Preview: Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra brings a haunting Antarctic journey to Brighton Dome
Ice, silence, vast landscapes and the power of music come together as the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra presents one of the most atmospheric concerts of its 2026/27 season at Brighton Dome on Sunday 6 December.
Conducted by Music Director Joanna MacGregor, Antarctica: Vaughan Williams and Arvo Pärt explores themes of isolation, endurance and the natural world through a programme spanning early 20th-century classics and contemporary works.
At the heart of the concert is Ralph Vaughan Williams’ monumental Sinfonia antartica. Originally composed as the score for the 1948 film Scott of the Antarctic, the music was later reworked into the composer’s Seventh Symphony. Inspired by Captain Scott’s ill-fated expedition, it remains one of Vaughan Williams’ most evocative and cinematic works, combining sweeping orchestral writing with moments of eerie stillness.
Joining the orchestra is acclaimed British soprano Elizabeth Watts, whose career has taken her from the Last Night of the Proms to collaborations with Sir Simon Rattle and Michael Tilson Thomas. The women of the Brighton Festival Chorus add an ethereal vocal dimension to the symphony’s frozen landscapes.
The programme opens with Arvo Pärt’s La Sindone, written for the 2006 Turin Winter Olympics. Inspired by the image of Christ on the Turin Shroud, the work combines Pärt’s trademark spiritual minimalism with dramatic intensity.
Jean Sibelius’ atmospheric The Swan of Tuonela provides a bridge to Jonny Greenwood’s Water, inspired by Philip Larkin’s poem of the same name. The piece features strings, flutes and Indian tanpura, with acclaimed musician Bishi performing alongside the orchestra.
Adding another visual dimension, filmmaker and artist Kathy Hinde will create live visuals throughout the performance, reinforcing the concert’s themes of ice, water and vast northern landscapes.
The performance forms part of the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra’s ambitious 2026/27 season, which continues the orchestra’s commitment to imaginative programming that combines classical masterworks with contemporary composers, visual art and cross-disciplinary collaboration.
The concert takes place at Brighton Dome Concert Hall on Sunday 6 December at 2.45pm for a matinee show.
Details
Antarctica: Vaughan Williams and Arvo Pärt plays at Brighton Dome Concert Hall, part of the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra 2026/27 season.
Dates: Sunday 6 December at 2.45pm
Venue: Brighton Dome Concert Hall, Church Street, Brighton, BN1 1UE.
Accessible: For access bookings, please email access@brightondome.og or phone 01273 709709
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