Concert programme:
Grace Williams, Fantasia on Welsh Nursery Tunes
Mendelssohn, Violin Concerto (Tabitha Appel)
Berlioz, Symphonie Fantastique

Conducted by Dwight Pile-Gray

We have a fabulous programme and soloist lined up for our November concert. Grace Williams's Fantasia – popular with players and audiences alike – combines 8 Welsh nursery tunes, both light-hearted and wistful, into a single movement to provide an upbeat start to the concert. This is followed by Mendelssohn's much-loved Violin Concerto, played by rising star Tabitha Appel. We then round off the evening with the fabulous and emotionally dramatic Symphonie Fantastique by Berlioz. It promises to be a truly fantastic evening!

About Tabitha Appel

Tabitha performs regularly as a soloist and chamber musician. In the past two years, she has given numerous recital and concerto performances and has participated in masterclasses and music courses. In 2023 she won the Oxford Philharmonic Junior Concerto Competition and followed this with a performance of the Brahms Double Concerto with her sister, Rachel, and the Isis Chamber Orchestra. She has enjoyed attending Resonance chamber music course in Belgium and playing in a quartet masterclass at Penarth Chamber Music Festival followed by a residency at Wye Valley Chamber Music Festival. She has won bursaries to attend the Dartington Summer School studying under Max Baillie and most recently participating in the baroque orchestra course with Rachel Podger. Tabitha was a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain from 2019 and led the orchestra in its 2021 season. She is looking forward to future performances of the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto in November with the St Giles Orchestra and in February 2024 with the Oxford County Youth Orchestra.

Tabitha is currently studying with David Takeno and has just begin a music degree at St John’s College, Cambridge.