Diary Detail
October 2018
15 Wednesday

Simon Narrates Berlioz programme at Carnegie Hall

Simon will be narrating an all Berlioz programme of Symphonie fantastique and Lélio played by Orchestre Révolutionnaire et Romantique.

Obsession, madness, murder, and redemption are portrayed in the richly Romantic music—performed on period instruments—of Berlioz. His Symphonie fantastique is a phantasmagoric tale that depicts an opium overdose, nightmares of murder, a guillotine execution, and a terrifying Witches’ Sabbath. Berlioz called his rarely heard Lélio a “conclusion and complement” to the Symphonie fantastiqueLélio uses spoken narration, vocal soloists, chorus, and orchestra—including two pianists performing on one instrument—to tell of the Symphonie hero’s awaking from the nightmare, his musings on art and criticism, and his ultimate triumph as a composer.

8pm on Monday 15th October 2018

Carnegie Hall, New York

Read more here

© Simon Callow 2013-25