Schedule

Designed by the German architect Werner March, Berlin's Waldbühne is an amphitheater that seats over 22,000 people. It was built between 1934 and 1936 for the Summer Olympics of 1936. Since WWII, the Waldbühne has been used for a variety of events, including boxing matches, film screenings, and classical and rock concerts. Annually, the Berlin Philharmonic performs a stunning open concert. In this broadcast of the 1996 edition, Claudio Abbado conducts the orchestra and invites bass-baritone Bryn Terfel, tenor Sergei Larin, and soprano Angela Gheorghiu to sing Verdi arias. This program also features Giuseppe Verdi's Overture Nabucco, duet Et lui (from Don Carlos), Fire chorus Fuoco di gioia, Jago's Credo, Gia nella notte (from Otello), Triumphal March, and chorus Gloria all' Egitto from Aida. You can also discover Vincenzo Bellini's Eccomi from I Capuleti e i Montecchi.

Evgeny Kissin enchants with a magnificent piano recital of works by Chopin, Schumann and Debussy at the 25th anniversary edition of the Swiss Verbier Festival in 2018. The Russian pianist's recitals are always a highlight of the Verbier festival. Always played to a full house, they are anticipated by the audience. This year was no exception with a programme devoted to Debussy Preludes on the occasion of the centennial of the composer’s death and, above all, to Schumann’s seldom played Sonata No.3 Op.14. Schumann composed the piece in 1836 but revised it in 1853. Kissin carefully scrutinized both versions and has allowed himself to borrow the best from both. The 30-minute long work is challenging both physically and technically, ending in a spectacular finale.

Europakonzert has been a tradition of the Berlin Philharmonic since 1991. Every year, the musicians commemorate the anniversary of the orchestra's founding (May 1st, 1882) and celebrate their heritage from the Old World. The Europakonzert of 1998 was held in a unique location: The Vasa museum in Stockholm which displays a 17th-century ship that capsized and sank during its maiden voyage in 1628. The ship measures 69 meters in length, 12 meters in width, and 1.210 tons in weight. It offers the perfect backdrop for the Berlin Philharmonic. Under the baton of Claudio Abbado, they perform melodies in tune with the maritime surroundings, such as the Overture to Richard Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman and Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's symphonic fantasia The Tempest. The program also features Claude Debussy's Nocturnes. For the concert's main piece, discover a memorable and powerful impression of Giuseppe Verdi’s Quattro pezzi sacri. The orchestra is joined by the Swedish Radio Choir and the Eric Ericson Chamber Choir.

The exceptional Russian pianists Nikolay Lugansky and Vadim Rudenko join forces in a performance of Maurice Ravel’s La Valse, in an arrangement for two pianos. This performance was recorded at the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow, Russia, on November 25, 2021.

In Geneva, the Swiss city where she has spent most of her life, Argentinian pianist Martha Argerich invites her lifelong music partner, the cellist Mischa Maisky, to play chamber music. Between the pieces, Martha opens up to her daughter Annie Dutoit in an intimate interview that addresses both their relationship and the music. On the program are Ludwig van Beethoven’s 7 variations after "The Magic Flute"; Robert Schumann’s Fantasiestücke, Op. 73; Frédéric Chopin’s Introduction and Polonaise brillante in C major, Op. 3; ‘Lerchengesang’ (No. 2) from Johannes Brahms’s 4 Gesänge, Op. 70; and ‘Largo’ from Chopin’s Cello Sonata in G minor, Op. 65. This broadcast was recorded on November 12 and 13, 2020, in Geneva, Switzerland.

The German Brass is one of the most original and distinctive brass ensembles in the world. This group of talented musicians performs classical arrangements, dance versions of standards, and popular tunes that reflect an exceptional musical spirit. Inspired by an animated show presented by the ensemble, Hunting Brass: A Musical Joke paints a colorful portrait of the German Brass: during a rehearsal, his musicians are suddenly confronted with doubles who steal their instruments and form their wild orchestra!

