Questioning Everything – Strauss, Liszt and Kendall
Rousing. Urgent. Lyrical.
Thursday 5 October 2023 • 7pm
This event has passed.
The Concert
Hannah Kendall O flower of fire (world premiere)
Franz Liszt Totentanz
Interval – 20 minutes
Richard Strauss Also sprach Zarathustra
Sir Antonio Pappano conductor
Alice Sara Ott piano
London Symphony Orchestra
The concert will finish at approximately 9pm
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
An allocation of tickets is available for NHS staff for selected LSO concerts through Tickets for Good. Visit ticketsforgood.org to register.
Pop culture’s most famous fanfare sets the mood – this is music that tells you: wake up!
The Programme
A blast of trumpets, a pounding of timpani: the opening of Richard Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra heralds the rise of the sun. Stanley Kubrick used it to grab viewers’ attention in his film 2001: A Space Odyssey.
But for Strauss, this is the dawn of an age full of questions: what does it mean to be alive? Joining the debate, Liszt’s Totentanz is a ferocious vision of mortality, complete with ghoulish jangling bones. And there’s a new work by Hannah Kendall, a composer whose music, in Pappano’s own words, ‘has an amazing ability to really grip the listener’.
The Performers
In his first concert as Chief Conductor Designate of the LSO, Sir Antonio Pappano brings emotional depth to the music’s thrills and chills. Alice Sara Ott masters the breakneck glissandos of Liszt’s showpiece music for piano.
Hannah Kendall’s music has an amazing ability to really grip the listener, to draw the listener in. It’s percussive, it’s lyrical, it’s very atmospheric, with the use of really beautiful chords, and an amazing use of silence, which makes you really want to listen to her music.
– Sir Antonio Pappano
Commission for O flower of fire generously supported by The Boltini Trust
Recorded for broadcast on BBC Radio 3
Filmed for broadcast by Marquee TV
Header Image © Mark Allan
£10 Tickets for Students
Full-time students can book £10 tickets for this concert through Student Pulse London.
Dive Deeper
Sir Antonio Pappano, LSO Chief Conductor Designate, introduces this concert and Alice Sara Ott performs a short clip of Franz Liszt’s Totentanz.
Read: 'Creolised' sounds in O flower of fire
Hannah Kendall discussed unexpected instruments and the inspirations behind her new piece for the LSO.
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.
Concerts with Pappano in 2023/24
Kirill Gerstein & Friends
Stream on BBC Sounds
Pianist Kirill Gerstein curates an early-evening chamber concert celebrating four centuries of musical mavericks, as part of his Spotlight Artist series with the LSO.
Half Six Fix: Walton
Sir Antonio Pappano
Wednesday 5 February 2025 • 6.30pm
Kick-start your evening with a 60-minute Half Six Fix concert, introduced by the performers, with screens in the hall to bring you closer to the action.
Walker, Bernstein and Walton 1
Sir Antonio Pappano and Janine Jansen
Thursday 6 February 2025 • 7pm
Walton’s turbulent first Symphony, and a pair of passionate statements of love and outrage from two American greats. Sir Antonio Pappano conducts, joined by violinist Janine Jansen.
Maconchy, Walton and Vaughan Williams 1
Sir Antonio Pappano and Rebecca Gilliver
Sunday 9 February 2025 • 7pm
Evocative portraits of night and the sea in an all-British programme: enigmatic Maconchy, meditative Walton, and awe-inspiring Vaughan Williams, in his 'Sea Symphony'.
Half Six Fix: Vaughan Williams
Sir Antonio Pappano
Wednesday 12 February 2025 • 6.30pm
Kick-start your evening with a 60-minute Half Six Fix concert, focused on Vaughan Williams' 'Sea Symphony'. Introduced by the performers, with screens in the hall to bring you closer to the action.
On Tour in Bristol
Sir Antonio Pappano and Rebecca Gilliver
Thursday 13 February 2025 • 7pm
A rich and evocative programme on tour at Bristol Beacon. Sir Antonio Pappano conducts Walton's Cello Concerto and Mahler's First Symphony, with Rebecca Gilliver as soloist.
On Tour in Santa Barbara
Sir Antonio Pappano and Janine Jansen
Tuesday 18 February 2025 • 7.30pm
Music by Bernstein and Mahler on tour in Santa Barbara, with Chief Conductor Sir Antonio Pappano and soloist Janine Jansen.
On Tour in Palm Springs
Sir Antonio Pappano and Janine Jansen
Wednesday 19 February 2025 • 7.30pm
On tour in California, Chief Conductor Sir Antonio Pappano is joined by soloist Janine Jansen for a programme of Walker, Mendelssohn and Mahler.
