This is the third concert of the Oxford Chamber Music Society [https://oxfordchambermusic.org]'s 2025-2026 season. Click here [https://oxfordchambermusic.org/coming-season/preview-of-season-2025-2026/] for details of the full season. The three artists in this first concert of the New Year are well-known internationally and particularly to Oxford audiences. Ben Goldscheider completed his studies with the Barenboim-Said Academy in Berlin in 2020. He is Principal Horn in the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra and a member of the Boulez Ensemble and the Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective. Ben is a brilliant soloist and committed chamber musician, performing with many leading musicians and ensembles. He has appeared as a soloist at major concert halls across Europe and with leading European and British orchestras. Among frequent events in Oxford, he has recently given recitals at St. Johns College and Trinity College as well as appearing with the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra in the Sheldonian Theatre. See more at Bens website here. [https://www.bengoldscheider.com] Anna Tilbrook studied music at York University and with Julius Drake at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she was a major prize winner. She is one of Britains most exciting pianists, with a considerable reputation in song recitals and chamber music. Anna made her debut at the Wigmore Hall in 1999 and has since become a regular performer at Europes top concert halls and festivals. She has collaborated with many leading singers and String Quartets such as the Carducci, Fitzwilliam, Elias, Coull, Barbirolli and Sacconi. Her recordings of 20th-century English songs for Linn Records, and Chandos have been very well received. See more at Annas website here. [https://www.annatilbrook.co.uk] From his early training as a chorister in the choir of New College, Oxford,James Gilchrist has become one of the most sought-after British tenors. His extensive repertoire has seen him perform with many of Britain's leading orchestras, including theEnglish Chamber Orchestra,City of London SinfoniaandNorthern Sinfonia, and in concert halls throughout the world. James exploration of British song, especially the works of Britten and Finzi, has been highly acclaimed. AsThe Timesstated: ' As an interpreter of English song, Gilchrist is often in a class by himself '. He has also gained an international reputation for his performances of Schumann and Schubert song cycles where his expressive tenor brings out the nuances of these lyrical songs. See more at James website here. [https://www.jamesgilchrist.co.uk] Together, James Gilchrist and Anna Tilbrook have been delighting international audiences for over 25 years with their sensitive and moving interpretations of the Lieder repertoire. Each of their varied and compelling recent performances at the Oxford International Song Festival and at Trinity College have made them firm favourites with Oxford audiences. Of a recent recital Erica Jeal in The Guardian wrote, Gilchrist is, as ever, a hugely clear and communicative singer, in perfect balance with Tilbrooks sense of focus and poise Todays concert will begin with Beethovens only song cycle, To the distant beloved , from 1816. This is followed by Schumanns Adagio and Allegro, written expressly for the horn and piano, and the Liederkreis for tenor and piano. The final piece before the interval, Schuberts Auf dem Strom , carries echoes of the Beethoven and distant memories of a beloved. The concert will conclude with two of Brittens most loved compositions for tenor, horn, and piano. Ben Goldscheider has written about the Serenade that: To this day, nobody has really succeeded in emulating its form. Each movement is a character study on a different facet of the horn: in some movements it acts as a commentator on the text; at other moments it bursts forth, for example in the Dirge where the fortissimo horn melody totally obliterates the voice. So, Britten understands what the horn is as a symbol and treats it in a unique way . BBC Music Magazine 2024. This combination of three exceptional artists in a wide-ranging programme of superb chamber music promises to be an outstanding concert in our series. Ben Goldscheider (horn),James Gilchrist (tenor),Anna Tilbrook (piano) Photo credits: Ben Goldscheider Ben Goldscheider; James Gilchrist Stephen Boffey; Anna Tilbrook 2024 Nobby Clark & Victoria Cadish Programme Beethoven An Die Ferne Geliebte , Op.98 (Tenor & Piano) Robert Schumann Adagio and Allegro in Amajor, Op.70 (Horn & Piano) Robert Schumann Liederkreis , Op.39 (Eichendorff): 7. Auf einer Burg (Tenor & Piano) Schubert Auf dem Strom , D.943 (Tenor, Horn, & Piano) ----- Interval ----- Britten Canticle III, Still Falls the Rain (Tenor, Horn, & Piano) Britten Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, Op.31