Performed by the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra, conducted by Douglas Boyd.
The Isle of Staffa, with its Fingal's Cave to the right - inspiration for Mendelssohn's Hebrides Overture. Photo: Marshall Walker
In 1829, Felix Mendelssohn visited Great Britain for the first time at the invitation of Sir George Smart and the Philharmonic Society.
After a tour of England, he went to Scotland where he began work on his Symphony No 3, "Scottish".
He also took an excursion to the island of Staffa with its basalt formation known as Fingal's Cave.
Inspired, he immediately jotted down a theme, which he sent in a letter to his sister Fanny, writing, "In order to make you understand how extraordinarily the Hebrides affected me, I send you the following, which came into my head there."
He later developed the theme into this overture, alternatively known as "The Hebrides" or "Fingal's Cave".
Recorded at Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra's Premier Series concert "German Masters", Auckland Town Hall, 28 September 2017 by RNZ Concert.
