in Varpið in Klaksvík

Faroese soloist and composer at the Faroese Symphony Orchestra’s spring concert

After a New Year’s concert filled with Faroese soloists, the symphony orchestra continues its collaboration with Faroese musicians. At the spring concert, the outstanding pianist Aksel Remmel will perform Piano Concerto No. 2 by Sergei Rachmaninov, followed by a work by composer Eli Tausen á Lava.

Eli Tausen á Lava is active as a composer, pianist, and electronic musician. With a master’s degree in composition from New York University, Eli has in recent years collaborated with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, The Rhythm Method, Aldubáran, and now also the Faroese Symphony Orchestra.

The orchestral work let me cry became a real breakthrough for Eli. It was premiered in 2024 at Nordic Music Days in Scotland, attracting significant attention, and several European orchestras have since added the piece to their programmes.

Aksel Remmel is a pianist who completed his master’s degree at the Royal Danish Academy of Music in Copenhagen in 2025 under Professor Jens Elvekjær. In 2021, Aksel won the Stella Polaris competition for young classical musicians, and he has previously performed with the Faroese Symphony Orchestra. At the spring concert, Aksel Remmel will, for the first time, perform a full piano concerto with the symphony orchestra.

Rachmaninov wrote Piano Concerto No. 2 in 1900–1901. After a disastrous premiere, where Rachmaninov himself played the piano, the concerto later became one of his most frequently performed works.

Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 4 by Tchaikovsky was written between 1877 and 1878. The work revolves around fate—fatum in Latin—and is therefore also known as the “Fate Symphony.” It was composed while Tchaikovsky was going through a deep personal crisis, which is reflected in the heavy and dramatic music. Although the symphony initially received mixed reactions, it is today regarded as one of the composer’s most important works and is performed worldwide.

Catherine Larsen-Maguire
Catherine was born in Manchester and has been based in Berlin for the past 30 years. She studied music at Cambridge University, in Hanover, and at the Karajan Academy in Berlin.

After ten years as principal bassoonist at Komische Oper Berlin, Catherine decided in 2012 to pursue her dream of becoming a conductor. Since then, she has appeared on stage with outstanding orchestras such as the London Philharmonic, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre du Capitole de Toulouse, and Hong Kong Sinfonietta.

With a strong passion for the younger generation of musicians, she has taught and conducted youth orchestras around the world and has been a guest professor at the Universität der Künste in Berlin.

The Faroese Symphony Orchestra has signed a four-year collaboration agreement with Catherine.

Conductor: Catherine Larsen-Maguire (UK)
Soloist: Aksel Remmel (FO)
When: Saturday, 15 March at 16