Rose Street Ensemble

Eclectic orchestrations from broadminded classicalists

This article is from 2008.

What might a melancholy lute piece by the English Renaissance composer John Dowland and a traditional Romanian folk tune have in common? Not a lot, except that both have been used as the basis of later works for string orchestra. In a fascinating programme which takes as its theme songs and tunes, plus their subsequent string orchestra developments, the Rose Street Ensemble have come up with half a dozen such pairings. Immediately after lutenist Peter Cooke performs the Dowland, the orchestra and viola soloist Jessica Beeston will play Benjamin Britten’s Lachrymae, his reflections on the Dowland original. With conductor James Lowe, who until recently held the post of RSNO Associate Conductor, the ensemble also include Arensky’s take on Tchaikovsky, Hindemith’s on vocal music by Bach and Bartok’s energetic Romanian Folk Dances. The performance is given in aid of the National Society for Epilepsy.

Canongate Kirk, 226 0000, 1 Aug, 8pm, £10 (£5).