TWO great musical events on one night. One outdoors, one indoors and entry to both is free.
What more could classical music fans ask for in a town that is rightly renowned for its music-making.
While Huddersfield Choral Society and the Orchestra of Opera North stage the second People’s Prom – this year in Greenhead Park – Slaithwaite Philharmonic Orchestra will be trying to raise the roof of Huddersfield Town Hall.
Both concerts are on Saturday, June 28 and both are free. But for the Town Hall concert you still need to get a ticket.
“It’s going to be a great night for music-making in Huddersfield,” said Slaithwaite Philharmonic secretary Chris Woodhead.
“Of course not everybody likes sitting out in the open, so we’re delighted to be offering an undercover alternative to the Proms in the Park event.’’
The orchestra has had a busy season and its audiences have been growing. Its committee decided to offer free tickets for its final concert as a thank you to its audience, but also to encourage other people to go along and find out what they’re missing.
Chris added: “We’ve put together a terrific programme which features all the popular Last Night of the Proms’ favourites.
“But we’re expecting the highlight of the first half to be Barber’s lovely Violin Concerto, featuring our guest soloist, Emily Steinitz.”
The orchestra will also play pieces by Eric Coates and Richard Rogers and Saint Saens’ Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso.
Emily Steinitz grew up in Huddersfield, playing with orchestras at Scissett Music Centre before joining the Kirklees Youth Orchestra. Later she was a pupil at Chetham’s School of Music before reading physics and music at Cambridge University.
In 2003 she graduated from the post-graduate diploma course at the Royal Academy of Music, where she studied with Alberni Quartet violinist Howard Davis.
During 2005 Emily was a member of Southbank Sinfonia, a new training orchestra for young musicians.
She appeared as a soloist with the orchestra in Italy and in London.
Emily regularly performs baroque concertos with the New London Soloists’ Orchestra and the Belmont Ensemble, both based at St Martin-in-the-Fields in London.
With pianist Susie Summers Emily has given recitals around the country.
Emily has a particular interest in performing contemporary music and has commissioned and premiered several works for the National Portrait Gallery series.
She has played with the London Contemporary Music Group and has led the Brunel Ensemble, Sequenza and the RAM Manson Ensemble, all regularly premiering new music.
This exciting young musician plays a 1761 Gragnani violin, loaned to her by friends in Huddersfield.
Conductor John Anderson was born in Belfast, studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London and read for a master’s degree at Leeds University.
During the 80s, while he was Šprincipal timpanist of the Orchestra of Opera North he became interested in conducting.
He was also appointed principal conductor of the Airedale Symphony Orchestra.
John took part in the second Leeds conductors’ competition in 1986 and later that year made his professional conducting debut in a concert at Harewood House.Š
John left Opera North to become the principal conductor of Grimethorpe Colliery Band, touring extensively with the band, recording for the BBC and releasing several CDs.
In 1995 John was the music director for the British-made feature film Brassed Off, recording the soundtrack with the Grimethorpe band at the famous Abbey Road Studios in London.Š
John now combines a successful freelance conducting career with that of lecturer at Leeds College of Music, where he is Assistant Head of Music for Performance.
Four years ago, John was appointed principal guest conductor of the Uralsk Philharmonic Orchestra, a professional string orchestra from west Kazakhstan.
In 2006 John formed the Yorkshire Chamber Orchestra, Yorkshire’s newest professional orchestra.
Free tickets for Slaithwaite Philharmonic’s summer prom are available from the Albion Street Information Centre on 01484 223200. Admission is by ticket only.