In this concert recorded in November 2016 at the magnificent Baroque basilica of Saint Florian, Austria – once the home of Anton Bruckner – the Wiener Singverein, the Cleveland Orchestra and its principal conductor Franz Welser-Möst pare down all traces of bombast wherever emotions could easily run out of control. Brahms' Ein Deutsches Requiem, Op. 45, reaches out to comfort the living through religious texts not traditionally associated with the Requiem Mass. The result is a work of great intensity that speaks to people of all faiths, believers and non-believers alike. The program’s two soloists – Hanna-Elisabeth Müller and Simon Keenlyside – are already at home on the world’s stages. While the former has carved a career for herself not only as an opera singer but also as a concert artist, the London-born Keenlyside has been building his impressive career around the prestigious guest appearances he has made during the past ten years.

Stefano Conticello leads the Orchestra of Teatro Comunale di Bologna in a Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart program. The concert opens with the Overture from Mozart’s popular opera “The Magic Flute”. This is followed by Piano Concerto No. 25 in C major, K. 503, with Maurizio Baglini as the featured soloist. Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 25 is just one of the twelve great piano concertos he composed during 1784 and 1786. The concert ends with Symphony No. 35 in D major, K. 385, also known as the “Haffner Symphony”. On the occasion of the ennoblement of Sigmund Haffner in 1782, the prominent Salzburg Haffner family of businessmen and philanthropists commissioned Mozart to compose a new piece. Mozart agreed, and initially wrote a serenade before recasting it as a symphony a few months later: the “Haffner Symphony”. This performance was recorded at the Teatro Comunale in Bologna, Italy.

Pianist Derek Wang (USA, 1998) performs Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Fantasia No. 4 in C minor, K. 475; Béla Bartók’s Three Burlesques, Op. 8c; and Franz Liszt’s Réminiscences de Don Juan, S. 418, during the first round of the Piano Edition of the Concours musical international de Montréal 2024 (CMIM). This performance was recorded at the Bourgie Hall of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

Azerbaijan-born artist Seljan Nasibli moved to England at an early age, where she was encouraged to take up music. Although Nasibli chose to sing jazz, her Oxford teachers heard an operatic tendency in her voice and advised to train classically. Nasibli completed her studies at The Royal College of Music, where she graduated with a master's degree in Vocal Performance. In this episode of Stingray Originals, Nasibli performs three of Giacomo Puccini's most beautiful arias: 'Signore, ascolta!' and 'Tu, che di gel sei cinta' from the opera Turandot, and 'Quando m'en vo' (Musetta's Waltz) from the opera La bohème.

After a successful inaugural recital in 2016, pianist Misha Fomin returns to the stage in the intimate hall of the Concertgebouw Amsterdam on November 11, 2017. Celebrated by the local and international press for his natural virtuosity, the rich texture of his play and his great musical intelligence, Fomin interprets Fantasia, op. 17 by Schumann, Piano Sonata No. 30, op. 109 of Beethoven, as well as works by Tchaikovsky, including the plays "May", "June" and "October" from the Seasons, op. 37b, and a Liszt transcription of the "Polonaise", taken from the opera Eugene Onegin.

In a 2019 performance from the Muziekgebouw in Eindhoven, Hartmut Haenchen conducts the philharmonie zuidnederland for this performance of Anton Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7. The German-born conductor, who became a Dutch citizen through naturalisation, was chief conductor at the Dutch National Opera, the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Netherlands Chamber Orchestra before he was finally knighted for his services to the Dutch music landscape. The majestic opening theme of the first movement of Anton Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7 foreshadows a momentous work, lasting over 20 minutes. The doubt and turmoil felt throughout the Adagio, the second movement, are supposedly Bruckner's response to the news of the death of his idol, Richard Wagner. Bruckner's use of Wagner tubas and double bass tubas creates an even more solemn and grandiose air within the Adagio. Trumpet signals refer to crowing cockerels as they interrupt the grim and clamorous Scherzo. In the Finale, Bruckner employs a persistent rhythmic pulse that starts softly yet builds up towards the explosive final bars.

