Mozart’s Wind Serenades a highlight in Emily Anderson memorial concert

Mozart’s two greatest Wind Serenades will be performed in NUIG’s Aula Maxima this Friday, February 19, night when eight leading national and international wind players join forces for the annual Emily Anderson Memorial Concert.

The event, hosted by Music for Galway, is in honour of the late scholar Emily Anderson, who has strong connections with the city and the university.

Alongside these two masterpieces, audiences will hear an arrangement by Joseph Heidenreich of Mozart’s overture to The Magic Flute and the Irish premiere of a work by British composer Jonathan Dove, inspired by themes from Mozart’s other great opera, The Marriage of Figaro. This work was commissioned by Glyndebourne Opera Festival in the UK in 1991 to mark the bicentenary of Mozart’s death.

The annual memorial concert, which is a highlight in Music for Galway’s calendar, celebrates the life and work of Emily Anderson.

Born in 1891, she was the daughter of the then president of the Queen’s College Galway, Alexander Anderson, and grew up in the building where this concert is held annually. She studied German and lectured for a brief spell in the university, but then left Ireland for a career in the British Foreign Office. Passionate about music and with a deep affinity for the German language, she went on to translate and edit the full correspondence of Mozart. Ten years later, she tackled the letters of Beethoven. To this day her translations remain an invaluable resource for scholars and music-lovers.

For over a decade, Music for Galway and NUI Galway have been presenting annual concerts in her memory. These alternate between full Beethoven and full Mozart programmes. This year is Mozart’s turn and KPMG have lent their support, allowing Music for Galway to present a slightly more extravagant programme, featuring eight players.

Led by British oboist Nicholas Daniel, the international musicians are Israeli clarinettist Chen Halevi, British bassoonist Amy Harman and horn player Martin Owen. They will be joined by Irish musicians Conor Cavanagh (oboe), brothers Macdara (clarinet) and Cuan (horn) Ó Seireadáin, and John Hearne (bassoon).

Tickets are €20 / €16 concessions and MFG Friends / €6 students (full time) and are available from Music for Galway on 091-705962 or Opus 2, High Street or online at www.musicforgalway.ie