Bristol Beacon Winter 2025 Concert Series: Online Concert Programme | 24 Nov - 30 Nov

Bristol Beacon presents 

Bristol Youth Orchestra Winter Concert

Welcome

Orchestras shouldn’t need to specifically celebrate female composers, as it should be commonplace for there to be balanced representation. Yet Western classical music still has far to go in addressing this historical imbalance. Professional ensembles, often constrained by audience expectations and financial pressures, tend to return to well-known mainstream repertoire. Youth and community orchestras, however, are increasingly able to lead the way in exploring and championing underrepresented voices. We are proud to play our part in this movement. The history of Western classical music has overlooked a vast number of remarkable composers, and there is an extraordinary wealth of music still waiting to be discovered. We hope that the works you hear tonight speak for themselves; not as novelties, but as compelling pieces of artistic value. 

This programme has offered Bristol Youth Orchestra both variety and challenge: the rhythmic drive and bold textures of Anna Clyne’s Restless Oceans; the vivid colour and imaginative scoring of Sophie Winfield’s The Viaduct of Èze; and the sweeping lyricism of Elfrida Andrée’s Second Symphony. 

Although this concert highlights music by women, it also proudly features Krommer’s Double Clarinet Concerto and celebrates two outstanding young men who have greatly enriched the orchestra. We are delighted to showcase them in their final year. 

Finally, we extend our sincere thanks to the University of Bristol Music Department for their ongoing support in broadening the concert repertoire, for providing the magnificent Victoria Rooms as our venue tonight, and for the dedication of individual staff who make performances like this possible. We look forward to continuing our partnership and to the creative collaborations ahead. 

Tim Harrison
Ensembles Creative Lead & Conductor of Bristol Youth Orchestra

Thank you

Thank you to all the tutors and staff who work with our ensembles for their hard work and dedication; Tim Harrison, Esther Clifford, Edwina Wong & Cara Bailey, Aladar Salavics, Cathy Stewart, Mari Carmen Garzas Garcia-Pliego, Martin Rogers, Alison Welch, Lynne McCabe, Aladar Salasovics, Katie Whitfield, Rebecca Flynn, Anna Richardson, Claire Rammelkamp & James Harrison

BYO will return to rehearsals in January.

Anna Clyne (b.1980): Restless Oceans (4’)
Anna Clyne is a Grammy-nominated composer known for her vivid, imaginative works that often blend acoustic and electronic sound worlds. She frequently draws inspiration from literature, visual art, and personal stories.

Restless Oceans was composed for Marin Alsop and the Taki Concordia Orchestra, who gave the world premiere at the Opening Ceremony of the 2019 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, where Alsop received the Forum’s prestigious Crystal Award for her advocacy of diversity in music. Drawing its title and inspiration from Audre Lorde’s poem A Woman Speaks, the work was written specifically with this all-women orchestra in mind. The performers are called not only to play their instruments but also to use their voices, through song, bold vocalisations, and rhythmic stomping, culminating in a powerful moment of collective unity. Conceived as a defiant and empowering statement, Restless Oceans celebrates the strength, resilience, and shared force of women. 

N.B. The audienceare invited to join in this melody to ‘ah’:

Alice Gomez & Marilyn Rife (b.1960 & b.1955): Mambo Senior Percussion Ensemble, (4’)
American composer-performers Alice Gomez and Marilyn Rife have made significant contributions to the percussion ensemble repertoire, drawing especially on Afro-Cuban and other global musical traditions.

Mambo captures the infectious rhythmic vitality of Latin dance music with its interlocking grooves, bright timbres, and crisp syncopation. Enjoy the dance-like energy!

František Kramář (1759-1831): Concerto for Two Clarinets, Allegro (First Movement) (10’)

Soloists: Stefan Flynn & Zachary Ho

Bohemian born Kramář, better known by the German version of his name Franz Krommer, was a prolific Classical composer. His music rivals Haydn and Mozart in charm and wit. He wrote extensively for the clarinet and is mostly known for his clarinet concertos. 

This opening movement sparkles with lively dialogue between the two soloists, showcasing their agility, lyricism, and virtuosity.