Soprano Alisa Fedorenko (Russia, 1999) and pianist Evgenii Sergeev (Russia, 1986) perform ‘Mandoline’ and ‘À Clymène’ from Gabriel Fauré’s Cinq melodies “de Venise”, Op. 58; ‘Lied der Delphine’ from Franz Schubert’s Zwei Szenen aus dem Schauspiel ‘Lacrimas’, D. 857; ‘Son’ (A dream) from Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Six Romances, Op. 38; ‘Elfenlied’ from Hugo Wolf’s Mörike-Lieder; ‘Staccato’ from Rodion Shchedrin’s Three solfege exercises; and Bart Visman’s Vermeer’s Gold, during the semi-finals of the International Vocal Competition 2021 – Lied Duo. This performance was recorded at Het Noordbrabants Museum in ’s-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands.

Acclaimed classical music talent scout Antonio Mormone (1930-2017) lives on as the name-giver of the Premio Internazionale Antonio Mormone (PIAM), awarded to the winner of the Italian music competition of the same name. The first edition of this competition, which was held in various venues in Milan from 2019 to 2021, was dedicated to the piano. As part of this competition, Josef Edoardo Mossali (Italy, 2001) performs Franz Liszt’s Après une Lecture de Dante: Fantasia quasi Sonata; Maurice Ravel’s Toccata from Le tombeau de Couperin; and Etude No. 3 “La Campanella” from Liszt’s Six Grandes études de Paganini. This performance was recorded at Teatro EDI Barrio’s in Milan, in February 2020.

During the 17th century, the Neapolitan rich and famous gathered in droves for the Spassi di Posillipo, open-air festivals on the coast. The most famous musicians sang and played for them from boats. With his Dutch Ensemble Odyssee Andrea Friggi presents the results of his research into this repertoire, with cantatas and serenades by Antonio Farina and Cataldo Amodei. The soloist is the Italian soprano Raffaella Milanesi.

This gala concert at Prague's beautiful Estates Theatre is one of the highlights of Mozart Year 2006. Conducted by Manfred Honeck, the Czech Philharmonic performs W. A. Mozart's finest compositions connected to the city of Prague in general or to the Estates Theatre in particular. Among them is Mozart's Clarinet Concerto, which premiered in Prague in 1791. This 2006 recording features clarinettist Sharon Kam. Mozart's Prague Symphony is invariably on the program. The Overture to Don Giovanni is also associated with the Estates Theatre, which is where Mozart conducted it in 1787.

Maestro Myung-Whun Chung leads the Orchestra and Chorus of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, along with two vocal soloists, in this impressive performance of Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 2 in C minor, ‘Resurrection’. Soprano Christiane Karg and alto Claudia Huckle are the soloists. Written between 1888 and 1894, this five-movement symphony is scored for a large orchestra, chorus, and soprano and alto soloists. Mahler explores themes of life, death, and resurrection throughout the symphony. Its first movement resembles a funeral march, while the second, a graceful Ländler, creates a stark contrast with the somber character of the first. The third movement is a Scherzo based on Mahler’s musical setting of ‘Des Antonius von Padua Fischpredigt’ from the collection Des Knaben Wunderhorn. The composer also used another Wunderhorn poem, ‘Urlicht’ (Primal Light), for the fourth movement, incorporating both text and music, sung by the alto. The chorus makes its entrance in the second part of the fifth and final movement with the ‘Resurrection’ chorale. This performance was recorded at Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino in Florence, Italy, in 2021.

At the gala concert of 2009, the Berlin Philharmonic under its musical director Sir Simon Rattle and Lang Lang present works by two Russian composers. The concert starts with a performance of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18, one of the composer’s most enduring popular pieces, which demands a virtuoso pianist and a huge supple orchestral sound. Both it gets from the world-famous Berlin Philharmonic and the gifted Chinese piano star Lang Lang. The orchestra continues with ballet music from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, perhaps the most popular of all ballets. The concert concludes a few following encores: Tchaikovsky ‘Waltz of the Snowflakes’ from The Nutcracker and Chopin’s Etude No. 1, Op. 25.

Who could imagine that a failed job application would lead to some of the most beautiful classical music ever written? Employed by Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen, an unsatisfied Johann Sebastian Bach craved a career change in 1721. Wishing to join the court of Christian Ludwig, Margrave of Brandenburg, Bach presented him with six new concertos in the hopes of securing a position. Unfortunately, Christian Ludwig never even thanked the composer for his majestic and superbly beautiful work. Brandenburg Concerto No. 1 is an exuberant four-movement composition. Originally written for the clarion, a precursor of the modern trumpet.

