Schedule

This unique production of Carl Maria von Weber’s ‘Der Freischütz’ was created to celebrate both the piece’s 200th premiere anniversary at Konzerthaus Berlin and the 200th anniversary of the famed concert hall itself. For this production, Catalan theatre group La Fura dels Baus – internationally acclaimed for its avant-garde opera – created a virtual forest in the Konzerthaus’ Great Hall, delivering a thrilling new interpretation of Von Weber’s Romantic opera. Stage director Carlus Padrissa calls this 2021 production a “journey to the roots of opera, where myth, history and the current reality of the forest meet”. Christoph Eschenbach conducts Konzerthausorchester Berlin and Rundfunkchor Berlin. Among the soloists are Jeanine De Bique (Agathe), Anna Prohaska (Ännchen), Benjamin Bruns (Max), Falk Struckmann (Kaspar), Franz Hawlata (Kuno), and Viktor Rud (Kilian). This performance was recorded on June 18, 2021.

The Berliner Philharmoniker, Daniel Barenboim and Claudio Abbado star at the Europakonzert 1994 in Meiningen, Germany, performing Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 5 and Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 2. Popularly known as the Emperor Concerto and composed in Vienna between 1809 and 1811, Piano Concerto No. 5 is Beethoven’s last completed piano concerto and often performed by star pianists such as Daniel Barenboim. A few decades later in 1877, Brahms completed his Second Symphony, which is often compared to Beethoven’s Sixth Symphony given its cheerful and pastoral character.

Five-strong vocal ensemble amarcord is joined by an extra alto and two soprano voices for this unusual concert at Leipzig’s St. Thomas Church. As amarcordplus, the ensemble presents a program focused on the city of Leipzig, which includes sacred madrigals by Johann Hermann Schein, motets from Heinrich Schütz’s collection Geistliche Chor-Music, as well as two motets by the most famous Thomaskantor: Johann Sebastian Bach. Moreover, various sacred works by lesser-known contemporaries Philipp Heinrich Erlebach and mononymous composer Liebhold are performed, in addition to compositions by other members of the Bach family, including Johann Michael Bach and Johann Christoph Bach. This performance was recorded on May 1, 2020.

On the occasion of her 80th birthday, Argentinian pianist Martha Argerich explored chamber music repertoire in this wonderful concert, recorded at Château de Chantilly, France. The ‘Grande Dame’ of the piano is joined by various renowned artists. As part of this concert, Argerich, violinist Tedi Papavrami and cellist Mischa Maisky perform Felix Mendelssohn’s Piano Trio No. 1 in D minor, Op. 49.

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.

Italian cellist Silvia Chiesa and Italian pianist Maurizio Baglini perform a wonderful recital of works by Ferruccio Busoni, Franz Liszt, Frédéric Chopin, and Sergei Rachmaninoff. On the program are Busoni’s Kultaselle – 10 variations on a Finnish folksong; Liszt’s Two Elegies for cello and piano; Chopin’s Introduction and Polonaise brillante in C major, Op. 3; and Rachmaninoff’s Sonata in G minor for cello and piano, Op. 19. As an encore, the duo plays Leonard Bernstein’s iconic composition ‘Tonight’ from the musical West Side Story. This performance was recorded at Sala Verdi of the Conservatorio Giuseppe Verdi in Milan, Italy, on November 4, 2024.

From the Rammenau Castle, the Gewandhaus-Quartett performs String Quartet No. 14 in G major, K. 387 by Mozart. Composed in Vienna in 1782, this play dubbed Spring is the first of the Haydn Quartets, a suite of six string quartets composed by Mozart during his early years in Vienna in honor of Joseph Haydn, considered by many as the father of string quartets. Founded in 1808, the Gewandhaus-Quartett is the oldest quartet in the world, continuously performing for more than 200 years. It is currently composed of Frank Michael Erben (first violin), Conrad Suske (second violin), Volker Metz (viola), Jürnjakob Timm (cello), and Steffen Adelmann (double bass).

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’.

French violinist Renaud Capuçon appears at the festival Les Coups de Cœur de Chantilly, presenting a chamber music program consisting of classical and 20th century repertoire. He performs with the soloists of the International Menuhin Music Academy led by French conductor Jean-Jacques Kantorow. First on the program is Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Sinfonia Concertante in E-flat major, K. 364, in which Capuçon and violist Gérard Caussé appear as the soloists. Capuçon is then joined by pianist Iddo Bar-Shaï for a performance of Mozart’s Sonata for violin and piano in E minor, K. 304. The program closes with Dmitri Shostakovich’s Chamber Symphony in C minor, Op. 110a, which is a transcription of Shostakovich’s String Quartet No. 8 by Russian conductor Rudolf Barshai, the composer’s close friend. This performance was recorded at Château de Chantilly, on May 15, 2021.

