Musical treats from the Academy of St. Thomas

On the evening of Saturday 20th October 2012 I attended the Academy of St. Thomas concert at St. Andrew's Hall, Norwich which featured soloists Kanako Ito on violin and Martin Storey on cello. Christopher Adey was conductor as we were treated to a programme of Egmont Overture - Beethoven, Double Concerto for Violin and Cello - Brahms and Symphony No.4 The Italian - Mendelssohn.

In the autumn of 1809 Beethoven was commissioned by the Director of the Vienna Court Theatre to compose the incidental music for a new production of Goethe's 1787 play Egmont. The music consists of an overture and nine additional pieces for soprano, narrator and orchestra. Brahms write his Double Concerto for Violin and Cello for his friend Joachim in 1887 who he had fell out with for several years. Mendelssohn's The Italian is always referred to as his Fourth Symphony although it is his third in order of composition. It was started during a visit to Italy in 1830 but was not completed until three years later in Berlin.

This was a wonderful evening at St. Andrew's Hall as The Academy of St. Thomas put on a brilliant performance with the highlight of the night being the Brahms Double Concerto for Violin and Cello when Kanako Ito and Martin Storey gave us a moment to remember. The programme was true to the orchestra's philosophy to offer diverse programming as well as more familiar repertoire.