Hogmanay 2012 saw the Royal Scottish National Orchestra embark on their first tour to mainland Asia, with music director Peter Oundjian. The tour comprised of six concerts in five cities including Beijing, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Tianjin and Macau.
Celebrating in true Scottish style, the orchestra performed a programme including Mendelssohn Symphony No.3 'Scottish' Op.56 and Maxwell Davies An Orkney Wedding, as well as Elgar Enigma Variations Op.36. The National Youth Pipe Band of Scotland also joined the orchestra on stage for encores, providing a unique experience for Chinese audiences.
The tour took in Guangzhou’s Xinghai Concert Hall and two concerts in the Shenzhen Concert Hall on New Year’s Eve, the second concert a New Year gala with Polkas and Waltzes by Strauss and Khachaturian as well as music by Li Huan Zhi and Maxwell Davies.
The RSNO’s first concert of 2013 took place in Beijing on 2 January in the National Centre for Performing Arts. The orchestra gave their final concert of the tour at Macau Cultural Centre which will feature Mendelssohn and Maxwell Davies, concluding with Stravinsky’s The Firebird Suite (1919).
Performances
30 December 2012
Xinghai Concert Hall, Guangzhou
31 December 2012
Shenzhen Concert Hall, Shenzhen
2 January 2013
National Centre for Performing Arts, Beijing
3 January 2013
Tianjin Grand Theatre, Tianjin
5 January 2013
Cultural Centre, Macau