15-year-old violin virtuoso heads for Hastings

The Players resume their LMP by the Sea residency on the south coast with the concert Mozart & More… on Saturday, January 29 at St Mary in the Castle, with Leia Zhu making her Hastings debut with LMP.

Leia will also undertake outreach project with students at the Hastings Music Centre.

Spokeswoman Tegan Eldridge said: “The London Mozart Players, the UK’s longest-established chamber orchestra, is thrilled to be returning to Hastings for the first time in two years, bringing a very special guest, 15-year-old violin virtuoso Leia Zhu, who will perform Mozart’s enchanting third violin concerto in their concert Mozart & More…

“Since her solo debut at the age of four, Leia Zhu has performed with orchestras around the world including the London Symphony Orchestra and garnered acclaim wherever she performs. In September 2021, recognising her extraordinary ability and keen to foster this young talent within a nurturing environment, LMP appointed her their Artist in Residence. In October 2021, Leia performed Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto with LMP, which was broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

“Leia is delighted to be making her debut at St Mary in the Castle in Hastings on Saturday, January 29. Her awe-inspiring talent will shine through Mozart’s graceful and witty writing in this sublime concerto. Also on the programme is Coleridge-Taylor’s Four Novelletten, a brilliantly-crafted series of four dance-like pieces that recall Elgar and Dvorak, and Massenet’s evocative and moving Méditation from his opera Thaïs.”

Tegan added: “At the heart of LMP’s residency in Hastings is the desire to inspire young people and widen the reach of classical music. This concert continues the orchestra’s collaboration with the Hastings Music Centre, with 33 of their young musicians performing side by side with LMP players in a performance of Bartok’s Romanian Dances, led and directed by Leia, who will also take time to rehearse with the young musicians in the lead-up to the concert.

“This echoes the incredible opportunity given to around 100 young string players from Hastings Music Centre in February 2020 when they performed side by side with LMP for a performance of Jeff Moore’s Fiddler’s Hill. And LMP will return in April 2022, this time for a side-by-side performance of Take Time at the De La Warr Pavilion.

“These collaborative events are both inspiring and encouraging for young musicians and a vital part of their music education.”

Leia Zhu said: “I’m so looking forward to making my debut in Hastings as part of LMPs’ residency, performing Mozart’s sublime third violin concerto.

“It’s wonderful that everyone has access to these world-class musicians right on their doorstep, and this superb concert programme has something for everyone.

“I’m particularly thrilled to be rehearsing with, and performing alongside, the talented young musicians from the Hastings Music Centre, and I hope it proves to be an inspiring and exciting experience for us all.”

Tegan added: This concert will be an amazing opportunity for music lovers from Hastings and beyond to experience live classical music from this internationally celebrated chamber orchestra and its special young guest, who is surely an inspiration for every fledgling musician.”

The concert starts at 7pm. The programme is: Bartok – Romanian Dances; Mozart – Violin Concerto in G Major; Massenet – Méditation from Thaïs; and Coleridge-Taylor – Four Noveletten

Info and tickets: visit https://www.londonmozartplayers.com/whatson-event/mozart-and-more/?venue=23519

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