A concert featured the world premiere of Fiery Rustles of Rain, written by composer Dr Joshua Chan and then followed by Messiaen’s Quartet for the End of Time. On this occasion, violinist Kitty Cheung and cellist Eric Yip, members of Romer String Quartet, clarinetist Linus Fung and pianist Nancy Loo joined forces to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the premiere and the 40th anniversary of the Department of Music at HKU.
Messiaen’s early and middle period chamber music, Quartet for the End of Time, was written with an expressive instrumentation when he was held captive in a German prisoner-of-war camp at the beginning of the Second World War. The polyphonic, mystical and spiritual piece premiered on 15 January 1941 to a group of prisoners as the audience.
The two pieces were written for the same instrumentations. The concert recording is also available and accessible via the QR code below.
Conductor/ soloist David Greilsammer and saxophonist Timothy Sun presented a captivating programme of both classical repertoire and modern film music.
Highlights of the concert included Timothy’s interpretation of John Williams’s Escapades for Alto Saxophone and Orchestra, originating from Steven Spielberg’s 2002 film Catch Me If You Can. The audience was delighted to have Timothy performing Piazzolla’s Oblivion as an encore, bringing the first half to a close.
Second half of the concert showcased music from Star Wars and The Raiders of the Lost Ark. David Greilsammer conducted and performed Mozart’s Concerto No. 17 in G, K. 453, concluding this engaging classical and film music journey with a fascinating Star Wars-themed cadenza.