A Performance by the Ulster Orchestra and The RTÉ Concert Orchestra in Celebration of the 2012 Olympics

Brian Irvine

On Sunday, 4 March 2012 the Ulster Orchestra and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra will perform together for the first time in Belfast’s Waterfront Hall. The concert will include the world premiere of a new BBC Radio 3 commission by Belfast-born composer, Brian Irvine. This new work for double orchestra and choir is entitled Praise Aloud the Trees and is a setting of Seamus Heaney’s poem, Sweeney Astray. The concert will be conducted by Jurjen Hempel, and will also feature the choir of Methodist College, Belfast.

The concert is part of the Music Nation programme which takes place across the UK on 3-4 March 2012. Organised by the BBC and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), Music Nation is a UK-wide programme of concerts, workshops and performances to mark the beginning of large-scale events to herald the arrival of the Olympic Games.

Tickets for the concert are FREE but due to the expected demand, there will be a random draw. Further information and booking is available from the BBC web site or by calling the BBC Ticket Line on +44 3709011227.

The concert begins at 1.00pm and will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 and RTÉ lyric fm.