A Dance to the Music of Time – Ravel, Say and Rachmaninoff
Vivid. Fantastical. Spectacular.
Barbican
The Concert
Maurice Ravel La valse
Fazıl Say Violin Concerto (1001 Nights in the Harem)
Interval – 20 minutes
Serge Rachmaninoff Symphonic Dances
Sir Antonio Pappano conductor
Patricia Kopatchinskaja violin
London Symphony Orchestra
The concert will finish at approximately 8.45pm
Tickets
£70 £55 £39 £25 £18
+ £4 booking fee per online/phone transaction
Wildcard Tickets
£12/£16 + booking fee as above
Guaranteed entry – your seat will be allocated on the day.
Limited releases throughout the season. Full details
Save on Your Booking
Multibuy Discounts – save up to 40%
Under-18s – £6 tickets
14–25s – discounts for Young Barbican Members
Groups of 10+ – save at least 20%
Access – free companion tickets for Barbican Access Members
Full details below
Spellbinding storytellers, dancing ghosts and melodies that will stay with you forever.
The Programme
The fairy-tale heroine Scheherazade must keep her audience entertained on pain of death in the One Thousand and One Nights. In Fazıl Say’s concerto, the violin plays the part of the endlessly fascinating tale-teller.
The piece is paired with impassioned music originally written for the ballet: Ravel’s haunting waltz and Rachmaninoff’s mysterious Symphonic Dances. Ravel imagined whirling couples in a Viennese concert hall in music that seems haunted by World War I. Rachmaninoff also conjures up a ghostly waltz, amid the expressive melodies of the last music he ever wrote.
The Performers
Patricia Kopatchinskaja brings her sense of musical adventure to Say’s score, which was written especially for her. Sir Antonio Pappano, Chief Conductor Designate, and the LSO take control of the narrative with finesse.
This is the idea – to have stuff that’s slightly off the beaten path, but very much anchored by pieces that are strongly a part of the repertoire.
– Sir Antonio Pappano
Filmed for future broadcast on Mezzo
Header Image © Mark Allan
Read: 'For a conductor, this is a dream position'
‘The idea of music that, by its very nature, dances, has been in my mind, and how this can be pushed to the extreme. I think that’s the thread that pulls everything together in my concerts this season … It’s that kind of risk that I find so exciting in music.’
Sir Antonio Pappano, Chief Conductor Designate, introduces his concerts in the 2023/24 season.
Booking and Discounts
Booking Your Tickets
Online at lso.co.uk or barbican.org.uk
By phone on +44 20 7870 2500 (Monday to Friday 12–5.30pm)
In person at the Barbican Centre
£4 booking fee per transaction when booking online or by phone
Refunds and Exchanges
If you can no longer user your tickets, you can exchange them for another LSO concert or Barbican credit voucher (valid for six months). Please inform the Box Office at least 24 hours before the performance (two weeks for group bookings). A per-ticket administration fee applies for all exchange services.
Questions About Your Booking?
Contact the Barbican Box Office at tickets@barbican.org.uk.
Visit the Barbican website for conditions of sale.
The LSO reserves the right to change artists or programmes if necessary. If the event is cancelled, all bookers will receive a refund. All discounts are subject to availability and may not be combined. Box office calls may be monitored or recorded for quality assurance or training purposes.
Multibuy Discounts
Book 2 to 3 concerts and save 10%
Book 4 to 7 concerts and save 20%
Book 8 to 11 concerts and save 30%
Book 12 or more concerts and save 40%
Plus retain your discount for any later bookings within the season.
Multibuy Discounts: Full Details
Wildcards
£12 or £16 (£10 or £15 for Half Six Fix concerts), plus booking fee. You are guaranteed entry to the concert but you won’t know your exact seat until the evening of the performance. Will you be lucky and bag a top-price seat in the stalls? Find out more about Wildcards.
Young People
£6 tickets for under-18s. Discounted tickets are available for selected LSO concerts for 14–25s through Young Barbican, and for full-time students through Student Pulse London.
Groups of 10+
Save 20%, or 30% when booking two or more concerts in the same season, plus additional benefits. Find out more about group booking.
Access Members
Members of the Barbican’s Access Scheme can book wheelchair places priced at the lowest price for that event and book a free companion seat. Join the Barbican Access Scheme.
Your Visit and Access
Getting to the Barbican
We are based at the Barbican Centre in the City of London. The main entrance to the Barbican is on Silk Street.
What to Expect
From the concert experience to venue facilities, find out what to expect from an LSO concert at the Barbican.
Accessibility
Find maps and guides, and join the Barbican Access Membership Scheme to let us know of your requirements and book access tickets.
