Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Hector Berlioz: Roméo et Juliette
No interval

Sir Mark Elder conducts the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment in a performance of Berlioz's mammoth Roméo et Juliette.

'His orchestration is so dirty that I have to wash my hands after turning over the pages of his scores,' said Mendelssohn of Berlioz.

Berlioz was never one to do things by halves, and Roméo et Juliette is probably one of his most ambitious projects - the first performance had an orchestra of more than 100 players, a chorus of 101 voices plus soloists.

It is a passionate, lush piece which pushed the limits of what an orchestra could do and its vivid and dramatic scene-setting upstages that of many operas.

£70 premium box seats include an post-performance wine reception.

Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall at 5.45pm - OAE Extras. Berliz expert David Cairns talks about this rarely-performed piece.

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
Sir Mark Elder conductor
Sonia Ganassi mezzo-soprano
John Mark Ainsley tenor
Orlin Anastassov bass
Schola Cantorum
BBC Symphony Chorus