John Gilhooly, Director of Wigmore Hall, announced that the Nash Ensemble - widely regarded as one of Europe's pre-eminent chamber ensembles - was to become the Hall's chamber ensemble in residence from September 2010.
John Gilhooly said:
"The Nash has built up a remarkable reputation as one of the finest and most adventurous of British ensembles, and through the dedication and vision of its Founder and Artistic Director Amelia Freedman, and the outstanding quality and commitment of its players, the Ensemble has gained a reputation worldwide. The residency at Wigmore Hall recognises our important relationship with the group in the past, and through the years ahead."
Amelia Freedman said:
"The Nash Ensemble's longstanding relationship with Wigmore Hall has been central to the group's success over the years. I am delighted that this relationship has been recognised with an official residency, at one of the most prestigious and beloved venues in the world, which has been for years our unofficial London home."
No group plays British music more memorably than the Nash. Their illuminating new series, Dreamers of Dreams, brings together masterworks such as Elgar's String Quartet and Piano Quintet, Vaughan Williams's On Wenlock Edge and Five Mystical Songs, and Britten's Les Illuminations and Serenade for tenor, horn and strings. Other unmissable delights include Peter Warlock's heart-rending The Curlew, Percy Grainger's unique folk-song arrangements, Finzi's masterpiece Dies Natalis, and Bliss's enchanting songs piquant with ensemble.
The series culminates with film and radio music scores by Britten and Walton, including Night Mail, The Way to the Sea and Henry V, performed in the company of leading actors.
September 22, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: piano, flute, clarinet, bassoon, harp, string quartet, double bass & percussion
6.00pm:
Bax: Elegiac Trio for flute, viola & harp (click here to listen to an extract)
Britten: Suite for harp
Bridge: works for string quartet
7.30pm:
Vaughan Williams: Phantasy String Quintet in D minor
Grainger: works for piano trio
Bliss: Rout, Madame Noy & Women of Yueh (click here to listen to an extract of Rout)
Quilter: Three Pastoral Songs for soprano & piano trio
Elgar: String Quartet in E minor Op.83
with Sally Matthews (soprano), Ian Brown (conductor)
October 27, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: tenor, piano & string quartet
7.30pm:
Britten: Three Divertimenti for string quartet
Bridge: Romanze, Cradle Song and Serenade for violin & piano
Warlock: Songs for tenor and string quartet
Elgar: La Capricieuse, Canto Popolare & Sospiri for violin & piano
Vaughan Williams: On Wenlock Edge
with John Mark Ainsley (tenor)
November 17, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: tenor, piano & string quartet
6.30pm
Bridge: Miniatures for piano trio
Britten: Temporal Variations for oboe & piano
Vaughan Williams: Six Studies on English Folksong for cello & piano
Ireland: Clarinet Sonata
7.30pm:
Britten: Simple Symphony Op.4
Bridge: Three Songs for voice, viola & piano
Vaughan Williams: 5 Mystical Songs
Alwyn: Pastoral Fantasia for viola & strings
Finzi: Dies Natalis Op.8
with Susan Gritton (soprano), Roderick Williams (baritone), Ian Brown (piano), Lawrence Power (viola), Paul Watkins (conductor)
November 18, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: 4 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos
11.30am:
Grainger: Molly on the Shore & Londonderry Air
Bridge: String Sextet
Mendelssohn: Octet in E flat, Op.20
December 4, Wigmore Hall
Instrumentation: tenor, piano & string quartet
7.30pm:
Britten: Les Illuminations Op.18
Britten: Lachrymae Op.48
Britten: Serenade Op.31 for tenor, horn & strings
with Sandrine Piau (soprano), John Mark Ainsley (tenor), Lawrence Power (viola), Richard Watkins (horn), Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
January 12, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: tenor, flute, oboe, piano & string quartet
6.30pm
Works by Vaughan Williams, Arnold, Finzi and Britten
7.30pm:
Bax: Oboe Quintet
Elgar: Salut d'amore, Chanson de matin & Chanson de nuit
Warlock: The Curlew
Walton: Anon in Love (click here to listen to an extract)
Vaughan Williams: String Quartet No.1 in G minor
with Mark Padmore (tenor), Craig Ogden (guitar)
February 23, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: tenor, piano & string quartet
7.30pm:
Bridge: Phantasy Piano Quartet in F sharp minor
Delius: Violin Sonata No.2
Finzi: By Footpath and Stile
Butterworth: Love blows as the Wind blows
Elgar: Piano Quintet in A minor, Op.84
with Christopher Maltman (baritone)
March 16, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: tenor, flute, oboe, piano & string quartet
3.00pm
Talk and film showings (The Night Mail and Henry V)
7.30pm:
Briten: Sinfonietta Op.1
Britten: Night Mail
Britten: The Way to the Sea
Britten: The Sword in the Stone (click here to listen to an extract)
Walton: Henry V - a musical scenario
with Martyn Brabbins (conductor)
March 17, Wigmore Hall
Dreamers of Dreams
Instrumentation: piano, clarinet, horn & string quartet
11.30am:
Vaughan Williams: Quintet in D for piano, clarinet, horn, violin & cello
Dvorak: Piano Quintet in A, Op.81
March 19, Wigmore Hall
Nash Inventions - David Matthews 70th Birthday Concert
Instrumentation: piano, flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, harp, string quartet & double bass
6.00pm:
Pre-concert event - Composers in Focus
7.30pm:
David Matthews: Clarinet Quartet
James Francis Brown: A Dream and a Dance (WP) * for flute, clarinet, harp & string quartet
Michael Berkeley: Three Rilke Sonnets
David Matthews: A Blackbird Sang (fl, vln, vla, vc) (WP) *
Julian Anderson: Prayer for solo viola
David Matthews: The Sleeping Lord
* Nash Commission
with Claire Booth (soprano), Lawrence Power (viola), Philippa Davies (flute), Richard Hosford (clarinet)