Benjamin Grosvenor closes Philharmonia’s 80th season and tours the UK with Aurora Orchestra

Last week saw Benjamin join forces with Santtu-Matias Rouvali and the Philharmonia Orchestra to bring their 80th season to a close with celebratory concerts in Leicester, Basingstoke and London’s Royal Festival Hall. The London concert also formed part of the Southbank Centre’s own 75th anniversary celebrations.

He performed R. Strauss’ Burleske as part of a recreation of a programme originally conducted by the composer himself in a 1947 concert at the Royal Albert Hall. Of the performance, Bachtrack noted:

"Benjamin Grosvenor made light work of this formidable task, bringing it such well-defined colour and character, and such a fine range of expressive shades... He infused passagework with panache and humour, finishing runs as if with a freshly curled ribbon; the shining legato of the ‘big tune’ central section and the clarity and perspective of his textures were still more of a delight. His encore, a transcription of Strauss’ song Morgen, maintained that luminosity; time seemed to stand still."

Benjamin follows the London performance with a tour of the UK with the Aurora Orchestra and Nicholas Collon which kicks off on 18 June and culminates in a performance at the Cheltenham Festival on 3 July. He joins the orchestra for Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No.1, which he performed earlier in the season both for his debut with the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra and with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra stepping-in for Seong-Jin Cho.