favourites. Hong Kong-born Briton Jonathan Lo is currently Principal Guest Conductor of the Xi’an Symphony Orchestra (China), Principal Conductor of the Manchester Chamber Choir, the New Bristol Sinfonia and the Haffner Orchestra. A BBC Performing Arts Fellow in 2015 with the Birmingham Royal Ballet and Rambert Dance Company, he continues to conduct for both companies regularly. He was a semi-finalist in the 2012 London Symphony Orchestra Donatella Flick Competition, and served as an assistant conductor for the Gabrieli Consort.

The concert will open with Nielsen's exciting Maskarade Overture. In his overture to the opera, Nielsen achieves something similar to what Mozart did in The Marriage of Figaro, drawing the listener immediately into the opera’s atmosphere of high spirits and romantic intrigues.

Next the orchestra will be joined by accomplished soloist Hannah Innes for Dvorák's Cello Concerto. Renowned as one of the finest cello concertos ever written it is sure to be a memorable performance.

In the second half the orchestra will perform one of Sibelius's most popular works, the Symphony No 2. Embued with a sense of warmth and ease, and showing the composer at his most grandiose, Sibelius weaves together a compelling symphony inspired by both his homeland of Finland and a recent holiday he took to Italy. It truly is one of the 20th century's most loved works, and in the hands of Jonathan Lo a performance filled with sumptuous sounds and lush lyricism is guaranteed.