Santtu Conducts French masterpieces
Three French composers – Debussy, Franck and Saint-Saëns – rub shoulders in this captivating Sunday afternoon Philharmonia Orchestra concert.
Debussy’s sensuous Rhapsody for clarinet and orchestra is an opportunity to savour the skill of Mark van de Wiel, Principal Clarinet of the Philharmonia Orchestra since 2000.
Then Javier Perianes, a soloist known equally for his brilliant technique and for his grace and ease on the concert platform, joins the orchestra in Saint-Saëns’ final piano concerto.
Saint-Saëns loved to escape the Paris winter, and wrote this beguiling piece on holiday in Luxor. A Nile boatman’s song is threaded through the concerto’s second movement, and the influence of Javanese and Spanish music can be heard too.
But it’s Saint-Saëns’ own masterly writing for both soloist and orchestra that makes this hugely enjoyable piece worthy of a place among the greats of the piano concerto repertoire.
Franck’s Symphony in D minor was ubiquitous all over Europe and the US for many decades, as popular as symphonies by Beethoven or Tchaikovsky.
It’s less frequently programmed now, but its layers of orchestral sound, the way its themes reappear transformed throughout its three movements, and the lovely cor anglais melody over harp and pizzicato (plucked) strings at its heart, make for a rewarding listen.
Performers
Philharmonia Orchestra
Santtu-Matias Rouvali conductor
Javier Perianes piano
Mark van de Wiel clarinet
Repertoire
Debussy: Première rhapsodie for clarinet & orchestra
Saint-Saëns: Piano Concerto No.5 (Egyptian)
Interval
Franck: Symphony in D minor
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.