CBSO: Music From Stage and Screen ~ Friday 23 January 2026

By Helen McWilliams

Birmingham undoubtedly has the best orchestra in my humble opinion and the chance to watch our local internationally acclaimed orchestra is an opportunity not to be passed up. Add Conductor Stephen Bell with soloists; Katie Birtill and Tim Howar and you know you're in for a magical evening at Symphony Hall. 

The acoustics in Symphony Hall are tough to rival, the sound produced by the CBSO on Friday evening was nothing short of sublime. It was the perfect antidote to a wet, miserable and (seemingly) everlasting January! We literally felt able to leave our troubles in the car park and thoroughly enjoyed sitting back and basking in the glorious music, whether purely instrumental or accompanied by one or indeed both of the phenomenal vocalists. 

It will come as no surprise that we are huge fans of music from stage and screen and there was nothing that we didn't like the look or sound of in the well chosen selection. The theme from the movie, Ladies in Lavender, composed by Nigel Hess, was one of the most moving instrumental pieces I heard. I don't believe I've paid the music from that particular film much attention before. I've listened to it a number of times over the past week though. Alan Silvestri's upbeat and rousing theme from Back To The Future kicked off the second act in splendid fashion and couldn't have sounded better. Waving Through A Window from the hit musical Dear Evan Hansen was performed wonderfully by Tim Howar, an emotive and endearing rendition.  Katie Birtill also treated us to Defying Gravity from Wicked and all I can say is if anyone can match Cynthia Enviro's impressive vocal range, then Birtill more than fits the bill. I must mention the stunning outfits that both Birtill and Howar paired with their various performances too, a glittering feast for the eyes. 

An evening spent in the company of the CBSO is never a disappointment and we are looking forward to the rest of the season. It's been a superb start to the year.

Make sure you check out the CBSO website and why not join us at one of their next concerts? CBSO What's On

Reviewed by: Helen McWilliams 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Midsomer Murders The Killings At Badger's Drift ~ Theatre Royal, Nottingham

By Helen McWilliams
Image
  Wednesday 25 February 2026 Reviewed by Helen McWilliams  Star rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 Midsomer Murders , is one of ITV's so-called cosy murder mystery television programmes based on the novels of Caroline Graham . Although if you've watched them all (I have!) then you'll know only too well that the setting may be cosy, however the body count per episode and the brutal nature of many of the murders makes for a far from cosy ambience. I'm shuddering as I type upon recalling the fate of a character called Mike Spicer in series 8 who was played by one of my all-time favourite actors, Robert Daws . Then there's the suicidal leap from the church roof for the late, great Richard Briers as Stephen Wentworth in series two. I was already familiar with The Killings At Badger's Drift as it is the very first episode of the highly successful and much loved TV drama. Would it translate on stage? I was keen to find out and my plus one on this occasion was my 12 year old son. ...
Read more

Back to Blogging

By Helen McWilliams
Image
  The past... I'm not one to dwell on the past if I've moved on from it, however - for the purposes of this introduction to our brand new blog (pause for squeals... combined with the furrowed brow of a woman in her forties who, despite her love for telly and theatre , wholly expected to have left this kinda career behind), I'll fill in some back story!  First of all, I say OUR new blog ( Our Entertainment Blog ), as this reinvented venture has for the most part, been led by our 12 year old son, Connor . I've not been entirely unwilling and my husband, Garry , who will undoubtedly be involved again, is also not saying no. One thing's for sure, following the pandemic we haven't watched anywhere near enough live theatre and the frequent excursions from the Midlands to London (often in one day), which baby and toddler Connor was regularly dragged along on, are currently a thing of the past. In fact, rather like this blog , Connor is keen to bring t...
Read more