Autumn Concert with the Faroese Symphony Orchestra

Where: Høllin
Duration: 90 min (incl. break)

For the first time ever, a Faroese female composer has written a piece for symphony orchestra. In 2022, orchestra director Hans Petur í Brekkunum contacted composer Unn Paturson and asked if she would be interested in trying something she had never done before—namely, composing a work for symphony orchestra. Unn accepted the challenge, and she has been working on the piece for the past three years. She has received guidance from Li Ying, a composer based in Copenhagen with roots in Taiwan. The newly composed piece, titled “The Evaluation Process”, will have its world premiere at the autumn concert.

CONCERT PROGRAMME

The Magic Flute – Overture 
The Magic Flute was the last opera composed by Mozart (1756–1791), written only a few months before he died at the age of 35. The solemn and the popular go hand in hand in The Magic Flute. Mozart completed the short overture just two days before the premiere on 30 September 1791 at the Theater auf der Wieden in Austria. The story is well known and centres around two lovers who must pass through fire and water before they can finally be together.

The Evaluation Process 
Unn Paturson (b. 1974) has composed music for many years, mostly for choir, but also individual pieces for instruments and ensembles. In 2022, she was nominated for the Nordic Council Music Prize for her work 1902, performed by the vocal group Kata, in which she also sings and conducts. The Evaluation Process is a symphonic work in seven continuous movements. It is a musical attempt to depict certain emotions and mental states during a turbulent period in life. The movements are titled: Terminal I, Ships in the Fog I, Weight, Ships in the Fog II, Sircus!, Yellow Rubber Boots, Splashing in Puddles, and Terminal II.

The Italian
In 1832, the Royal Philharmonic Society in London honoured the young German composer Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809–1847) by commissioning several works from him. One of the works he wrote at that time was his 4th Symphony, also known as “The Italian”. The symphony is based on experiences from Mendelssohn’s travels in Italy in 1830 and 1831. It premiered in 1833, with Mendelssohn himself conducting the orchestra. Although the piece was not well received at first, “The Italian” has since become a staple among the great classical masterpieces.

Conductor: Bernharður Wilkinson (FO/UK)