Philharmonia and Nicola Benedetti

Star violinist Nicola Benedetti’s bond with Saffron Hall remains as strong as ever. This season she is Featured Artist with the Philharmonia, who make their first ever visit. Bruch’s delightful fantasy resonates to the rhythms and melodic twists of the folksong of Benedetti’s homeland.

With his revolutionary Fifth, Beethoven shattered the classical symphony mould and propelled music headlong into the Romantic era. From astonishing compressed energy of that famous opening to a triumphant conclusion, it’s a gripping journey from doubt to affirmation, from eerie nocturnal shadows into a radiant new dawn.

No less revolutionary was Louise Farrenc, a contemporary of Berlioz. Initially barred from formally enrolling at the Paris Conservatoire on the basis of sex, she eventually became its first – and until the 20th century, only – female professor. Her music is a potent blend of poise and power.