Home   What's On   Article

Subscribe Now

Candlelight Concert review: ‘The Best of Hans Zimmer’ at Fitzwilliam College Auditorium




By Duncan Paterson

The Best of Hans Zimmer was performed at Fitzwilliam College Auditorium on Saturday, 18 November, by Chaos Collective for Candlelight Concerts as a “live, multi-sensory musical experience […] under the gentle glow of candlelight”.

The programme included pieces from his most famous films, including Inception and Interstellar, as well as suites from Wonder Woman, Pirates of the Caribbean, and the original Dune.

'The Best of Hans Zimmer' concert at Fitzwilliam College Auditorium on Saturday, 18 November. Picture: Duncan Paterson
'The Best of Hans Zimmer' concert at Fitzwilliam College Auditorium on Saturday, 18 November. Picture: Duncan Paterson

It was brilliant to hear the haunting sounds of the string quartet from Norfolk, led by Ivan McCready, beautifully juxtaposed against the Brutalist concrete architecture of the auditorium, creating a diorama of sound for the sold-out audience.

Balanced against the resounding bass notes of the cello, the accompanying violins danced through the dynamic tempos of Zooster’s Breakout from Madagascar and This Land from The Lion King.

McCready, between pieces, would give context to Zimmer’s work, thereby situating the music within the evolution of the composer’s art.

Particular emphasis was put on the narrative within the music, the way Dunkirk (my personal favourite due to Rachel Stacy on the viola) would imitate the tread of boots and the movement of planes overhead, or the sonic scale created in the Dune suite and Time from Inception.

'The Best of Hans Zimmer' concert at Fitzwilliam College Auditorium on Saturday, 18 November. Picture: Duncan Paterson
'The Best of Hans Zimmer' concert at Fitzwilliam College Auditorium on Saturday, 18 November. Picture: Duncan Paterson

Zimmer’s style goes hand-in-hand with the astronomical scale of sci-fi and seemed to push back the physical boundaries of the auditorium as it faded into the darkness beyond the candlelight.

The highlight of the night was arguably the moments after the end of Cornfield Chase from Interstellar, in the stunned silence that reverberated around the auditorium and swallowed up the dying strains of the music as the audience was perfectly captured by their performance.

A rapturous applause broke out, and the quartet bowed, satisfied with an exemplary performance.

I went with high expectations, and it is safe to say that they were superseded. The choice of lighting elevated the listening experience to another level, and the audience was brought along through the very best of Zimmer, spanning genres from children’s animated films and comic book universes to the real universes of classic science fiction.

To be able to enjoy such music performed by local musicians in a venue like that was a privilege.



This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies - Learn More