London Mozart Players

Ruth Rogers leader

Jonathan Bloxham conductor

Sheku Kanneh-Mason cello

James Mayhew artist

Star soloist Sheku Kanneh-Mason returns to Fairfield Halls with the London Mozart Players in February 2022, presenting a Fresh Take on Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 2.

LMP’s Fresh Takes is a brand-new concert series which includes an engaging introduction by the performers at the start of the concert. The composer’s influences will be revealed, musical excerpts will be performed by the orchestra, while manuscripts, portraits and more will be projected on an overhead screen in a unique presentation which will enhance the appreciation and emotional impact of the work’s performance.

In the first concert, superstar cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason performs Shostakovich’s second cello concerto. Interweaving brooding melodies with animated themes, and featuring a virtuosic cadenza, it’s a dramatic work that makes demands on soloist, conductor and orchestra. Sheku will share his own insights into the challenges of this work on stage with conductor Jonathan Bloxham ahead of a full performance. Don’t miss this opportunity to find out more about, and then hear, a rarely performed work, played by one of the UK’s finest musicians.

Mussorgsky’s iconic suite of ten short movements Pictures at an Exhibition is an evergreen favourite. Acclaimed artist James Mayhew will be on hand to paint along to the music, with his artwork inspired by Mussorgsky’s dramatic melodies projected on the overhead screens in Fairfield’s iconic concert hall.

This all-Russian programme will open with Glinka’s exuberant overture to his opera Ruslan and Lyudmila.

Glinka Overture Ruslan and Lyudmila

Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 2 in G major, Op. 126

MussorgskyPictures at an Exhibition

Rather than putting every seat on sale from the outset, we will be releasing seats in the auditorium in stages. This allows us to fill from the front to the back, ultimately creating a great live show atmosphere for both the audience and the performer. We will release more seats based on the demand of each performance, so if you can’t find the seats on-sale you want, keep checking back or try a new area of the auditorium.