Hallé Orchestra Manchester
Orchestras
Founded in Manchester by the pianist and conductor Charles Hallé in 1858, Britain’s longest established permanent professional symphony orchestra gave its first concert in the city’s Free Trade Hall on 30 January of that year. Following the death of Sir Charles Hallé, the orchestra continued to develop under the guidance of such distinguished figures as Hans Richter, Sir Hamilton Harty and Sir John Barbirolli.
Sir Mark Elder, who was knighted for services to music in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List 2008, became Music Director in 2000, since when the Hallé has received increasing acclaim both here and abroad. The Royal Philharmonic Society honoured Sir Mark with the Conductor Award at the 2006 ceremony and, the previous year, the Hallé was presented with the Ensemble Award. The Hallé, BBC Philharmonic and the Royal Northern College of Music were awarded the South Bank Show Award for classical music for ‘Shostakovich, His Heroes and Comrades’, a collaboration which marked the centenary of Shostakovich’s birth in a cycle of his symphonies and chamber music in 2006.
In 1996, the Hallé moved to its new home, The Bridgewater Hall, where it presents over 70 concerts a year. Making over 40 appearances annually throughout the rest of Britain, the Hallé attracts large and enthusiastic audiences both in Manchester and beyond. Its reputation for artistic excellence and versatility has led to many international tours as well as frequent broadcasts and televised performances.
In 2003 the Hallé launched its own CD label of studio recordings – featuring, in particular, the music of Elgar and Richard Strauss, Colin Matthews, Debussy, Wagner, Nielsen and Shostakovich. In 2008, the label re-launched with Sir Mark Elder’s interpretation of Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius with Alice Coote, Paul Groves and Bryn Terfel and the world premiere recordings of Colin Matthews’s Alphabicycle Order and Horn Concerto. The latest release, conducted by John Wilson, is a collection of orchestral works by John Ireland.
The Hallé Choir was founded alongside the orchestra in 1858 and the Hallé’s Assistant Conductor, Ewa Strusinska, directs the Hallé Youth Orchestra. The Hallé Youth Choir is led by the Youth Choir Director, Gregory Batsleer and the newest ensemble, the Hallé Children’s Choir is directed by Shirley Court. At the beginning of the 2005–06 season, for the first time in its long history, the Hallé appointed a Principal Guest Conductor, Cristian Mandeal. Markus Stenz follows in this post in the 2009-10 season.
Last season over a quarter of a million people heard the Hallé. More than 20,000 of these were young people inspired by the Hallé’s pioneering education programme which generates over 40 projects a year and exists to create a wider enjoyment and understanding of music throughout the whole community. The Hallé is a society and registered charity that exists to ensure the continued success and development of the orchestra and its family.
To find out more about the Hallé, buy CDs online, and for information on how to join the Hallé Choir, Youth Choir, Youth Orchestra or the Children’s Choir as well as how to support the Hallé Concerts Society and for details of the work of Hallé Education, visit www.halle.co.uk.
SEASON 2009/2010
SIR MARK ELDER CBE
Sir Mark Elder has been Music Director of the Hallé since September 2000, during which time the orchestra’s considerable achievements have been recognised in significant awards, an enhanced international profile, and popular and critical acclaim. Highlights of the 2009–10 season, during which Sir Mark celebrates his 10th anniversary with the orchestra, include his and the Hallé’s major role in a complete cycle of Mahler symphonies marking the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth.
He appears regularly with many of the world’s leading orchestras and in this country he enjoys close associations with the London Philharmonic and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Sir Mark has appeared annually at the BBC Proms for many years including, in 1987 and 2006, at the televised Last Night of the Proms and, from 2003, in concerts with the Hallé. He was Music Director of English National Opera (1979–93), Principal Guest Conductor of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1992–95) and Music Director of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra in the USA (1989–94), and has also held positions as Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra and of the London Mozart Players.
His work in opera takes him to the world’s major houses and during his years at ENO he brought acclaim to the company for its work in London, as well as leading tours to the USA (including the Metropolitan Opera, New York) and Russia (including the Bolshoi in Moscow and the Mariinsky in St. Petersburg).
He has made recordings with a range of orchestras including, since 2003, a series of highly praised discs on the Hallé’s own CD label in repertoire ranging from Elgar (including The Dream of Gerontius), Richard Strauss, Debussy, Nielsen and Wagner to Colin Matthews. Recent opera recordings include Donizetti’s Dom Sébastien and Imelda de’ Lambertazzi for Opera Rara.
Last autumn Sir Mark conducted the Hallé in Brazil, Chile and Argentina and, on a separate tour, Germany and Austria. Forthcoming orchestral engagements, apart from his commitment to the Hallé, include the Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony (with which he conducted a three-week Dvorák Festival in June), Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Russian National Orchestra, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic, London Philharmonic and London Symphony Orchestras and the OAE. Earlier this month he conducted the Hallé in the closing concert of the Edinburgh International Festival (The Dream of Gerontius) and in the televised finals of the Leeds International Piano Competition. Next month he conducts the Hallé in Elgar’s The Kingdom (Saturday 17 October, Manchester).
Recent operatic engagements have taken him to the Metropolitan Opera New York, Opéra National de Paris, Glyndebourne, Lyric Opera Chicago, Teatro Comunale Florence and the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, where he opened the 2009–10 season with Donizetti’s Linda di Chamounix. Last season he conducted an acclaimed performance of Wagner’s Götterdämmerung in concert with the Hallé. Future operatic engagements include Cilea’s Adriana Lecouvreur and Rimsky-Korsakov’s The Tsar’s Bride for Covent Garden, and Britten’s Billy Budd with which he opens the Glyndebourne season next May.
Sir Mark Elder was knighted in 2008, and was awarded the CBE in 1989. He won an Olivier Award in 1991 for his outstanding work at ENO and in 2006 he was named Conductor of the Year by the Royal Philharmonic Society.
SEASON 2009/2010
