Leo Brouwer's Guitar Concerto No.6, Concierto de Volos, may not have sounded too familiar at the beginning of the night, but its popularity is sure to increase following John William's performance last night.

The legendary guitarist took to that stage of the packed Victoria Hall in Hanley alongside the English Chamber Orchestra (ECO) and, while many found the sound to be too much on the contemporary side, no-one can dispute the technical demands it asks of the player.

Wanting to bring different guitar pieces to concert halls, Williams consciously left all thoughts of Rodrigo's infamous Concierto de Aranjuez far behind, but not before giving listeners a little taste of what they ultimately came for.

Myers's Cavatina from The Deer Hunter is undoubtedly one of the most poignant and beautiful works in the repertoire and, while it was scheduled to be performed alongside the ECO, Williams chose to go it alone – and it certainly paid off.

Followed by a further solo, Albeniz's Asturias, the 68-year-old ended his appearance just as he began it; with mind-blowing finger work and unquestionable mastery of the instrument.

After opening with Elgar's Introduction and Allegro, it was down to the ECO to close the night, and they did so with a crowd-pleasing performance of Dvorak's Serenade.

- Liz Rowley

GUITAR legend John Williams doesn't often perform concerts so his arrival at the Victoria Hall is bound to cause a stir.

The 68-year-old Australian is recognised as one of, if not the greatest, classical guitarists of his time, and on Friday he's appearing alongside the English Chamber Orchestra as part of this season's Stoke-on-Trent Festival.

"I first came to the Victoria Hall way back in the 1960s and I've been once since then," says John, who now lives in London, "but this will be my first time in a long while.

"Not many places have orchestral concerts with a guitar soloist so it's great that Stoke is embracing it."

For someone who first started playing the guitar at the age of four, John has certainly come a long way. And while those expecting a performance of Rodrigo's infamous guitar concerto might be disappointed, the virtuoso is adamant the programme he's chosen will impress.

"The Rodrigo Concerto is so popular I'm always asked to play it, just as a pianist is always asked to play Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto, but there are so many others that people would be very happy to hear if they had the opportunity."

One of those pieces is Leo Brouwer's Guitar Concerto: Concierto de Volos No.6, which John is performing for the first time next week.

He says: "Leo Brouwer is a wonderful Cuban composer and one of the great guitarists who was born in the late '30s. He has written a concerto for me before, but I must stress this one isn't it. In fact, I haven't played this piece before but I've been working on it for the past six months and I'm really enjoying playing it. I'll be performing it for the very first time at a concert on Thursday, so by Friday I should have it just right."

Full of East Mediterranean themes, virtuosic melodies and ranging rhythms, Brouwer's work offers listeners the perfect chance to see Williams at his best.

"Parts of it are really, really, fast, so it's quite a great showoff piece that's very accessible," admits John, who was first taught guitar by his father, a well-known session guitarist for dance bands, who taught jazz and classical guitar in Melbourne before opening a school in London.

"The work won't be too well known to the general public, but the main theme is very haunting and I'm sure the audience will enjoy listening to it."

Also on the programme is Myers's Cavatina – the unforgettable theme from the 1978 war film The Deer Hunter – and Albeniz's Asturias.

"Everyone will know Cavatina, it's a guitar standard, and the Albeniz is a piece people will know as soon as they hear it," he concludes. "It's a typical Spanish guitar piece and both of them are always well received when I play them."

John Williams and the English Chamber Orchestra will be performing at the Victoria

June 6, 2010

Tampere Hall

Music by Paul Hart, John Williams & John Etheridge

Performing with:

Duo Recital with John Etheridge

St. Alban´s Church

To be announced

Duo Recital with John Etheridge

Duo Pieces
John Williams & John Etheridge
SANGARA - Francis Bebey
RAGAJUMA - El Hadj N´Diaye
MALINKE GUITARS - John Williams
STRANGE COMFORTS - John Etheridge
MONTI´S CASINO - John Etheridge
PLACES BETWEEN - John Etheridge
EXTRA TIME - John Williams

Interval

Solo Pieces (John Etheridge): tba

Duo Piece
John Williams & John Etheridge
LUDWIG´S HORSE - Paul Hart