The Hallé returns to Sheffield’s International Concert Season

The orchestra, which is the venue’s resident symphony orchestra, has been performing at Sheffield City Hall since it opened nearly 90 years ago.

The season begins with three concerts initially, with more expected to be announced in the autumn for January onwards.

David Butcher, the Hallé’s chief executive said: “I am delighted that the Hallé are finally able to return to Sheffield City Hall after such a long break. As resident orchestra at the Hall, it has really felt like a second home and the loyal and supportive audiences in Sheffield have always welcomed us to their city. It has been a long and hard road navigating the coronavirus pandemic for both the Hall and the Orchestra, but we are so pleased to be able to perform to Sheffield audiences again, with a thrilling array of great music and performers”.

The orchestra’s assistant conductor Delyana Lazarova opens the season on Friday October 15 with a concert featuring Dvorák’s Ninth Symphony entitled From the New World and Barber’s Violin Concerto performed by Canadian violinist, James Ehnes. The concert also champions the work of composer Florence Price, who was the first African-American woman to gain recognition as a composer, with her work Ethiopia’s Shadow in America.

The second Hallé concert, on Wednesday November 3, is conducted by the orchestra’s Artist in Association, Ryan Wigglesworth. The concert features Ryan’s own Piano Concerto, performed by Marc-André Hamelin who premiered the piece at the BBC Proms. Mendelssohn’s score to Shakespeare’s Midsummer Night’s Dream begins the concert, and Schumann’s Second Symphony concludes the evening.

Audiences are also invited to stay for an After Hours concert in the City Ballroom performed by the Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus.