What could be a better introduction to classical music than the latest in Ely Sinfonia’s highly successful series of family concerts? The magnificent setting of Ely Cathedral contrasts with the relaxed atmosphere in which children under 16 can attend free (with a paying adult) and sit on the floor right in front of the orchestra.

The concert will feature an orchestral version of Mussorgsky’s romantic Pictures at an Exhibition suite, which he wrote because he was so moved by a posthumous exhibition of the paintings and drawings of his great friend, the artist Viktor Hartmann who, like him, was devoted to the cause of Russian art. This highly popular piece turns Hartmann’s images into sounds: bells, chants, clocks, feathers and flames, ascent and descent, sometimes triumphant, sometimes joyful and sometimes sad.

Also on the programme is the glorious Symphony no 2 by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius, full of the warmth and brightness of the Italian sun (he wrote it while spending the winter there). This is a highly dramatic symphony, full of musical energy and determination. As Sibelius himself said about it: "It is as though the Almighty had thrown the pieces of a mosaic down from the floor of heaven and told me to put them together."

Complementing these will be an exciting new piece by Alex Woolf, the Cambridge Young Composer of the Year 2012. This has been commissioned by Ely Sinfonia especially for this concert.

In celebration of Pictures at an Exhibition, Ely Sinfonia will also be running an art competition for 7 to 11 year-olds, to be shown in Ely Cathedral in the week before the concert and will then move to Ely Library for the next two weeks. To find out more, go to www.elysinfonia.co.uk/picture_competition, call 01638 742004 or email picturecomp@elysinfonia.co.uk.

Tickets £20/£15* (reserved)
£5 (unreserved)
Concessions £10 in £15 seats.

* includes a free ticket for a child under 16 to sit on the floor in front of the orchestra (bring a cushion and a thick coat). Children’s tickets should be requested at the time of the main ticket purchase.

Tickets available from Ely Cathedral Box Office, tel 01353 660349, email box.office@cathedral.ely.anglican.org, https://tickets.elycathedral.org/
Ely Sinfonia enquiries (07798 826880/01353 721007), email publicity@elysinfonia.co.uk