Cambridge Philharmonic

Sat 20 May 2017

West Road Concert Hall

Adès America: A Prophecy
Adams On the Transmigration of Souls
Ives Symphony No. 2

Commissioned in 1999 by the New York Philharmonic to write a work for the new millennium, Thomas Adès found inspiration in the music and events of 500 years earlier , notably the Mayan people and their fate at the hands of the Spanish conquistadores.

John Adams’s work of two years later was commissioned by the same orchestra but under very different circumstances. Using recorded testimony from people affected by the events of 9/11, Adams weaves their voices into his profoundly moving and beautiful choral work.

Both Adès and Adams have acknowledged the influence of the great American master, Charles Ives, whose Second Symphony was belatedly premiered and championed by Leonard Bernstein. Masterfully combining everything from Beethoven’s Fifth to America the Beautiful into a joyous and triumphant whole, Ives takes the listener on an extraordinary journey through a broad musical landscape.

Cost: £12, £16, £20 and £25 (Students and under-18s £10 on the door)