Symphonie fantastique

Two of Berlioz’s most popular works frame a performance by “the best trumpeter in the world” in this fiesta of a concert.   

Latin Grammy-winning trumpeter Pacho Flores brings the house down everywhere he plays. Tonight he joins fellow Venezuelan Rafael Payare to perform Altar de Bronce (Altar of Bronze), written for him by the Philharmonia’s Featured Composer Gabriela Ortiz. Its two movements, ‘Tin’ and ‘Copper’, are full of drama and invention, and the infectious rhythms of Mexian popular music. 

Berlioz summons up his version of carnival with timpani and tambourines rather than a full Latin percussion section. But he gives it just as much orchestral colour and energy, and adds a beautiful solo for the cor anglais.   

The parties continue with Symphonie fantastique – a glittering ball and a fearsome Witches’ Sabbath. In Berlioz’s musical autobiography, an infatuated young artist sees his beloved everywhere he turns. His opium-fuelled reveries soon turn to terrible nightmares, coming to a climax with the hero’s chilling vision of his own execution.