´óÏó´«Ã½

• 66 concerts and events across Scotland and in Europe
• The orchestra stars in a new four-part series for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two Scotland
• German composer and conductor Matthias Pintscher becomes the orchestra's first Artist-in-Association and Andrew Manze takes up post of Associate Guest Conductor
• Five world premieres from some of Scotland's leading composers, including James Dillon's epic Nine Rivers
• Special 75th anniversary broadcasts and concerts

In its 75th anniversary Year, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Scottish Symphony Orchestra (´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO) presents its widest ranging and most ambitious concert season to date.

The artistic leadership of Chief Conductor Donald Runnicles and Principal Guest Conductor Ilan Volkov is augmented with the addition of German composer and conductor Matthias Pintscher as the orchestra's first Artist-in-Association, and Andrew Manze officially takes up his post as Associate Guest Conductor.

The orchestra will present music at the core of the symphonic repertoire, with special projects devoted to religious music, music from Great Britain and works by the great romantics including Wagner and Brahms. It maintains its position as one of the premier contemporary music ensembles in the UK by presenting five new works by Scottish composers, including the world premiere of James Dillon's ambitious sequence Nine Rivers.

It will present 66 concerts and events across Scotland, in London and in Europe, including a tour to Germany and Austria, and performs with some of the world's leading soloists including violinists Midori and Janine Jansen and trumpeter HÃ¥kan Hardenberger.

It will present a series of 75th anniversary broadcasts and concerts and will star in a new four-part series for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two Scotland.

Director of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO, Gavin Reid, said: "Seventy-five years is a landmark anniversary for any artistic organisation, and this past year has been one of the most artistically momentous ones in the history of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Scottish Symphony Orchestra.

"The chemistry between the orchestra and chief conductor Donald Runnicles has set fresh artistic benchmarks and Ilan Volkov, now our Principal Guest Conductor, continues to bring his unique perspectives to familiar repertoire and new works.

"We are delighted that this special chemistry extends to the two newest additions to our musical family, Andrew Manze and Matthias Pintscher.

"Through our concerts and broadcasts, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO continues to bring great music and great performances into the homes of thousands of people across the world, and to mark our birthday celebrations we unveil to you a concert season that I think any orchestra in the world would be delighted to present and one that we that the orchestra's founder, Ian Whyte, would be proud of."

New Series for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two Scotland

The orchestra will star in a new four-part television series for ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two Scotland, Talking Music, looking at the work and lives of the professional musicians who make up one of the UK's leading orchestras. Each episode focuses on a different aspect of orchestral life:

Conductors: featuring Donald Runnicles, Ilan Volkov and Jessica Cottis (Conducting Fellow at the RSAMD and assistant to Donald Runnicles).

Soloists: soprano Lisa Milne, violinist Nicola Benedetti and Belle And Sebastian's Stuart Murdoch.

Composers: James MacMillan, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and Paul Leonard-Morgan.

´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO Players: violinists Amy Cardigan and Alice Rickards, principal trumpet Mark O'Keeffe and the orchestra's longest-serving member, cellist Anthony Sayer.

As well as being broadcast as four 30-minute programmes on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Two Scotland, the series will also be made into 12 10-minute films available online for teachers, students and music-lovers. The broadcast date is to be announced.

Augmented Artistic Team

Chief conductor Donald Runnicles and principal guest conductor Ilan Volkov are joined this season by two new team members, Associate Guest Conductor Andrew Manze and the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO's first Artist-in-Association, Matthias Pintscher.

Andrew Manze, one of the leading baroque musicians in the world, instantly clicked with the orchestra stating that the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO "plays music as I dream of hearing it". He will conduct, and present, several performances throughout the season.

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO's first Artist-in-Association is New York based composer and conductor Matthias Pintscher. One of the foremost of the new generation of composers, Pintscher has already worked extensively with some of the world's great orchestras including the New York and Berlin Philharmonics, conducting the great classics as well as his own superb compositions. The ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO will unveil some of his work at a special portrait concert on 15 May this year.

Glasgow City Halls

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO's flagship Thursday Night Series from its home at Glasgow City Halls comprises 15 concerts across four distinctive themes:

Romantics Unbound: Exploring the passion of the great 19th century composers, including Brahms and Wagner with a special concert performance of Act 1 of Wagner's Die Walküre.

This Sceptred Isle: Four programmes of British music, including both of Walton's symphonies and Britten's Piano Concerto, all broadcast live on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3.

Sacred and Profane: exploring the connection between a composer's spiritual life and their orchestral works, including Brahms's greatest work, the German Requiem, continuing the highly successful partnership between the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO and the Edinburgh Festival Chorus.

Flights of Inspiration: highlighting how composers as diverse as Tchaikovsky, Bartók, Debussy and Birtwistle have found inspiration in myriad ways from religious faith, to literature or the support of a patron.

An integral part of the Thursday Night Series are the pre- and post-concert Preludes and Codas; an opportunity to learn more about the music and musicians, or to enjoy a little extra music from soloists after the main programme.

Prelude speakers will include presenter of the Today programme James Naughtie in conversation with Donald Runnicles, composer Sally Beamish and Richard Holloway, former Bishop of Edinburgh and current Chair of the Scottish Arts Council.

