Schedule

Musical director Emiliano Gonzalez Toro leads Ensemble I Gemelli in this 2021 performance of Claudio Monteverdi's late-Renaissance opera L'Orfeo at the Théâtre Graslin in Nantes, France. Among the soloists are Toro himself (Orfeo), Emőke Baráth (Euridice), Natalie Perez, Douglas Williams, Fulvio Bettini, Alix Le Saux, Jérôme Varnier, and Mathilde Etienne. The opera retells the Greek legend of Orpheus and his descent to the underworld to return his bride Eurydice to the world of the living. Monteverdi composed L'Orfeo in 1607 for the annual Carnival at Mantua. One of the first operas ever written, it is still performed regularly.

The film Jaroussky sings Bach & Telemann is a portrait of a very special vocalist, and of two exceptional composers. When Philippe Jaroussky - whose angelic voice seems almost timeless, not belonging to any one epoque or decade - sings works by Telemann and Bach, it becomes abundantly clear that the sheer emotional force and the purifying power of their music have not diminished over the centuries. The works performed in this film are Telemann's Jesus liegt in letzten Zügen and Sinfonia from Brockes-Passion; Der am Ölberg zagende Jesus, and Bach's Sinfonia from Ich hatte viel Bekümmernis and Ich habe genug.

For over two decades, the Berlin Philharmonic has celebrated its creation on May 1 with the annual Europakonzert, which in 2010 was held in Oxford. Led by Daniel Barenboim, the orchestra performed a program including Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 1. The young American cellist Alisa Weilerstein, who has attracted widespread attention for her passionate yet precise musicianship, joined the orchestra for a breathtaking performance of Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto.

Les Dissonances is a collective of artists founded by violinist David Grimal in 2004. The conductorless ensemble consists of musicians from the most prestigious European orchestras, international soloists, and young talents. In this performance, Les Dissonances’ string quartet – consisting of David Grimal (violin), Hans Peter Hofmann (violin), David Gaillard (viola), and Xavier Phillips (cello) – performs Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s String Quartet No. 19 in C major, K. 465, ‘Dissonance’ (Op. 10 No. 6). The String Quartet is the last in the set of six quartets that were dedicated to Joseph Haydn. Written between 1782 and 1785, these are also known as the Haydn Quartets (Op. 10). String Quartet No. 19 is remarkable for its slow, dissonant introduction, giving the piece its nickname. This ominous passage suddenly gives way to the bright Allegro in C major. This performance was recorded at Opéra Comique in Paris, France, in 2015.

On 18 December 2017, the Valerius Ensemble played a Christmas concert in Concordia, Enschede. The ensemble consists of Robert Windak (violin), Annemarie van Vliegen (violin), Eva Šušliková (viola) and Réne Geesing (cello). The program consists of “Das neugeborne Kindelein” from Bachs Cantata BWV 122, the Largo from Vivaldi’s Winter, the Allegro from Mozart’s Divertimento in D (KV. 136), Méditation from Massenet’s opera “Thaïs,” The Entertainer by Scott Joplin, the Vilja song from Léhars “Die Lustige Witwe” and the animated Romanian folk-tune Geampara. The Ensemble closes with Piazzolla’s Ave Maria (Tanti anni prima).

Conductor Herbert Blomstedt and the Gewandhausorchester take us on a musical journey to the Czech Republic in this 2020 concert from Leipzig’s Gewandhaus. The program opens with Bohemian composer Jan Václav Hugo Voríšek’s Symphony in D major, Op. 23 (1821). Although the composition – Voríšek’s only symphony – was never performed during the composer’s lifetime, it has become one of his most-performed works today. Also on the program is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 in D major, K. 504. This work, which premiered while Mozart was visiting Prague in 1787, is often referred to as the ‘Prague Symphony’.

In 2018, conductor Emiliano Gonzalez Toro and Mathilde Etienne created Ensemble I Gemelli, specializing in seventeenth-century Italian vocal music. From Claudio Monterverdi to Francesco Cavalli, via Giovanni Felice Sances, Barbara Strozzi and Giacomo Carissimi, Ensemble I Gemelli embraces a myriad of Italian works. In this program, recorded at the Théâtre Graslin in Nantes, the ensemble performs rarely-heard arias and cantatas from seventeenth-century Italy. Soloists are soprano Emöke Baráth, contralto Anthea Pichanick, and renowned countertenor Philippe Jaroussky.

Llewellyn Sanchez-Werner (USA, 1996) performs Meredith Monk’s Ellis Island (version for solo piano), J.S. Bach’s Chromatic Fantasia and Fugue, BWV 903, Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Appassionato in E-flat minor, Op. 39 No. 5 (Études-Tableaux), and Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 32 in C minor, Op. 111, during the semi-finals of the 2021 Piano Edition of the Concours musical international de Montréal (CMIM). This performance was recorded at Merkin Hall of Kaufman Music Center in New York, NY, USA.

Les Dissonances is a collective of artists founded by violinist David Grimal in 2004. The conductorless ensemble consists of musicians from the most prestigious European orchestras, international soloists, and young talents. In this performance Les Dissonances perform Franz Schubert’s Symphony No. 8 in B minor, D. 759, also known as the ‘Unfinished Symphony’. Schubert started composing the work in 1822, but only completed the first two movements. The first movement, Allegro moderato, has a dark, mysterious mood, which contrasts with the beautiful second movement in E major, Andante con moto. Schubert only penned a couple of measures of the third movement, a Scherzo, in full score. It is not known why the composer never finished his symphony. Although it is not complete, it has become one of Schubert’s most popular compositions. This performance was recorded at Cité de la musique in Paris, France, in 2013.

