Further Concerts Dates

Concert – Saturday 28th June 2025, 7.30pm at Roding Valley High School

For our summer 2025 concert we celebrating some of the classics.. but with a twist. We are delighted to be joined by Oboist Emily Stephens who will play the Reitz Oboe Concerto.

Mendelssohn – The Hebrides (overture)

This piece came about during Mendelssohn’s first tour of England in 1829. As part of it, he travelled to Scotland and to the Hebridean Island of Staffa, in order to visit Fingals Cave. According to legend as soon as he saw the island he began to jot down the opening theme.

The work was completed on 16 December 1830 and was originally entitled Die einsame Insel (The Lonely Island).

Haydn – Symphony No. 99

This is one of Haydn’s 12 London Symphonies and was composed in Vienna in 1793 in anticipation of his second trip to London.

It was originally performed in Feb 1794 in Hannover Square Rooms as part of a concert series organised by his friend Johann Peter Salomon.

One interesting fact is that it was the first time that Haydn used clarinets in one of his symphonies.. possibly because of his friend Mozart’s influence.

Reitz – Oboe Concerto

August Wilhelm Julius Rietz (28 December 1812 – 12 September 1877) was a 19th Century German Cellist, Conductor and Composer. He also edited a number of Mendelssohn’s works.

While influenced by Mendelssohn, he was opposed to the radical ideas of composers of his time like Liszt and Wagner and preferred the more classical approach to composition. This is why he is possibly less well known than his other German counterparts of the time.

Among his works are the operas, three symphonies, several overtures to plays, flute sonatas, violin sonatas, motets, masses, psalms, and a quantity of other church music, as well as the Oboe Concerto

Future Concert Dates

Program yet to be decided.

String Workshops – 2025

We have posted new dates for the string workshops for 2025. Make sure they are marked in your diary.

See our string workshop page or contact Rosemary Fitchett leader@wsorchestra.org.uk .