MSO Live from Hamer Hall | Vasily Petrenko Conducts Elgar

Join us live from Melbourne’s Hamer Hall as we bring you music by Elgar, Vaughan Williams and an original work by Matthew Laing. Lauded Russian-British conductor Vasily Petrenko joins the MSO for this varied program inspired by English music and literature across the centuries. We begin with Vaughan William’s The Wasps, as quirky and playful passages give way to soaring pastoral melodies. “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven” is probably the most famous line from John Milton’s epic poem, Paradise Lost. It’s from this 1667 masterpiece that Australian composer Matthew Laing draws inspiration to depict the bassoon, performed by MSO Principal Bassoon Jack Schiller, as a poetic antihero of the orchestra: subjected to heaven; at peace in hell. Through passages of wistfulness, gusto, spookiness, and soft beauty, Vasily Petrenko, Gramophone’s 2017 Artist of the Year, brings energy and critical accolades to Elgar’s self-described ‘passionate pilgrimage’ of the soul for his second symphony. Program Vaughan Williams The Wasps: Overture Matthew Laing Of Paradise Lost, Bassoon Concerto (World premiere of an MSO Commission) Elgar Symphony No.2 Featuring Melbourne Symphony Orchestra Vasily Petrenko conductor Jack Schiller bassoon Supported by the Victorian Government’s Let’s Stay Connected Fund and the Department of Jobs, Precincts and Regions. Follow MSO: Website: https://www.mso.com.au/ Facebook: https://www.mso.com.au/facebook Instagram: https://www.mso.com.au/instagram Twitter: https://www.mso.com.au/twitter LinkedIn: https://www.mso.com.au/linkedin Spotify: https://www.mso.com.au/spotify