RNCM Symphony Orchestra with Clark Rundell at RNCM

Johnny James, Managing Editor
RNCM Symphony Orchestra

RNCM Symphony Orchestra with Clark Rundell at Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), Manchester 19 March 2022 Tickets from £15.00 — Book now

Part of the RNCM Spring Season, the College presents a programme of works by its composition tutors alongside leading contemporary composers, brought to life by the RNCM Symphony Orchestra.

One of the programme’s highlights is Gary Carpenter’s BBC commission Dadaville (2015), inspired by Max Ernst’s 1924 artwork of the same name, which the composer encountered by chance at Tate Liverpool. “It looked like a painting”, Carpenter says about Ernst’s work, “but is actually a sculpture of a seemingly impenetrable iron wall that is in fact made of a cork so fragile that it is kept behind glass for fear it might crumble if touched”. Carpenter’s piece imagines what’s behind this strange barricade. Featuring plenty of symbolic significance, it includes extensive percussion as it journeys from spiky modernity via ethereal dreamscapes to dazzling funk – a real showpiece for the RNCM Symphony Orchestra.

Next, we’ll then hear Emily Howard’s Magnetite (2007), the professor’s first major orchestral commission for the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Magnetite is the most magnetic of all naturally occurring minerals found on Earth, and for many years after its discovery, it was surrounded in myth and superstitious beliefs concerning its magical powers. Howard describes her piece as “a journey deep inside one of these crystals”, inspired not only by its physical properties but also its supposed metaphysical ones.

Two works by leading contemporary composers complete the programme. First it’s Steve Reich’s Music for Ensemble and Orchestra (2018), an extension of the Baroque concerto grosso form which calls for more than one soloist. Here there are 20 soloists, including two vibraphones and two pianos. Conceived in five movements, the work’s large-scale design is characteristically tethered to small-scale processes, with members of the ensemble echoing, chasing and overlapping one another as they exchange fragments of the melodic material. The tempo never changes, but the speed varies from movement to movement via different note values, while the constant exchange of instrumentation brings to the piece a kaleidoscope of colours.

Finally we have a wonderful work by Louis Andriessen, considered the most influential Dutch composers of his generation. Arranged and conducted by Professor of Conducting, Clark Rundell, Rosa’s Horses is a 25-minute suite, best described by Rundell himself: “From the first bar of wildly chasing canons led by the saxophones, the piece hurtles through music which evokes the sound world of a pastiche Spaghetti Western, full of energy, wit and irony. However, these helter skelter moments remain carefully balanced with moments of utter beauty, even timeless suspension”.

This concert, which takes place on Sunday 19 March, promises to be a highlight of the RNCM Spring Season, and a rich showcase of the talent of both students and tutors at the College.

RNCM Symphony Orchestra with Clark Rundell at Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), Manchester 19 March 2022 Tickets from £15.00 Book now

Male with beard and glasses sitting on chair with leather jacket
MusicManchester
Jonathan Biss (piano) at RNCM

Known for bridging Classical masterpieces with contemporary repertoire, Jonathan Biss performs Schubert sonatas and a specially commissioned piece by Tyshawn Sorey.

from £14.00
Singers on stage with blue lighting
MusicManchester
RNCM Gospel Choir at RNCM

Following last season’s sold-out performance, the RNCM Gospel Choir and director Wayne Ellington take to the stage again this spring.

from £11.00
Two dancers and orchestra on stage
Until
DanceManchester
Dance:Music at the RNCM

Through a treasure trove of concerts, the RNCM’s initiative Dance:Music explores the symbiotic relationship between music and dance.

from £0.00

Where to go near RNCM Symphony Orchestra with Clark Rundell at RNCM

Manchester
Restaurant
San Carlo Fumo

San Carlo Fumo may be part of a chain, but it doesn’t feel like it. Right at the top of Oxford Road, it’s lavishly decorated and specialises in cicchetti, or Italian small plates.

Utility Gift Shop
Manchester
Shop
Utility Gift Shop

Utility Gift Shop on Oxford Road is all about products that are new, unique, quirky and cool. High street shopping at its best.

exterior of Contact Theatre building
Manchester
Theatre
Contact Theatre

Following a major redevelopment, the iconic venue on Oxford Road will be reopening its doors to welcome the public back into the building this autumn. 

The Salutation pub in Manchester
Manchester
Bar or Pub
The Salutation

This traditional boozer, surrounded by imposing flats and university buildings, was taken over by Trof (of the Deaf Institute fame). The Sally, as the regulars call it, hosts an energetic, arty crowd – and its recently expanded outside area is another good reason to visit.

Manchester
University
MMU Student Union

Manchester Metropolitan University Students’ Union building houses a bar and various other facilities for students and staff.

Manchester
Music venue
The Deaf Institute

The Deaf Institute is a vibrant gig venue and nightclub for which it is well worth taking a jaunt out of the Northern Quarter.

What's on: Music

A black woman sat down looking to the left.
Until
MusicLeeds
Sound Out Leeds 2024/25

Leeds International Concert Season is on a mission to push boundaries, expand horizons, and ask the question: ‘What haven’t we heard?’ as it presents its city-spanning Sound Out Leeds series.

from £10.00
Two dancers and orchestra on stage
Until
DanceManchester
Dance:Music at the RNCM

Through a treasure trove of concerts, the RNCM’s initiative Dance:Music explores the symbiotic relationship between music and dance.

from £0.00

Culture Guides

NEXT: A Primer on Urban Painting production still
Cinema in the North

Street art, LGBTQ+ History Month, and the first film festivals of the year are amongst our cinema highlights this month.

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in the North

Feminist farce, a magical circus show and Oldham Coliseum return with a brand-new off-site show. All in our latest theatre guide.

FKA TWIGS
Music in the North

Masters of minimalism, leftfield electronica and cutting edge pop. We bring you the lot in our latest live music round up.

The Super Duper Family Festival
Family things to do in the North

We might be past the holiday season, but Manchester and the North's arts and cultural calendar is still packed with brilliant events and activities for families

A painting of a young child being bathed in a sink of a 197s style kitchen. Around the sink are a rubber duck, a bottle of  washing up liquid, a jug, a kettle and a mug.
Exhibitions in the North

Galleries are racing to announce new exhibitions so check out our top picks, from art films and nostalgic paintings to Hockney's collages.