Howard Blake and Members Of The Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra

Brighton Unitarian Church, New Road, Sunday, June 21

COULD there be a better way to end a summer’s afternoon in Brighton than listening to wonderful music performed by some of the country’s finest musicians?

It will soon be time for the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra’s Sunday Chamber Music Series, which this year features works by Haydn and Schubert as well as music by composers who have special links with Brighton.

In the opening concert this Sunday, composer Howard Blake (he of music for The Snowman fame) will join members of the orchestra in some of his highly engaging and colourful music for piano and strings.

Blake grew up and went to school in Brighton; Frank Bridge was born here. Bridge’s Miniatures for Piano Trio never fails to delight, and will be the opening work in the second concert of the series. A Partita for Piano Quartet by Hove-born Peter Copley and a String Quartet by Sussex University-educated Barry Mills are just some of the other musical highlights in store.

Works by contemporary composers are interspersed with those of two giants of the Classical period. Schubert’s single-movement Quartetsatz is one of his most significant chamber music compositions, its hectic dramatic power reaching almost Wagnerian intensity.

Three string quartets by Haydn, each with its own distinctive character and name are also featured. The melody that soars to heavenly heights at the start of the Lark Quartet establishes the lyrical mood for one of his most inspired creations, while in the slow movement of the Emperor Quartet the familiar theme of the Austrian national anthem provides the starting point for four highly inventive variations.

The ‘bouncy’ finale theme of the most famous of Haydn’s six Op. 74 quartets gave rise to its nickname The Rider, the final work in what promises to be an unmissable series.

Peter Back

Starts 5pm, tickets £15. Call 01273 709709.