OPO Tour to Dubai 2024!

This month, the Oxford Phil returned for the second time to the InClassica International Music Festival, held this year at Dubai Opera. 

The Orchestra performed six concerts as part of the Festival, joined by a host of incredible conductors and soloists.

Our opening concert was on Sunday 4 February, led by Armenian conductor Sergey Smbatyan in an evening of Beethoven. 

French pianist Frank Braley gave a fantastic performance of Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4, after which the Orchestra played his riveting Symphony No. 5. It was a wonderful evening, and what a way to kick off the tour!

Following our opening concert were five more performances, with music by composers including Elgar, Brahms, Mozart, Dvořák and many more, as well as works by Composer in Residence Alexey Shor. 

One of these works was his Suite for Piano and Orchestra No. 3, ‘Childhood Memories’, played by soloist Zee Zee and conducted by Nabil Shehata on Friday 9 February. This piece is ‘an intimate work in nine evocative movements which is inspired by the composer’s own youth, loosely tracing the path from early childhood and bringing Shor’s experiences of these formative years to life’.

During rehearsal OPO violinist Anna Croad filmed Zee Zee practicing her favourite part of the Concerto – watch a clip below.

You can see more of Anna’s Insta-takeover in our highlights via Instagram!

Other soloists who joined us throughout the course of the Festival were pianist Yekwon Sunwoo and violinists Clara-Jumi Kang, Marc Bouchkov and Elly Suh, as well as conductors Anu Tali, Christoph Poppen and Lucas Macías.

‘It was my first time with the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra and Maestro Anu Tali but we’ve had such a nice time together. It went very smoothly from the very first second. This orchestra is incredibly flexible and they listen so thoroughly to how I play and to the conductor.’

– Violinist Clara-Jumi Kang in an interview for The Khaleej Times

On the final night of the Festival, 15 February, OPO Founder and Music Director Marios Papadopoulos returned to conduct the Orchestra for the Grand Finale concert. After Rossini’s William Tell Overture and Alexey Shor’s Violin Concerto No. 4, InClassica 2024 concluded with the resounding notes of Dvořák’s ‘New World’ Symphony: one of the most beloved and popular symphonies of all time.

Overall we had a truly wonderful time performing six incredible concerts, with so much enthusiasm from performers and audience alike! We are very grateful to the InClassica International Music Festival and organisers SAMIT Event Group for having us again, and to all who have supported us.

We even have an amazing memento of the tour, painted by the very talented 12-year-old Violetta!

Remember to follow us on Facebook and Instagram to see where we are off to on tour next…!