Live concerts resume at Wigmore Hall
London musicians reopen the city's premier recital hall with a month of concerts for audiences at home, each available on demand for one month
Angela Hewitt is among pianists giving live recitals from Wigmore Hall. Photo: Keith Saunders
An exciting breakthrough for classical music-making in London comes with news that live recitals are to resume at chamber venue Wigmore Hall.
Although there is no audience present, throughout June Wigmore Hall concerts are being broadcast live and daily on BBC Radio 3, where the venue's live Monday lunch-time recitals were a much-respected fixture until lockdown. So significant is the move, radio stations across Europe are also relaying the breakthrough concerts.
In Week Two, these artists are appearing: Steven Isserlis (cello) and Mishka Rushdie Momen (Mon 8 June) playing Beethoven, Schumann and Fauré. They are followed by Hyeyoon Park (violin) and Benjamin Grosvenor (piano) in Szymanowski and Franck (Tues 9 June).
On Wed 10 June, Paul Lewis plays work for piano by Beethoven by Schubert.. Mpzart, Messiaen and Poulence are among the composers whose works are played by Adam Walker (flute) and James Baillieu (piano) on Thurs 11 June.
Week Two ends with baritone Roderick Williams and Joseph Middleton (piano) performing Clara Schumann, Robert Schumann, Schubert and Brahms (Fri 12 June).
Baritone Roderick Williams performs live on Friday 12 June
Concerts are introduced by a BBC presenter in the hall, whose job it will be to re-create something of the expectant atmosphere of the live concert. Fans of Wigmore Hall will readily picture the music-inspired mosaic that dominates the stage loved by world-class artists.
So many international concert artists make their home in London, that organisers are expecting several to walk or cycle to the gig.
'When we shut the hall on 16 March we made sure to leave the piano on the stage, and the camera and audio equipment – all of which can be operated remotely – in one place,' explains Wigmore Hall artistic director John Gilhooly.
The semi-circular stage's two doors will come in handy – artists working together will be able to make separate entrances.
The season concludes on Friday 26 June with a performance of Schubert's soul-searching journey in song, Die Winterreise, performed by tenor Mark Padmore and pianist Mitsuko Uchida.
Chamber music is the likely way forward for live music-making in London in the early stages of easing the lockdown, while reassembling whole orchestras and opera companies looks to be some months off.
Wigmore Hall, with its music-themed mosaic, is the capital's leading chamber music venue. Photo: Kaupo Kikkas
The arts, he pointed out in a BBC interview, are worth £8.5bn annually to the UK. This is not only a glimmer of hope music-lovers, but for the economy too.
'There is no substitute for hearing music live,' says Stephen Hough, who is one of the busiest artists on the international circuit. 'This may only be a poking of a head above the parapet for now, but it's a clear sign that we're back.'
BBC Radio 3 lunchtime recitals are daily, Monday to Friday, at 1pm. Click here for more details
Although there is no audience present, throughout June Wigmore Hall concerts are being broadcast live and daily on BBC Radio 3, where the venue's live Monday lunch-time recitals were a much-respected fixture until lockdown. So significant is the move, radio stations across Europe are also relaying the breakthrough concerts.
In Week Two, these artists are appearing: Steven Isserlis (cello) and Mishka Rushdie Momen (Mon 8 June) playing Beethoven, Schumann and Fauré. They are followed by Hyeyoon Park (violin) and Benjamin Grosvenor (piano) in Szymanowski and Franck (Tues 9 June).
On Wed 10 June, Paul Lewis plays work for piano by Beethoven by Schubert.. Mpzart, Messiaen and Poulence are among the composers whose works are played by Adam Walker (flute) and James Baillieu (piano) on Thurs 11 June.
Week Two ends with baritone Roderick Williams and Joseph Middleton (piano) performing Clara Schumann, Robert Schumann, Schubert and Brahms (Fri 12 June).
Baritone Roderick Williams performs live on Friday 12 June
Concerts are introduced by a BBC presenter in the hall, whose job it will be to re-create something of the expectant atmosphere of the live concert. Fans of Wigmore Hall will readily picture the music-inspired mosaic that dominates the stage loved by world-class artists.
So many international concert artists make their home in London, that organisers are expecting several to walk or cycle to the gig.
'When we shut the hall on 16 March we made sure to leave the piano on the stage, and the camera and audio equipment – all of which can be operated remotely – in one place,' explains Wigmore Hall artistic director John Gilhooly.
The semi-circular stage's two doors will come in handy – artists working together will be able to make separate entrances.
The season concludes on Friday 26 June with a performance of Schubert's soul-searching journey in song, Die Winterreise, performed by tenor Mark Padmore and pianist Mitsuko Uchida.
Chamber music is the likely way forward for live music-making in London in the early stages of easing the lockdown, while reassembling whole orchestras and opera companies looks to be some months off.
Wigmore Hall, with its music-themed mosaic, is the capital's leading chamber music venue. Photo: Kaupo Kikkas
The arts, he pointed out in a BBC interview, are worth £8.5bn annually to the UK. This is not only a glimmer of hope music-lovers, but for the economy too.
'There is no substitute for hearing music live,' says Stephen Hough, who is one of the busiest artists on the international circuit. 'This may only be a poking of a head above the parapet for now, but it's a clear sign that we're back.'
BBC Radio 3 lunchtime recitals are daily, Monday to Friday, at 1pm. Click here for more details
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| What | Live concerts resume at Wigmore Hall |
| Where | Wigmore Hall, 36 Wigmore Street, London, W1U 2BP | MAP |
| When |
01 Jun 20 – 26 Jun 20, 20 live concerts, on BBC Radio 3, online and on YouTube |
| Price | £0 |
| Website | Click here for more information |