CSO Lamb & Hayward Masterworks: The Planets

In Partnership with the University of Canterbury

Benjamin Northey – Chief Conductor
Los Angeles Percussion Quartet

Zappa – Night School
Gardner – Gyre (Ghosts with Accents) – World Premiere
Holst – The Planets

Preview the music on Spotify here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4iCrMqOaH24cKElyoDjMxK

Frank Zappa’s Night School, a work that oozes urban cool, incorporating elements of jazz, rock, funk and western classical traditions, opens this concert with panache.

Described by the New York Times as “mesmerizing”, the GRAMMY Award nominated Los Angeles Percussion Quartet will make their debut with the CSO, premiering New Zealand composer James Gardner’s new concerto, Gyre (Ghosts with Accents) commissioned to mark the occasion.

Composed by English composer, Gustav Holst, The Planets has been enthusiastically embraced by audiences since its first performance. Representing the seven different planets of the solar system seen from Earth, this orchestral masterpiece captures the distinct astrological characters of each through colourful and imaginative orchestration.