Haslemere Musical Society’s symphony orchestra will perform an evening of classical sunsets and romantic falling leaves at its autumn concert in the wonderful acoustic of St Christopher’s Church in Haslemere on Saturday, October 15, at 7.30pm.

As the centrepiece, lead clarinettist Helen Owlett will be the soloist in Mozart’s lovely Clarinet Concerto in A major, famed for its elegant allegros and heart-rending adagio.

The overture will come from Cimarosa’s Il matrimonio segreto, whose court premiere had a rapturous reception in 1792.

The Emperor Leopold II was so delighted that he ordered supper for the whole company, followed by a repeat of the entire opera – perhaps the longest encore ever.

The first performance of Saint-Saëns’ Second Symphony, in 1860, had a cooler welcome. Some listeners were scandalised by his breaks with convention. Today we look forward to its lively fugues, calm pastoral dances and final brilliant tarantella as wonders of imagination.

Henri Duparc, a younger colleague of Saint-Saëns, destroyed much of his writing, alas. But Aux Ètoiles is a poème nocturne happily left to us – tender is the night which it will portray.

For tickets, priced £15, visit www.haslemerehall.co.uk or call 01428 642161.

Haslemere Musical Society was founded in 1923 by violin teacher Annie Bristow and looks forward to its 100th birthday next year.

It is proud to be one of the few amateur societies to have both a symphony orchestra and chorus.

From its beginning the society has given annual concerts, and since 1945 it has performed up to four concerts a year of classical works and has built a considerable following.

Membership is wholly amateur, with players and singers from Haslemere and the surrounding area, and includes a wide range of professions and retirees, with ages from the 20s to the 80s.

Rehearsals are in Haslemere Hall at 7.30pm on Mondays from September to May.