Jess Gillam on saxophone and Dvořák’s “Best”

April 18th 2025 at 19:00 – 20:00

Sir James MacMillan (Composer in Residence) – Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Strings
David “Dave” Heath – “The Celtic” Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Strings
Dvořák – Symphony No. 7 in D minor (Excerpts)

Dresdner Philharmonie
Paolo Bortolameolli – conductor
Jess Gillam – saxophones

At the centre of the concert evening is the brilliant Jess Gillam, one of the most exciting musicians of our time. With her soprano saxophone, she combines technical virtuosity and charismatic stage presence like rarely seen. Two works put the saxophone in the spotlight: Dave Heath’s “The Celtic” and James MacMillan’s Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and String Orchestra. Both works are tailor-made for Jess Gillam. Heath’s “The Celtic” combines Celtic melancholy with rhythmic energy, while MacMillan’s work explores the boundaries of the instrument’s timbres and expressive possibilities. His most famous is certainly the Ninth, but for many, Antonín Dvořák’s Seventh Symphony is his best. This music feels rugged and melancholic, yet compact and strict. There is no superfluous note here, every motif is worked through, every counterpoint has something to say. No question: this is not cozy folk music from a Bohemian village tavern, but highly concentrated symphonic music in the spirit of Beethoven and Brahms.

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