THE Aberdeen Music Hall, which has recently re-opened, is to launch a new classical music programme strand next month with Rêverie, a weekend of performances, talks and masterclasses.

It is focussed on French music, led by composers Debussy and Ravel and their peers.

The Rêverie weekend runs from 15 to 19 March.

The BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Scottish Ensemble, Scottish Opera, and leading pianists Javier Perianes, Bertrand Chamayou and Lucy Parham will be performing in the weekend, which also includes appearances by actors Alistair McGowan and Tim McInnerny.

Ben Torrie, director of programming, said: "With the reopening of the Music Hall after its multi-million pound transformation we wanted to give audiences the opportunity to explore musical themes in greater depth in our new classical music programming.

"We are delighted to be able to bring together so many leading ensembles and performers in this special exploration of musical impressionism."

Rêverie opens with a BBC SSO performance, Viva España, which includes de Falla’s The Three-Cornered Hat, Suite No. 2 and Nights in the Gardens of Spain, and Ravel Rhapsodie espagnole.

Tickets for all Rêverie events can be obtained from the Aberdeen Performing Arts box office.

www.aberdeenperformingarts.com

LEADING musicians, including violin virtuoso Nicola Benedetti CBE, are to mentor young performers at Scotland’s national conservatoire this weekend.

Students from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland’s (RCS) Junior Conservatoire will learn at two special masterclasses.

Ms Benedetti, patron of the Royal Conservatoire’s Junior Conservatoire (Music), a will host a masterclass with two young violinists who will be selected, by an adjudicator, from the Nan Christie Memorial Prize for Strings on Saturday morning.

The masterclass is free and open to the public.

Also taking place on Saturday is a creative learning project for Junior Conservatoire music students with composer James Redwood, Scottish Ensemble and Venezuelan-born, award-winning pianist Gabriela Montero, who is also an honorary consul of Amnesty International for her sustained efforts to advocate for human rights in Venezuela, both through music and public discourse.

The students will perform in a closing concert which is also free and open to the public.

Francis Cummings, Head of the Junior Conservatoire (Music), said: “Connecting young people to the transformative power of making music is more important than ever, and Saturday promises to be an enriching educational experience.

"Students will learn from the best, from artists at the very top of their disciplines, who will share their insight, expertise and enthusiasm with the next generation of musical talent.”

www.rcs.ac.uk/boxoffice

THE stories of Jewish immigrants who made Scotland their home have been brought to life in a series of short films.

The videos – called Points of Arrival – chart the lives of Jewish people who have come to Scotland since the late 19th century.

The five films have been produced as part of Jewish Lives, Scottish Spaces – a joint research project between the Universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow.

People profiled include a former cantor at Garnethill synagogue in Glasgow, Isaac Hirshow, and businesswoman and campaigner for the Jewish community in Scotland, Annie Lindey.

Artist Hilda Goldwag is featured in a film narrated by her granddaughter.

Also featured is 94 year-old Henry Wuga, who speaks regularly at schools and public events in the UK and in Germany, and author Dorrith Sim, who has written a book about her childhood journey in 1939 from Germany to her new home in Edinburgh.

Lead researcher Dr Hannah Holtschneider, of the University of Edinburgh’s School of Divinity, said: “The films offer fresh perspectives on the history of migration to these shores, its impact on individuals, the reception the people received and the contribution immigrants have made in communities.”

The project draws on the collections of the Scottish Jewish Archives Centre (SJAC), the Mitchell Library in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Glasgow City Archives, the National Library of Scotland and National Records of Scotland.

www.ed.ac.uk