Attract and Resist

From the charged intimacy of tango to Poulenc’s joyous orchestral dance, this concert performed by Chromatica Orchestra and their Principal Conductor Oliver Cope, is music in motion.

Last Round, Osvaldo Golijov’s tribute to Argentine tango master Astor Piazzolla, transforms the physical push and pull of the bandoneon concertina into music. The first movement compresses; the second opens with a sigh, expanding and contracting like the instrument itself. On stage, two groups of musicians face each other, their bows crossing but never clashing, just like the legs of the dancers. The accordion, too, is built on movement: expanding and contracting, drawing breath and pushing sound into the world.

In Daniel Soley’s Accordion Concerto, written for the “immense virtuosity and musicality” of soloist Ryan Corbett, its distinctive voice takes centre stage in a vivid conversation with the orchestra, revealing moments of intimacy, brilliance and exhilarating emotional intensity.

Poulenc’s Sinfonietta brings the evening to a joyous close. Full of dance rhythms, folksy tunes and Parisian wit, it moves effortlessly between elegance and mischief, tenderness and full-throttle exuberance — a playful, unpredictable finale that will send you out into the night with a smile.