Coda performances include pianists Ronald Brautigam and Steven Osborne, mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill, accompanied by Donald Runnicles, and cellist Lynn Harrell.

In addition to the Thursday Night Series are the popular series of Afternoon Performances and recordings for Radio 3's Discovering Music. Concerts in the Afternoon Performance series will feature exclusive performances from some of ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3's New Generation Artists.

Across Scotland

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ Scottish Symphony Orchestra will present a full season of six concerts at the Music Hall in Aberdeen, with Donald Runnicles opening and closing the season. The ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO continues its close association with the Edinburgh International Festival with three performances including the opening and closing concerts; John Adams' El Niño and Mahler's Symphony No.8. As well as its appearances at the Edinburgh Festival, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO and Donald Runnicles present three concerts in the Usher Hall, including a concert performance of Act 1 of Wagner's Die Walküre.

The orchestra will also perform in Inverness and Ayr, and again collaborates with Scotland's other orchestras to present the Scottish Orchestras Series at Perth Concert Hall. Details of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO's performances at the 2010 ´óÏó´«Ã½ Proms will be announced on 22 April.

Soloists and conductors

The orchestra presents a roster of exceptional guest talent throughout the season including violinists Janine Jansen and Daniel Hope, pianist Nelson Freire, cellist Lynn Harrell and arguably the world's leading trumpet soloist Håkan Hardenberger. One of last season's stars, soprano Heidi Melton, returns to sing the role of Sieglinde in Die Walküre, and two of Scotland's leading musical exports return – pianist Steven Osborne and mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill.

Violinist Nicola Benedetti's association with the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO goes back to her triumph in the 2004 ´óÏó´«Ã½ Young Musician of the Year, and she performs the Beethoven Violin Concerto for the first time in Scotland.

At the Edinburgh International Festival, the orchestra will be joined by internationally renowned artists including violinist Midori, baritone Willard White, bass John Relyea and sopranos Hillevi Martinpelto and Erin Wall.

The orchestra's staff conducting team is complemented by guest appearances from Vassily Sinaisky, Andrew Litton, John StorgÃ¥rds, Stephen Bell and the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO's former Associate Principal Conductor Martyn Brabbins.

New Music

Recognised as one of the world's great contemporary music ensembles, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO continues its unwavering support for new music and for Scottish composers. In May 2011 it will give the world premiere of a new work by one of the most significant composers in the world today, Helmut Oehring. His new work, a ´óÏó´«Ã½ Commission created especially for the unique ambiance of the Old Fruitmarket, is for spoken voice, solo cello and orchestra, and is based upon Edgar Allan Poe's The Pit And The Pendulum.

In addition to the music of Matthias Pintscher and the new music it will premiere in its specialist new music series Hear And Now, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO presents no fewer than five world premieres from five Scottish composers Stuart MacRae, Sally Beamish, Helen Grime, Edward McGuire and James Dillon.

In November, the orchestra will give the world premiere of one of the most ambitious artistic collaborations presented in Scotland, Glasgow-born composer James Dillon's epic sequence Nine Rivers. Commissioned by organisations including IRCAM, the ´óÏó´«Ã½ and Glasgow 1990 City of Culture, and never performed in its intended form, it is presented here in collaboration with Glasgow's Concert Halls, using both the Grand Hall and the Old Fruitmarket at City Halls.

The orchestra will be joined for this work by the renowned American percussionist Steven Schick, Les Percussions de Strasbourg, Sound Intermedia and the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Singers. The orchestra will also perform works by John Adams and gives the world premiere of a new work by the winner of the 2009 Aberdeen Music Prize, May Kay Yau.

75th anniversary celebrations

The orchestra celebrates its 75th Birthday with a special concert from City Halls on Thursday 2 December 2010, broadcast live on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio 3, with additional celebrations planned on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Television. Under the baton of Martyn Brabbins, the concert will feature Nicola Benedetti in Beethoven's Violin Concerto.

The orchestra begins its birthday celebrations on 11 June at City Halls, when it presents its third annual Listen Here!, a "big weekend" of free concerts and music-making events including a unique chance to sing excerpts from Mozart's Requiem.

For the fourth successive year it will also present its hugely popular Christmas at the Movies concert at City Halls, as well as its annual Christmas themed concerts in Aberdeen and Ayr.

Austro-German tour

From 23 to 28 October 2010 the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Donald Runnicles, and violinist Janine Jansen, will embark on a six-concert tour of Austria and Germany. Beginning at the Audimax in Regensburg, and ending at one of the most prestigious venues in the world, the Konzerthaus Vienna, the orchestra and its Chief Conductor perform in some of cities where Donald Runnicles made his international reputation.

On the prospect of the tour, Donald Runnicles said: "Perhaps the jewel for us is the prospect of the tour we are making to Europe with Janine Jansen as our soloist, a good friend and colleague. In touring Germany and Austria, my old stomping grounds, with the ´óÏó´«Ã½ Scottish I will be enormously proud to be at the helm of this orchestra."

Online

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ SSO's presence on Facebook and Twitter have given it the fastest-growing online community of any orchestra in Scotland, and in a drive to bring its unique content to audiences in a range of ways and on multiple platforms, it will continue its "Concert Visualisation" project, where selected performances in the season will be filmed and made available for audiences to enjoy online.

SD3