Page 142 - Media Coverage Book - 75th Aldeburgh Festival 2024

25 March 2024

Aldeburgh Festival at 75: Blond Eckbert and Curlew River, plus Unsuk Chin,
Judith Weir, Alban Gerhardt and Daniel Pioro as featured artists
Labels: Aldeburgh, preview

The 75th Aldeburgh Festival opens on 7 June and runs until 23 June 2024. The festival
features stagings of Judith Weir's Blond Eckbert and Britten's Curlew River, and the
festival's featured musicians are composers Judith Weir and Unsuk Chin, violinist Daniel
Pioro and cellist Alban Gerhardt.

Judith Weir's Blond Eckbert is being staged as a co-production between Britten Pears Arts and
English Touring Opera, and the work is directed by Robin Norton-Hale, conducted by Gerry Cornelius
with a cast that includes Simon Wallfisch and Aoife Miskelly. Ryan Wigglesworth will conduct the
Knussen Chamber Orchestra in the premiere of Weir's The Planet and Wigglesworth also conducts
the BBC Symphony Orchestra in Weir's Forest. Soprano Claire Booth performs Weir's solo
opera, King Harald's Saga whilst the BBC Singers perform Blue Remembered Hill. The Leonkoro
Quartet premiere Weir's second string quartet, The Spaniard, and there are performances of more of
Weir's music from pianists Stephen Osborne and Rolf Hind, Trio Boheme, the Nash Ensemble,
Aldeburgh Voices and Tenebrae.

Pianists Joseph Havlat and Rolf Hind will be sharing performance of Unsuk Chin's complete Preludes,
whilst Tenebrae premiere Chin's new 40-part motet to go with Tallis' Spem in Alium for performance in
Ely Cathedral. The Royal Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra, conductor Roderick Cox, premiere
Chin's Alaraph.

Cellist Alban Gerhardt will be performing Unsuk Chin's Cello Concerto, a work written for him, with
Ryan Wigglesworth and the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. Gerhardt is also the soloist in
Elgar's Cello Concerto with Edward Gardner and the London Philharmonic Orchestra. He joins forces
with soprano Claire Booth and pianist Joseph Havlat for Thomas Larcher's My illness is the medicine I
need, based on extracts from interviews with patients of mental-health facilities, and Splinters. Then
Gerhardt and pianist Steven Osborne recreate the June 1961 recital by Britten and Rostropovich
which saw the world premiere of Britten’s Cello Sonata, along with classic works by Schubert,
Schumann and Debussy. Gerhardt will be pairing Bach and Britten with their solo cello suites.