Europakonzert has been a tradition of the Berlin Philharmonic since 1991. Every year, the musicians commemorate the anniversary of the orchestra's founding (May 1st, 1882) and celebrate their heritage from the Old World. The Europakonzert of 1992 from El Escorial in Madrid was conducted by Daniel Barenboim and features the world-renowned tenor Plácido Domingo. The program consists of Giuseppe Verdi's Overture La Forza del Destino and Verdi's Lo l'ho perduta! from Don Carlos. Followed by excerpts from Hector Berlioz' La damnation de Faust and Franz Schubert's unfinished Symphony No. 7., the concert also features music by Richard Wagner: Winterstürme wichen dem Wonnemond from Die Walküre, Prelude to Act I from Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, and orchestral excerpts from Götterdämmerung.

Italian composer Claudio Monteverdi (1567-1643) composed nine books of madrigals in half a century, which helped transform the genre from the polyphonic, a cappella madrigals of the late Renaissance to the ‘concertato’ madrigals of the early Baroque, shifting the style’s focus to the ability of music to express emotions contained in a text. In 2011, British tenor Paul Agnew and renowned Baroque ensemble Les Arts Florissants started recording eight books of Monteverdi’s madrigals. In this program, Agnew leads Les Arts Florissants in the madrigals of Book I. Published on New Year’s day of 1587, Book I consist of seventeen madrigals for five voices. This performance was recorded at the Cité de la musique in Paris, France, in 2011.

Pianist Antonio Chen Guang (China, 1994) joins the CMIM ensemble, consisting of three principal strings players of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, in a performance of the first movement, Sostenuto assai – Allegro ma non troppo, of Robert Schumann’s Piano Quartet in E-flat major, Op. 47. This performance took place during the chamber music round of the two-part semi-final of the Piano Edition of the Concours musical international de Montréal 2024 (CMIM). It was recorded at Bourgie Hall in the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

The Malandain Ballet Biarritz performs the ballet Cinderella ('Cendrillon') Op. 87, composed by Sergei Prokofiev to a scenario by Nikolai Volkov and in a choreography by Thierry Malandain. The Orchestre Symphonie d' Euskadi is led by Caballé-Domenech. Cinderella is one of Prokofief's most popular and melodious compositions. It was composed during World War II, but Prokofiev broke off the writing to compose his opera War and Peace. The premiere of Cinderella was conducted by Yuri Fayer on November 21, 1945, at the Bolshoi Theatre. The work is notable for its jubilant music, lush scenery, and for the comic double-roles. Recorded at l'Opéra Royal du Chateau de Versailles in October 2013 and directed by Sonia Paramo.

The Waldbühne in Berlin, one of the most appealing outdoor amphitheatres on the European continent, is the home of the Berliner Philharmoniker’s summer concerts. With over 22.000 in attendance, they are some of the most popular classical music concerts in the world. This year the outstanding orchestra under the baton of Neeme Järvi take us on a trip to Arabian “Thousand and One Nights”, with soloist Janine Jansen, a rising star who quickly gained the reputation of one of the foremost young violinists on the international concert stages. On the program are Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade, Symphonic Suite, op. 35, Grieg's 'Peer Gynt' Suite No.1, op. 46, excerpts from Nielsen's Aladdin Suite for Orchestra op. 34, Saint-Saëns's Introduction und Rondo capriccioso and "Meditation” from 'Thais' by Massenet.

The trio composed of Alessandro Carbonare (clarinet), Elisa Eleonora Papandrea (violin) and Monaldo Braconi (piano) performs regularly in Italy’s concert halls and abroad. Playing Portraits showcases the trio’s appearances in various places, including USA, Russia and Europe, as they perform works by composers such as George Gershwin, Igor Stravinsky, Francis Poulenc, Anton Guilio Priolo, and Reiner Kuttenberger. This program was recorded by Pietro Tagliaferri at the Salle Belle Epoque in the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome.