Morley Chamber Orchestra: Mendelssohn and Beethoven

Experience an evening of musical enchantment with the Morley Chamber Orchestra, led by conductor Charles Peebles and featuring pianist Haruko Seki. Mendelssohn’s captivating “Overture: The Fair Melusine, Op. 32” sets the stage with its magical melodies, followed by Beethoven’s monumental “Emperor Piano Concerto,” expertly interpreted by Morley piano tutor Haruko Seki. Join us for an unforgettable journey through classical masterpieces, where every note resonates with passion and brilliance!

Performed by: The Morley Chamber Orchestra

Conducted by: Charles Peebles

Piano: Haruko Seki

Programme:

Felix Mendelsohn: Overture to the Legend of the Fair Melusine op. 32

Ludwig van Beethoven: Piano Concerto no. 5 in E flat major (Emperor)

Haruko Seki

Haruko Seki, described by Musical Opinion as “a pianist with an innate ability to communicate with her audience” has performed at many major UK venues including St John’s Smith Square, The South Bank, Wigmore and Fairfield Halls. Internationally she has performed in Europe, America and the Far East.

An Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, Haruko completed her Master’s, graduating with the Academy’s highest performance award, Recital Diploma. The Times has referred to her playing as being “vivid colouristic strokes…bathed in tonal beauty… took one off into a world of serene enchantment.” Her inspiration is derived from a cross fertilisation of poetry and music, having obtained her BA Degree in English literature prior to coming to the UK.

She has competed internationally, winning First Prize in the USA’s St Charles Illinois International Piano Competition, Croydon Symphony Soloist Award, Brant Piano Competition (UK) among others.

Haruko’s broad repertoire as a Concerto Pianist encompasses 30 concertos. Having spent much of her life in the UK, Haruko now sees opportunity to act as a musical channel between the British Isles and Japan and has recently completed a successful project in Japan promoting the works by composers of Britain and Ireland. She runs workshops creating opportunities for her students in the UK and Japan to study together.  She is recently appointed music director for British Music Series in Japan which promotes British music to Japan. In addition to mainstream repertoire, this has also included collaborations with poetry and piano such as Enoch Arden by Tennyson.

This season she enjoys a variety of performance activities as a soloist and chamber musician all over the UK and Japan as well appearing as a concerto soloist including Rachmaninov Piano Concerto No 2 with Boston Sinfonia (Lincolnshire), Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 3 and No 5 “Emperor Piano Concerto”

Reviews

‘Dazzling virtuosity’ is overused in the lexicon of classical music reviews, but Haruko Seki deserves it with knobs on. She was soloist in a breath-taking account of Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F given at West Road by the Cambridge Orchestra. So fluid, passionate and supercharged with energy was her outstanding performance that it put the other two works into the shade.” (Cambridge Network Classical)

“a pianist with an innate ability to communicate with her audience, and an eagerness to share her own evident enjoyment in the music she offered… Her Chopin exuded both poetry and controlled panache… with a power and dexterity that revealed an impressively secure technique”(Musical Opinion)

“a stunning account from a pianist who obviously loves playing, communicating  her delight vividly to the audience” (The Birmingham Post)

“Haruko Seki gave us a wonderfully musical and vigorous account, enthralling the audience and dovetailing with the solos in the orchestra“ (Sevenoaks Chronicle of her Rhapsody in Blue)

“The admirable Japanese pianist, Haruko Seki, applies her refreshing lightness of touch to some of the solo piano pieces. Her immaculate attention to detail is as ravishing as her care over the larger picture… I would be surprised if Saint-Saens could remain indifferent to performances of this calibre. (Music & Vision on her CD of Saint-Saens piano solo works)

Ongakuno Tomo (Japan’s leading classical music magazine) wrote of the “tonal beauty “ of her playing and to her creating “her own musical atmosphere through her vivid and varied coloured tones “

“Haruko Seki demonstrated how beautiful piano playoing can be, using herself almost as a human resonator to give scintillatingly musical performance of Douze Preludes-Poems by Charles Tournemire” (Organists’ Review)

“…pianist Haruko Seki , for me the star of the afternoon “ (Musical Pointers comments on her contribution to the Celebration of Dame Myra Hess at London’s National Gallery)