Saturday 23 May 2026, 4pm
West Road Concert Hall, Cambridge
Ethel Smyth: Overture to The Wreckers
Richard Strauss: Burleske – Piano soloist: Benjamin Grosvenor
Dmitri Shostakovich: Symphony No 5
Performed by:
Cambridge Philharmonic Orchestra
Benjamin Grosvenor – Piano
Conductor Otis Ekinodo-Lineham
A concert of bold voices and fearless invention. We open with the stormy, impassioned overture to The Wreckers, Ethel Smyth’s opera set on the rugged Cornish coast. With sweeping melodies and dark intensity, this powerful curtain-raiser announces Smyth as one of the great unsung heroines of British music.
Next, superstar pianist Benjamin Grosvenor takes the spotlight in Richard Strauss’s Burleske – a dazzling, high-octane work that brims with sardonic wit and virtuosic brilliance. Part concerto, part musical prank, Burleske dances on a knife-edge between mischief and majesty.
Shostakovich’s gripping Symphony No 5 – veiled protest or triumphant apologia – delivers emotional power and biting irony in one of the 20th century’s most compelling orchestral works.
Tickets: from £15 (Student concessions and free carers’ tickets available)
Pre bookable programme £2
Tickets will be on sale from September.
Please note that tickets are purchased on a non-refundable basis.
Access: The building is fully accessible to wheelchair users, with wheelchair / companion seating ramps and accessible toilet facilities.
Click HERE to find out more.
If you require a free carer’s ticket or have additional access requirements, please get in touch tickets@cam-phil.org.uk
Photos Credit: Bill Hiskett