Current Distractions
Thu 25 Apr 2013
A Viola player using the latest technology to create a musical composition, an artist based in Singapore that can create life-like images with just paint and resin – there’s so much to see here and all so culturally nourishing. Plus, if you can make it to the bottom, there’s a picture of Haydn in hair…
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Pre-concert talk: Creation 9 January 2013
Thu 4 Apr 2013
In this talk Richard Wigmore looks at the history and vivid descriptions of Haydn’s The Creation. Was it ‘programme music’ before its time?
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Creation: Audience reaction
Wed 23 Jan 2013
‘Achingly beautiful’, ‘joyous’, ‘looked like they were having fun’…just a few of the comments you made after our performance of Haydn’s fabulous Creation at the beginning of the month.
Read MoreSpeed Interview – Andrew Kennedy
Mon 7 Jan 2013
With his performance in Haydn’s Creation on the horizon, we asked tenor Andrew Kennedy a few quick questions…
Read MoreSpeed Interview: Adam Fischer
Mon 17 Dec 2012
With our New Year performance of Creation drawing ever closer, we spoke to conductor for the night, Adam Fischer…
Read MoreIn conversation with OAE leader Kati Debretzeni
Sun 20 May 2012
One from the vaults, in fact way back in October 2011! This is a recording of our OAE Extras talk from 21 October at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, prior to a concert which Kati was leading. In this event she talked to Nicola Christie about, amongst other things, babychinos, bows and ‘Papa’ Haydn. Apologies for…
Read MoreNovember 2011 podcast now out…
Wed 16 Nov 2011
Here’s our brand-new podcast for November. As ever, it’s a packed edition. First off we speak to regular OAE collaborator, violinist Rachel Podger, about her upcoming project with us – 1700s London and the Fab Four, a concert featuring music from Haydn, Abel, Arne and JC Bach that you can hear in both London and…
Read MoreA sneak preview of Friday’s music…
Tue 18 Oct 2011
It’s not long until our concert with Trevor Pinnock, Kati Debretzeni and Jonathan Manson, playing some fabulous music by Haydn and his two contempories, Boccherini and Salomon. We thought we’d be extra generous and give you the chance to hear some of the music we’ll be playing on Friday in our Spotify playlist.
Read MoreKati Debretzeni: Speed Interview
Mon 17 Oct 2011
On Friday this week, we’ll be celebrating three musical superstars in our Papa Haydn and his Wife concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. We caught up with one of the OAE leaders, Kati Debretzeni, who’ll be performing on the night:
Read MoreSalomon: a musical superstar?
Thu 13 Oct 2011
On Friday 21 October we’ll be at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, celebrating the music of Haydn, but also of his lesser known contempories: Boccherini and Salomon. Ahead of the concert, here’s a taster into the life and times of Johann Peter Salomon.
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On tour with Sir Simon: a preview
Mon 13 Jun 2011
Well today is the first day of our latest project with our Principal Artist Sir Simon Rattle (pictured conducting us a few years ago in Budapest). Of course everyone is *quite* excited about it. We’re touring a concert of Mozart and Haydn, which also features pianists Katia & Marielle Labèque playing the Mozart Concerto for…
Read MoreSpeed interview: Thierry Fischer
Fri 25 Jun 2010
Next Tuesday we are performing Haydn’s Creation in the atmospheric surroundings of St Paul’s Cathedral, as part of the City of London Festival. We caught up with conductor Thierry Fischer to ask him a few quick questions: What/when was your big breakthrough? Still to come… What do you fear the most? Today, … I fear…
Read MoreCreation in Brighton
Wed 16 Jun 2010
Here are some pics from Monday’s Creation Education project, a joint effort with Brighton Early Music Festival. The orchestra rehearsed on their own in the morning in St George’s Church, Kemp Town, Brighton. We were then joined by 250 school children in the afternoon, who were EXTREMELY well behaved. At 6pm we were joined by…
Read MoreCelebrating the Creation
Fri 18 Dec 2009
I arrived at the Queen Elizabeth Hall last Thursday, pretty exhausted from our concert the night before with Sir Mark Elder conducting the OAE in Haydn’s Creation, to help out at our schools concert based around the same piece of music. I had been told that there’d be 800 kids from various schools we work…
Read MoreHaydn's Creation: reviews
Mon 14 Dec 2009
Our performance of Haydn’s Creation at the Royal Festival Hall last week was our last this year in London, and here’s what the reviewers made of it. What did you think? Independent Guardian The Times Financial Times Classical Source Whats on Stage
Read MoreCultural cat
Thu 10 Dec 2009
In preparation for our Haydn Creation concert at the Royal Festival Hall last night we rehearsed for a few days in Cecil Sharpe House, in a leafy street just by Regents Park. I arrived at the rehearsal the other morning to find an extra special member of the orchestra purring around the hall. A local…
Read MoreOAE Patrons in Eisenstadt
Mon 28 Sep 2009
Earlier this month, I travelled with a group of our patrons to Austria for a performance by the OAE in the Schloss Esterházy in Eisenstadt. Haydn worked in the Esterházy for over 30 years and it seemed a perfect time for this trip to celebrate Haydn’s Bicentenary. Day One After a hassle-free flight to Vienna…
Read MoreBusy times…
Tue 31 Mar 2009
Having written a short while ago about a less busy period for the Orchestra, we are now currently in the midst of an incredibly busy few months. Last week we started rehearsal for the St Matthew Passion with Mark Padmore, which had its first performance last night in Bristol. Prior to this project starting we…
Read MoreHaydn in Oxford: audience review
Fri 13 Mar 2009
An audience members review from our concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall on 10 March: I am not really qualified to pass comment on the performance of the OAE as I am a very amateur musician (I pay to be allowed to play the trumpet and as far as my wife is concerned, the best…
Read MoreWe're having a smashing week…
Thu 5 Mar 2009
Kind of. We were rudely interrupted in our Kings Place office when one of our big floor to ceiling windows was shattered by a missile coming from the other side of the canal. All very dramatic with the police visiting etc… Onto musical matters – this week we’ve also been doing a new recording with…
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