The Society
Welcome to the British Music Society of York website. The BMS organises chamber music concerts in York by internationally recognised performers. There are six concerts every year from October through to March, all in the Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York. You can buy tickets for individual concerts (or reserve them online » for collection on the door), or alternatively why not join the society? Membership entitles you to entry to all six concerts, and is considerably cheaper than buying individual tickets. We are a large and friendly society, and welcome new members to join in our enjoyment of the music and meet each other in a relaxed atmosphere.
The next concert will be on Friday 16th December, when the talented, exciting Heath Quartet will play string quartets by Haydn, Janáček and Beethoven.
The BMS York promote these concerts in association with the University of York, whose support we gratefully acknowledge. The University also promote their own series of concerts - details are available at www.YorkConcerts.co.uk ».
The 2011-2012 season
The 2011-2012 concert series, our 91st, began in October with a programme of music for piano including virtuoso masterpieces by Liszt and Brahms, brilliantly and beautifully played by the popular British pianist Leon McCawley. In November we welcomed Rosalind Ventris and Stephen Gutman who played music for viola and piano, including the much loved Brahms Sonata in F minor, originally conceived for clarinet, in the composer's own alternative version. At our December concert the internationally prizewinning Heath Quartet gave breathtaking performances of quartets by Haydn, Janáček and Beethoven.
In January James Turnbull and Craig White performed music for oboe and cor anglais with piano, including Poulenc's popular sonata and the delightful Studies on English Folk Song written by Vaughan Williams. In February we welcome back the distinguished Doric Quartet to play quartets by Haydn, Schubert (Death and the Maiden) and Chausson, whose music inhabits a world between French nineteenth century Romanticism and Impressionism. At our March concert we are delighted to welcome the exciting young British pianist Andrew Zolinsky in a programme including Schubert, Rachmaninoff's first set of Preludes, Ravel's Gaspard de la nuit, and Barber's breathtaking Piano Sonata which was first performed by Horowitz, a brilliant finale to our season.
Details of the individual concerts may be found by clicking here.
Next concert
Friday 17th February 2012 at 8 pm
In the Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York.
Described in Gramophone Magazine as 'one of the finest young string quartets,' the prizewinning Doric Quartet has performed around the globe and received glowing responses from audiences and critics. They have recently returned from a tour of the USA.
Haydn's Op. 20 quartets are the earliest that show his true mastery in the genre, and Schubert's 'Death and the Maiden' quartet is one of the best loved in the repertoire. The French Romantic composer Ernest Chausson wrote his attractive String Quartet at the very end of the 19th century, under the influence of Debussy.
Thank you for your interest in the Society. You can find out about becoming a member, about our history, or about some of our previous seasons' concert programmes by using the navigation links at the top left of every page.