The incredible delicacy and diverse sound palettes of Mozart, Mendelssohn and Tchaikovsky will come alive at Siri Fort Auditorium on Tuesday and Wednesday evening as the prestigious BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (SSO) brings 76 of its finest musicians, with their fiddles, flutes, cellos and clarinets, to Delhi. The performances will articulate the “exchange of notes between India and Scotland” ahead of the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow in 2014. Presented by Delhi-based cultural organisation Seher, The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and The British Council in the Capital, the orchestra, who has been active since 1935, is one of the largest to tour India. “2014 has given us the perfect opportunity to celebrate two very different but very similar cultures in terms of music. I’m hoping to share our love and excitement about this music in a modest way. You will see a variety of music being played. This one will be a fun, really high energy interactive spectacle,” says Gavin Reid, Director of the BBC SSO. The highlight of the performance will be world-class violinist Nicola Benedetti, who will be collaborating with the orchestra for this tour and conductor James MacMillan, whose percussion-based concertos have garnered much appreciation in the past. “The range of styles that BBC Symphony orchestra plays every day, week, or month back in the UK is very wide,” says Reid. What they will perform here, however, is only a snapshot of their repertoire. The first concert, to be held today, is only for students. Out of the 3,600 students who are likely to attend, 1,500 will be from NDMC schools. Music education expert Paul Rissman will conduct workshops for these students before the performance. “I think it would be a fantastic opportunity for the local students, and they would take away passion and excitement that we all have for music. Many will be listening to and watching a full orchestra in full glory for the first time,” says Sanjeev Bhargav, Director, Seher. The concert will open with German composer Felix Mendelssohn’s piece titled The Hebrides followed by Mozart’s famous Violin Concerto No 5. There will be a presentation of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No 4 which is popular for its offbeat structure. The orchestra is also likely to collaborate with Indian artistes. While most Indians may be familiar with the oral legacy of Indian classical music where a performer plays from memory and improvises along the way, they might find western classical music, which is more stringent with every syllable written, more complex. But Reid isn’t very concerned. “In the past few years that I’ve travelled to India, I’ve met many people who are passionate about orchestra music and make an effort to understand it. There are only seven notes after all and if the music is good, which it will be, since these are highly skilled creative artistes, it will reach people irrespective of the repertoire,” says Reid. He travelled extensively over the past year to scrutinise concert halls and logistics before choosing the venue. Their last stop of the three-city tour (they were in Chennai on Saturday) is Mumbai on April 6 where they will perform at National Centre for the Performing Arts. The two-hour concert begins at 7 pm at Siri Fort auditorium on Wednesday. Passes are available at Seher, C-64, III Floor, Nizamuddin East. Contact: 41628600
