City of Rochester Symphony Orchestra Presents - A Night of Viennese Music

City of Rochester Symphony Orchestra Presents - A Night of Viennese Music at Rochester Cathedral

The Friends of Rochester Cathedral are proud to offer a magical evening filled with enchanting Viennese music performed by the talented City of Rochester Symphony Orchestra! Doors open at 6:45 PM for a concert that begins promptly at 7:30 PM.

The City of Rochester Symphony Orchestra (CRSO) was formed in 1969 and is one of the main amateur orchestras in North Kent, England. The orchestra’s Music Director is the distinguished pianist and trumpet teacher, Richard Hull. The CRSO has 60 playing members, both amateur and professional musicians, who perform concerts at The Central Theatre, Chatham, and other venues in Kent. In February 2025, Richard was asked to conduct a City of Rochester Symphony Orchestra concert at short notice following the sudden death of their esteemed conductor of many years, Peter Bassano.

The evening will be a Musical Elegance event at Rochester Cathedral, allowing the Friends of Rochester Cathedral to support the Cathedral's fundraising efforts, which are currently focused on new Fire Prevention systems.

The evening will include a program of

Beethoven - Egmont Overture

Schubert - Symphony in B minor, D.759 “Unfinished”

Johann Strauss II. - Die Fledermaus Overture 9min

Johann Strauss II. - “My Dear Marquis” from Die Fledermaus - Aria

Johann Strauss II. & Josef Strauss - Pizzicato Polka

Franz Grothe (1908-1982) - Song of the Nightingale - Aria

Johann Strauss II. - Thunder and Lightning Polka

Johann Strauss II. - Voices of Spring - Aria

Johann Strauss II. - Champagne Polka

Johann Strauss II. - On the Beautiful Blue Danube

Encore: Strauss - Radetzky March

We are delighted to welcome Conductor Richard Hull and Soprano Singer Laura West who will be performing with CORSO at the Viennese Concert.

Richard Hull – Conductor

After gaining a Degree in Music from Dartington College of Arts in 1991, Richard embarked on a trumpet teaching career, starting at his old school, Bedford Modern School. He began to work full time for Bedfordshire Music Service in 1995. He taught for various music services and was involved in many different aspects of brass tuition and education for over 30 years, having also spent a year as Visiting Professor of Trumpet at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Richard has played for and conducted a number of orchestras and bands throughout the East of England and is active as a pianist and accompanist. He has also performed as a soloist on the trumpet and piano, including performances of concertos by Grieg, Gregson, Arnold, Telemann and many others.

Richard was appointed Musical Director of the Saffron Walden Symphony (formerly Uttlesforde) Orchestra in 2008. Since then, he has led the development of the orchestra, taking on more challenging repertoire and introducing more contemporary works into programmes, including symphonies by Martinů, Tubin and Glass. He has also commissioned works by young composers and provided opportunities for young soloists including Yume Fujise, Ellie Fagg, Stephen Smithers and George Harliono.

In February 2025, Richard was asked to conduct a City of Rochester Symphony Orchestra concert at short notice following the sudden death of their conductor of many years, Peter Bassano. Having been associated with the orchestra as a trumpet player in the past, he is delighted to have been asked to conduct them for the remainder of that season and for 2025/26.

Laura West – Soprano

Laura West is a British/German classical soprano and a recent graduate of The Guildhall School of Music and Drama where her studies were generously supported by The Thomson Educational Trust and The Guildhall School Trust. She has sung Zerlina in Mozart's Don Giovanni, and Kate Pinkerton in Puccini’s Madama Butterfly for Arcadian Opera, Amor in Barefoot Opera's OFFIE nominated production of Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice, and Frost in Guy Chamber's The Selfish Giant for Garsington Youth Opera. Other roles include the title role in Janáček’s The Cunning Little Vixen, Cupid in Purcell’s King Arthur, Echo in Richard Strauss’s Adriane Auf Naxos, Papagena and First Lady in Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Sandrina in Mozart’s La Finta Giardiniera, and Despina in Mozart’s Così Fan Tutte.

On the concert platform Laura has sung as soloist in Brahms’s Ein Deutsches Requiem, Handel's Messiah, Schubert's Mass in G and Mozart's Coronation Mass. Laura is a strong advocate for accessibility in classical music: as well as writing her undergraduate dissertation on the topic, she takes a proactive approach to demystify the art form. Laura grew up in Rochester and went to King’s School Rochester. Laura is delighted to be performing in Rochester, where she started her musical journey with CRSO member Bryony Otaki as her teacher.

Don't miss this opportunity to enjoy an unforgettable musical journey, remembering that the proceeds from the performance will assist the Friends of Rochester Cathedral in supporting the magnificence of Rochester Cathedral.