Academy of St Martin in the Fields
Joshua Bell, violin/conductor

Part of Beethoven@250
Elizabeth and Henry Segerstrom Select Series

PAGANINI: Violin Concerto No. 1, Op. 6
BEETHOVEN: Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
MOZART: The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492: Overture

One of the most celebrated violinists of his time, Joshua Bell returns with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields in a program featuring Paganini's virtuosic Violin Concerto No. 1 and Beethoven’s beloved Fifth Symphony.

With a career spanning more than 30 years as a soloist, chamber musician, recording artist and conductor, Joshua Bell is one of the most celebrated violinists of his era. An exclusive Sony Classical artist, Bell has recorded more than 40 CDs garnering Grammy, Mercury, Gramophone and Echo Klassik awards and is the recipient of the Avery Fisher Prize. Since 2011, Bell has led the Academy of St Martin in the Fields as the orchestra's Music Director, retaining the collegiate spirit and flexibility of the original small, conductor-less ensemble which has become an Academy hallmark.

The Academy of St Martin in the Fields is one of the world's greatest chamber orchestras, renowned for fresh, brilliant interpretations of the world's greatest classical music. Formed by Sir Neville Marriner in 1958 from a group of leading London musicians, the Academy gave its first performance in its namesake church in November 1959. Through unrivalled live performances and a vast recording output—highlights of which include the 1969 best-seller Vivaldi's Four Seasons and the soundtrack to the Oscar-winning film Amadeus—the Academy quickly gained an enviable international reputation for its distinctive, polished and refined sound. With more than 500 releases in a much-vaunted discography and a comprehensive international touring program, the name and sound of the Academy is known and loved by classical audiences throughout the world.