Review | Double harp concertos cap evening of celestial music from the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong under the baton of Robert Reimer
- It is rare to see a solo harpist, let alone two of them, but Dan Yu and Lau Yee-yeung shone in two works with the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong
- The harp concertos were the highlights of a starry concert led by Robert Reimer that included a symphony by the 18th century astronomer who discovered Uranus
The harp is a rare beast to come across in a solo setting. Its natural habitat is the orchestra, especially one playing Romantic music.
Seeing two solo harpists on stage together is therefore about as rare as finding a four-leaf clover, or that matching lid for your Tupperware.
On September 1, the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong performed two concertos that showed both the solo capabilities of the instrument and the virtuosity of harpists Dan Yu and Lau Yee-yeung.
The entertaining and very well-performed concert, titled “Stars, Angels & Celestial Harps”, was skilfully led by German guest conductor Robert Reimer and also included a lovely selection of orchestral music.
To begin the concert and introduce the “stars” theme, the orchestra gave a lively account of William Herschel’s Symphony No. 17 in C.
