Autumn Concert - Saturday, 15th November 2025

Folkestone Symphony Orchestra conducted by Rupert Bond was in fine form for its Autumn Concert in Holy Trinity Church, Folkestone on Saturday 15 November in an attractive programme of works by Russian, Spanish and Bohemian composers.

The church was full, confirming the popularity of this highly talented local orchestra and its enthusiastic playing under the admirable leadership of Flo Peycelon.

The concert opened with a spirited performance of Alexander Borodin’s Overture to his opera Prince Igor (composed – but completed by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov and Alexander Glazunov – in the late 19th century), which requires a large orchestra (Folkestone Symphony numbers more than 60 players) including augmented woodwind and brass sections. The orchestra, sounding particularly good in this piece, rose to the challenges of the menacing and solemn introduction. The ensuing lush melodies featured a beautifully warm, expressive horn solo. Further contrasting musical styles, included the famous Polovtsian Dances, which reflected well the dramatic sweep of this opera set in 12th century Russia.

This was followed by Joaquin Rodrigo’s guitar concerto Concierto de Aranjuez (written in 1939) beautifully performed by award-winning Turkish-British classical guitarist Emre Gokalp, whose elegant and agile technique splendidly captured the Spanish essence of this charming work. The sound balance between the (amplified) guitar and orchestra worked well for this reviewer seated centrally half-way back in the audience, benefitting from the suitably light orchestration when the guitar was playing. The pizzicato cellos during the mysterious opening of the slow movement were particularly effective, and the Cor Anglais solo was beautifully played. The conductor brought out the full range of musical colour in this piece, the orchestra being in especially good form in their complex exchanges with the soloist, whose nimble-fingered passages were articulated sensitively and impressively. As well as Emre Gokalp’s obvious virtuosity, the delightful intimacy of his guitar playing drew the audience in, and his fantastic range of sound, his ornamentation and wonderful use of rubato, especially in the cadenza, were an unforgettable treat. The sprightly final movement ended unexpectedly and abruptly.

As an encore, Emre Gokalp charmed the audience with a solo performance of variations on an Anatolian piece called Naz Bari, arranged by Ertugrul Bayraktar.

After the interval the orchestra performed Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No 7 in D minor, commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Society and first performed in London in 1885. The full-blooded and dramatically sombre opening set the scene for a rather gloomy work, although the second movement had some beautiful woodwind solos and the third movement contained lilting and spirited passages of dance rhythms, before returning to tragic and anxious themes in the final movement. However, ultimately the work comes to a triumphant close in D major. The orchestra performed well throughout, although perhaps sounding slightly weary towards the end of a demanding programme.

Rewarded by concluding well-deserved rousing applause, this was another highly enjoyable concert by Folkestone Symphony’s talented musicians who bring considerable pride to the local musical community for their achievements.

As usual, Michael Lewis deserves special mention for his full and informative programme notes, which brought added enlightenment and musical insight to the evening’s performance.

Brinley and Janet Hughes

23 November 2025