The public’s top 15 Christmas tunes for 2024 have been revealed – and the results see Tchaikovsky, Frederick Oakeley, Handel and even Martin Luther rubbing shoulders with George Michael, Wizzard, The Pogues and BandAid, as Britain picks the playlist to kick-start this year’s Christmas countdown.
On Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 November Joe Hisaishi conducted his first concerts with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London since being appointed as the Orchestra's Composer-in-Association earlier this year. For two nights in a row, a packed crowd at the Royal Albert Hall gave a thunderous welcome to the globally-renowned composer as he conducted a selection of his own music, with guest soprano Grace Davidson, as well as a performance of Britten's classic Four Sea Interludes.
The popularity of orchestral music in the UK is set to peak this month as the country gets firmly in the mood for Christmas.
New research from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) indicates that 83% of UK adults say they will engage with classical and choral music in some shape or form during the month ahead – a rise on 76% from the summer.
One of the most significant contemporary composers of our time, Péter Eötvös, died in April this year. He left behind a vast body of work that included operas, film scores, chamber music and choral pieces. One of his last orchestral compositions was Cziffra Psodia, a piano concerto dedicated to the Hungarian pianist György Cziffra, which we’ll perform on Thursday 28 November at Cadogan Hall with pianist János Balázs and our Principal Associate Conductor Alexander Shelley.
