Pianist Alex Wilson is playing traditional music from across Europe in two candlelit concerts on Friday 5 and Saturday 6 December 2023 at St Nicholas Priory.
Returning after a sold-out concert in January this year, the festive programme is a musical tour through the songs and folk traditions of Europe at Christmastime.
It is inspired by seasonal traditions from the UK to Romania, Hungary to Finland and everywhere in between.
Highlights include Scarlatti’s Sonata in C Major K513 “Pastorale”, Béla Bartók’s Romanian Christmas Carols and O Dame, Get Up And Bake Your Pies by Arnold Bax.
Spanning two hundred years, the programme also includes music by composer Sadie Harrison based on seasonal melodies from Ukraine and an intimate telling of the Christmas story using traditional French carols.
Alex Wilson
Alex Wilson is a pianist who performs as a soloist, accompanist and chamber musician. A former British Contemporary Piano Competition finalist, he studied music at the University of York before graduating from the Royal College of Music in 2011.
He has performed at venues including Wigmore Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Cadogan Hall in London and at the Rachmaninov Hall in Moscow.
He has appeared on BBC Radio 3 and BBC Radio 6 Music and regularly plays with Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales, UPROAR Wales new music ensemble and London Sinfonietta.
St Nicholas Priory
Grade I listed St Nicholas Priory is Exeter’s oldest building. It was founded in 1087 by William of Normandy.
Following the dissolution of the monasteries its remaining buildings became a prominent Elizabethan town house.
It was subsequently subdivided into several smaller houses and business premises before being restored and becoming a museum in 1916.
Twelfth Night - A Musical Winter Celebration is at 7.30pm on Friday 5 and Saturday 6 January 2024 at St Nicholas Priory.
Tickets cost £15 or £12 for students. For more information and to book visit the TicketSource website.