To strengthen faith and stimulate piety: this was the role of music according to Pope Benedictus XIV, who in the 18th century carried out radical church reforms. Festival resident Giulio Prandi closely examines the religious repertoire of this period from a double perspective: that of traditional counterpoint, as in Domenico Scarlatti’s ‘Madrid’ Mass, and that of the modern, theatrical style of Perez and Jommelli.

At the beginning of the 19th century, Europe was set alight by a shocking new dance craze: the waltz. The story of the waltz is inseparable from the story of the Strauss family. This docudrama, entertainingly presented by Lesley Garrett, tells their story. Composers Strauss Sr. and Strauss Jr., who both held the public title of "The Waltz King", were uneasy rivals in their private life. Strauss Sr., born in 1804, was a hugely popular composer, who transformed the waltz from a simple dance into a Viennese cultural phenomenon. Yet his reputation was entirely eclipsed by his eldest son, who took the waltz to a whole new musical level, writing The Blue Danube and several other pieces. However, in his own mind, Strauss Jr. never quite escaped the shadow of his father. Lesley Garrett explores the origins of the waltz - the music, the dance steps, the ballrooms, and the costumes, while narrating the bitter conflict between a father and a son. This rich and compelling story is lavishly illustrated with the music and dancing of the time, recreated at Vienna's sumptuous Hofburg Palace.

Every year since 1991, the Berliner Philharmoniker has given concerts in a different European city on each May 1st. These concerts have become known as ‘Europakonzert’. Every guest city has its own special cultural importance. These concerts have served two purposes: to commemorate the anniversary of the orchestra’s founding on May 1st, 1882, and to celebrate the common heritage of the Old World. In 1991, soon after the opening of the Eastern European countries, the first Europakonzert took place in the Czech Republic in Prague. This decision was a deliberate step and an expression of willingness to support and to bring forward the democratization and the political social changes, especially in the cultural area. In 1996 the Europakonzert took place once again in Prague (at the National Theatre). To continue this tradition the Europakonzert 2013 was celebrated at the Prague Castle at the historical Spanish Hall. Conductor: Sir Simon Rattle. Soloist: Magdalena Kozená. Works: Ralph Vaughan Williams, Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, Antonín Dvořák, Ten Biblical Songs, Opus 99. Ludwig van Beethoven, Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68.

For the first time in modern times, the Festival della Valle d'Itria stages the Neapolitan version of Georg Friedrich Händel's Rinaldo, an opera in three acts. The opera, considered lost until a few years ago, was the first of its kind to be written for the London opera stage in Italian language. Director Giorgio Sangati turns this interpretation into a “ba-rock” opera set of the 1980’s, where the struggle between Christians and Turks becomes a battle between pop-rock singers (the Christians), and dark-metal musicians (the Turks). These two factions represent two opposite perspectives on love and life. The baroque Ensemble La Scintilla performs under the baton of conductor Fabio Luisi. The acclaimed cast consisted of several splendid vocalists, among which were Carmela Remigio (Armida), Francisco Fernández (Goffredo), Loriana Castellano (Almirena), Teresa Iervolino (Rinaldo), Francesca Ascioti (Argante), Dara Savinova (Eustazio), and many more.

Ester Hoppe (violin), Christian Poltéra (cello) and Francesco Piemontesi (piano) perform Schubert's Piano Trio No. 2, Op. 100 (D. 929) during the International Chamber Music Festival in Bellinzona, Switzerland, in 2019. This trio was among the last compositions completed by Schubert and is dated November 1827. It was published late 1828, shortly before Schubert's death and first performed in January 1828 to celebrate the engagement of Schubert's friend Josef von Spaun. The second theme of the opening movement is based on a theme from the Trio of Schubert's Piano Sonata No. 18 (D. 894). The main theme of the second movement is used as a central musical theme in Kubrick's film Barry Lyndon (1975).

The Kathleen Tagg / Andre Petersen piano duo brings together two of South Africa's most celebrated pianists: one eclectic-experimental classical and one jazz artist, in a unique and highly personal collaboration. Drawing inspiration from the rich sonic tapestries of classical music, nuances of South African jazz and traditional musics from sub-Saharan Africa, this duo explodes the concept of what two pianos can sound like: a bass guitar, goema drum, marimba and uhadi–plus mixing fully composed scores with improvisation in a bold, vital and highly entertaining mix with performances of original compositions and works by iconic South African jazz composers such as Abdullah Ibrahim, Bheki Mseleku and Moses Molelekwa. Tagg and Petersen explore diverse realms of possibilities within the sound world of the piano, their musical offerings paying tribute to the poignant legacy of people who have inspired their world-view and music making. In this performance from the 2019 edition of Classical:NEXT!, the talented pianists perform "Bheki Mseleku", "Angola", "African Dawn / Cape Doctor", "Second Time Around", "Rapela", "Time Watchers" and "Berimbau".

Conrad van Alphen conducts Sinfonia Rotterdam in a performance of Camille Saint-Saëns’ (1835-1921) Symphony No. 3, Op. 78. Geert Bierling stars as soloist on the organ of De Doelen. It was recorded on October 20th, 2018 in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3 was completed in 1886. It is known as the Organ Symphony since the instrument is used in the second and fourth movement of the work. The composer stated about this symphony: "I gave everything to it I was able to give. What I have here accomplished, I will never achieve again." Saint-Saëns was at the height of his symphonic career, realizing this was his last attempt at the symphonic form.

Patrick Debrabandere conducts the Vox Mago chamber choir in a performance of J. D. Heinichen's Magnificat in A. This performance is part of the concert program In Tempus Adventus, consisting of three beautiful baroque cantatas. Recorded in December 2018 in Onze-Lieve-Vrouw Presentatiekerk, Ghent, Belgium. The Magnificat has a typical baroque sound, with a string section, basso continuo, and two oboe parts.