Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment & Sir Simon Rattle

The Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment is celebrating its 40^th birthday with a world-class conductor and old friend: Sir Simon Rattle. The orchestra of historical instruments, which has worked regularly with the British conductor since the nineties, will expand into a supersize period orchestra especially for this concert. After all, Berlioz’ Symphonie Fantastique needs its musicians to think big. In this adventure for the ears, Berlioz revolutionises orchestration, introduces new playing techniques and uses an idée fixe to portray the tortured artist’s beloved in sound. When Paganini got hold of a Stradivarius viola, he asked Berlioz to write him a piece with a starring role for that instrument. Harold in Italy was born, and here at Bozar, Timothy Ridout gets the place in the spotlight.