Second Season Of Camerata UpClose

Posted on August 30, 2012

In October, Camerata enters its second year of UpClose – the orchestra’s eclectic series of laid-back concerts in smaller, more intimate venues around Manchester.

Relax and unwind with a drink and enjoy a blend of classical and contemporary music at close quarters. Arrive early for contemporary sound-based artworks by John Hyatt and Lewis Sykes, taking inspiration from the music at each event. Doors open at 7.30pm.

Book all four concerts for only £36, saving 10% on the entire series. Call Box Office on 0844 907 9000 to book. Standard ticket price £10 (£6 students /Groups price: 6 tickets for the price of 5, Box Office bookings only).


UpClose I

Tues 23 October 2012, The Deaf Institute Café Bar & Music Hall, 8pm

Beethoven String Quartet Op.18 no.1
Golijov Yiddishbbuk
Beethoven String Quartet Op.18 no.2
Golijov Tenebrae

Manchester Camerata Principal Players

For our first UpClose concert, two of Beethoven’s early quartets sit alongside powerful works by a contemporary composer of rare emotional depth and beauty, the Argentinian Osvaldo Golijov. His Tenebrae is an achingly introspective work woven around some phrases of Couperin, while Yiddishbbuk, taking its inspiration from Kafka, is a work of mixed emotions,
in turn wild, eerie, otherworldly, aggressive, tender and lyrical.


UpClose II

Tues 5 February 2013, The Deaf Institute Café Bar & Music Hall, 8pm

Beethoven String Quartet Op.18 no.3
Aulis Sallinen String Quartet no.3
Beethoven String Quartet Op.18 no.4

Manchester Camerata Principal Players

Our second UpClose performance places two of Beethoven’s early quartets Op.18 alongside music by the twentieth century Finnish composer, Aulis Sallinen. Sallinen’s third string quartet is a lyrical set of variations based on the mournful folk tune, Peltoniemi Hintrik’s Funeral March.


UpClose III
Tues 26 March 2013, International Anthony Burgess Foundation, 8pm

Bach Suite for Solo Cello no.2 in D minor
Messiaen Quartet for the End of Time

Manchester Camerata Principal Players

The centre-piece of this UpClose concert is Olivier Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time, one of the most emotionally charged and spiritually reflective works composed for chamber ensemble. Written for the unusual combination of piano, violin, cello and clarinet, the work received its first performance outside in the rain in a German prisoner of war camp in 1941 on a collection of damaged instruments. This reflective programme also features a performance by Camerata’s principal cellist, Hannah Roberts, of Bach’s D minor Cello Suite, and a world premiere by Camerata’s composer in residence.


UpClose IV
Tues 23 April 2013, The Deaf Institute Café Bar & Music Hall, 8pm

Brahms Clarinet Quintet in B minor Op.115
Gorecki String Quartet no.1 ‘Already it is Dusk’
Stravinsky 3 pieces for Solo Clarinet
Stravinsky 3 pieces for String Quartet

Manchester Camerata Principal Players

Our laid-back UpClose series concludes with an eclectic programme featuring Brahms’ Clarinet Quintet in B minor, a work of endless lyricism.

One of the foremost Polish composers of the twentieth century, Henryk Gorecki was thrust to sudden international fame on the release of a recording of his Third Symphony in the 1990s. His first quartet, written for the Kronos Quartet, is an intense, lyrical and darkly powerful work, showing more than a nod to the minimalist movement. Also in this programme, Igor Stravinsky’s colourful and witty character comes to the fore in his 3 pieces for String Quartet, and his 3 pieces for Solo Clarinet.

‘The intimacy of the event was just so special, and it really felt like having your own private quartet in your front room.’  – Audience Member, UpClose