Santtu Conducts a Strauss Extravaganza
The Philharmonia Orchestra’s 80th birthday celebrations reach their grand finale – a recreation of a 1947 concert that was conducted by Richard Strauss himself.
Strauss was 83, and the Philharmonia just two years old, when he conducted the orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall in a concert of his own works.
Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali, an acclaimed interpreter of Strauss’ music, now steps into his formidable shoes to recreate that extraordinary occasion.
Don Juan gets the concert off to a swashbuckling start. A gorgeous oboe solo paints a sensuous love scene, before heroic horns herald the libertine’s final duel.
Next, top British pianist Benjamin Grosvenor brings his understated brilliance to Strauss’ Burleske. Strauss wrote this delightful work when he was just 21 – perhaps a sense of nostalgia led him to programme it again in his final concert.
The autobiographical Symphonia Domestica is a portrayal of Strauss’ home life with his wife and young child. It’s full of fun and affection (and the occasional squabble), but anything but domestic in scale, calling for an orchestra of around 100 players.
Its New York premiere was such a triumph that an entire floor of a Manhattan department store was cleared for two more performances, to a 6,000-strong audience.
Bringing the Philharmonia’s season to a graceful close is a set of waltzes from the opera Der Rosenkavalier – a delectable ending for this 80th birthday extravaganza.
Performers
Philharmonia Orchestra
Santtu-Matias Rouvali conductor
Benjamin Grosvenor piano
Repertoire
Strauss: Don Juan; Burleske in D minor for piano & orchestra
Interval
Strauss: Symphonia domestica; Waltz sequence No.1 from Der Rosenkavalier
Need to know
For your visit
This event is held at the Royal Festival Hall Southbank Centre
The Royal Festival Hall is open six days a week.
Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 11pm
Monday, closed.
Plan your visit
The Royal Festival Hall is home to our largest auditorium as well as The Clore Ballroom, National Poetry Library, Members’ Lounge, Festival Bar & Kitchen, Ballroom Cafe and Skylon restaurant.
Getting here
Our address is Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX.
The nearest tube stations to us are Waterloo and Embankment; Waterloo is also the nearest train station. And more than 20 different London bus routes pass within 500 metres of our venues. More information on getting here by rail, road or river is available on our Getting here page.
We’re cash-free
Please note that we’re unable to accept cash payments across our venues.
Access
We’re working hard to remove barriers, so that our facilities and events can be accessible to as many people as possible.
All help points, toilets, performance and exhibition spaces at the Southbank Centre are accessible to all, as are the cafes, bars and restaurants. We also have excellent public transport links with step-free access.
All information about booking wheelchair spaces, step-free access, blue badge parking, access maps and guides and other help available whilst you’re here, including details about our Access Scheme, can be found on our Access page.
Food & drink
On Level 2 of our Royal Festival Hall you can grab a slice of life by the Thames with drinks and freshly made pizza at our Festival Bar & Kitchen which opens out onto our Riverside Terrace. You can grab a coffee and a slice of freshly made cake from our Ballroom Cafe. Or alternatively enjoy destination dining in the restaurant at Skylon.
From coffee to cocktails, filling favourites to fine dining, plus some of London’s best street food – it’s all here at the Southbank Centre.