Sophie Winfield (b. 2001): The Viaduct of Èze; Premiere (7’)
Sophie Winfield is a Bristol based composer, orchestrator, teacher and performer. Her varied work takes her across the UK including to prestigious venues such as Abbey Road Studios. Sophie completed her BA and MA in Music with a composition specialism at the University of Bristol. Her compositional passion centres on orchestral and wind repertoire.

Commissioned especially for tonight’s performance, The Viaduct of Èze (or “Devil’s Bridge”) draws inspiration from the dramatic landscape of the French Riviera and the architectural grandeur of the viaduct itself. Local folklore tells the story of a shepherd who sought a quick way across a perilous ravine. The Devil appeared and offered to build a viaduct overnight in exchange for the soul of the first living creature to cross it. When the Devil finished the bridge, the clever shepherd outwitted him by throwing a stick. His dog, chasing the stick, became the first creature to cross, and thus the Devil was left with only a dog’s soul, and the shepherd and his flock were safe. 

Interval
 

Elizabeth Purnell (b. 1968): Fanfare (3’)
Originally from London and now based in Bristol, Elizabeth Purnell is a composer, arranger, and sound designer whose work spans film, theatre, TV, and radio, including collaborations on BAFTA, Emmy, and Oscar-winning scores. 

A concise but powerful opening to the second half, Purnell’s Fanfare celebrates Bristol.
 

Elfrida Andrée (1841–1929): Symphony No. 2 in A minor — UK Premiere (30’)
i. Moderato; Allegro agitato; ii. Andante; iii. Scherzo; Presto; iv. Allegro risoluto

Elfrida Andrée was a pioneering Swedish composer, organist, and conductor, one of the first women in Europe to hold a professional cathedral organist post. Before her musical career, she trained as a telegraph operator, an unusual profession for women at the time, demonstrating early independence and intellect. She famously refused to marry, choosing instead to devote herself fully to her career. 

Spending most of her professional life in Gothenburg, Andrée composed two symphonies, an opera, chamber and choral works, and numerous organ and piano pieces, while also conducting performances of her own and others’ music. Deeply committed to women’s rights, she campaigned for gender equality in education and the arts, using her visibility to open doors for future generations. Her second symphony (1890) is unlikely to have been heard in the UK until tonight. The piece reflects Andrée’s typical lyrical warmth, expansive melodies, and the Romantic grandeur of Schumann, offering a window into the voice of a composer long overlooked. The first allegro opens with sweeping drama, followed by a deeply lyrical melancholic andante, while the scherzo dances with rhythmic energy until the finale brings a triumphant sense of resolution. Andrée required much resolve in her own career and the finale’s tempo marking seems apt; allegro ‘risoluto’. 

Our thanks go to Swedish academic, Henrik Torolphi, for enabling us to perform from this new edition.

[TH] 

Zachary Ho (Clarinet) 
Zachary began playing the clarinet at the age of six and has explored a wide range of musical genres in recent years. He is a member of his school’s jazz collective and enjoys classical chamber music with Bristol Pre-Conservatoire. Last summer he performed in the pit orchestra for an outdoor production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel with the National Youth Musical Theatre. Zachary is auditioning for conservatoires to continue his musical studies and is grateful to his family for their support. 

Stefan Flynn (Clarinet) 
Stefan has been studying the clarinet for ten years under David Dodd and Mari Carmen Garzás García-Pliego, achieving a distinction in Grade 8 last year. Since joining the Youth Orchestra two years ago, he has also taken up the bass clarinet, which he performs this evening. Stefan studies maths, further maths, and physics at St Mary Redcliffe School and has applied to study Aerospace Engineering at university. When he’s not playing or studying, he can be found on a rugby pitch, climbing wall, or watching Formula One. 

Bristol Beacon presents 

Senior Ensembles Winter Concert

Welcome

Welcome to this evening’s performance featuring musicians from our Chamber Orchestra, Concert Band and Bridge Orchestra. We’re pleased to be returning to Trinity Academy’s wonderful Concert Hall to showcase what our ensembles have been working on this term.

Ed Ashby
Senior Ensembles Coordinator, Bristol Beacon

Thank you

Thank you to all the tutors and staff who work with our senior ensembles for their hard work and dedication; Lynne McCabe, Vince Ford, Adrian Morton, Carole Fletcher, Alison Welch, James Gow, David Knight, Laura Wilson, Andy Hague, Katie Whitfield, Claire Rammelkamp. 

Senior Ensembles will return to rehearsals in January.