Pianist Arisa Onoda (Japan, 1996) performs Joseph Haydn’s Sonata in G major, Hob. XVI:40; Barbara Assiginaak’s Mzizaakok Miiniwaa Mzizaakoonsak (Horseflies and Deerflies); Guido Agosti’s transcription of Igor Stravinksy’s The Firebird Suite (Danse infernale, Berceuse, and Finale); and Frédéric Chopin’s Sonata No. 3 in B minor, Op. 58, during the solo recital of the two-part semi-final round of the Piano Edition of the Concours musical international de Montréal 2024 (CMIM). This performance was recorded at Bourgie Hall in the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

Iván Fischer leads his Budapest Festival Orchestra (BFO) in a concert program dedicated to the music of Ludwig van Beethoven. The program opens with the composer’s Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21. Afterward, Fischer conducts Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major, Op. 58, in which Richard Goode features as the soloist. The acclaimed American pianist (1943) is known for his interpretations of the Beethoven repertoire. Goode recorded all five Beethoven piano concertos with the BFO and Fischer, earning him exceptional critical acclaim and a Grammy Award nomination. As an encore, Goode performs the Sarabande from J. S. Bach’s Partita in B-flat major, BWV 825. The program closes with Beethoven’s famous Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67. This performance was recorded at the Béla Bartók National Concert Hall in Budapest, Hungary, on January 29, 2017.

The Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester was founded in 1986 at the initiative of Claudio Abbado and has since become the world’s best youth orchestra. Named after the great composer, the programme is marked by the special relationship between the maestro and the young orchestra, as well as their special relationship to Gustav Mahler. Claudio Abbado is undeniably the supreme Mahler conductor of our time and his long-time association with this repertoire culminates in this stirring performance of Mahler’s last Symphony, written shortly before the composer’s untimely death. Recorded at Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome 2004, the film vividly shows the joy, talent, and professionalism of the young musicians drawn from all over Europe and their devotion to Claudio Abbado. A wonderful homage to orchestra, conductor, composer and to a triumphant master work - Gustav Mahler’s magnificent 9th symphony.

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.

This documentary by Christoph Keller follows various participants and teachers participating in the International Summer Piano Academy.

Soprano Sophia Burgos (USA, 1991) and pianist Daniel Gerzenberg (Germany, 1991) perform ‘Ich esse nun mein Brod nicht trocken mehr’, ‘Wer rief dich den?’, ‘Schweig’ einmal still, du garst’ger Schwätzer dort!’, and ‘Wenn du, mein Liebster, steigst zum Himmel auf’ from Hugo Wolf’s Italienisches Liederbuch; ‘El paño moruno’ and ‘Nana’ from Manuel de Falla’s Siete canciones populares españolas; ‘D’Anne jouant de l’espinette’ from Maurice Ravel’s Deux epigrammes de Clément Marot, M. 10; Igor Stravinsky’s The owl and the pussy-cat; ‘Agnes’ from Gerrit Isaac van Eijken’s Fünf Gedichte, Op. 11; ‘Die tote Braut’ from Joseph Marx’s Italienisches Liederbuch; ‘Herzeleid’ from Robert Schumann’s Sechs Gesänge, Op. 107; ‘Mon cadavre est doux comme un gant’ from Francis Poulenc’s Fiançailles pour rire, FP 101; and ‘Pause of the clock’ from George Crumb’s The yellow moon of Andalusia (Spanish songbook III), during the final round of the International Vocal Competition 2021 – Lied Duo. This performance was recorded at De Verkadefabriek in ’s-Hertogenbosch, the Netherlands.

Swiss conductor Ludwig Wicki leads the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and the DR Junior Choir in a sparkling concert program of film music. The program features a selection of music from great and Oscar-winning Hollywood films, including Titanic, The Bodyguard, Pirates of the Caribbean, Braveheart, and Moulin Rouge, written by major composers such as John Williams, Hans Zimmer, James Horner, and Klaus Badelt. Highlights include ‘He’s a pirate/Davy Jones’ from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest; ‘Now We Are Free’ from Gladiator; ‘My Heart Will Go On’ from Titanic; and ‘Shallow’ from A Star Is Born. Featured soloists in this concert are the young talented singers Andrea Lykke Oehlenschlæger and Diluckshan Jeyaratnam. This performance was recorded at the DR Koncerthuset in Copenhagen, Denmark, in May 2022.

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.

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, Ying Li (China, 1997) performs Claude Debussy’s Images, book I; Frédéric Chopin’s Nocturne in C-sharp minor, Op. 27 No. 1; and Franz Liszt’s Paraphrase from Verdi’s ‘Rigoletto’. This performance was recorded at Teatro EDI Barrio’s in Milan, in February 2020.

The National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia is joined by acclaimed Russian pianist Boris Berezovsky in an interpretation of works by Rachmaninov and George Gershwin. Conductor Konstantin Khvatynets directs this concert, filmed at the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow. The programme includes George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and Rachmaninov's Rhapsody on a Theme by Paganini and is produced by the Moscow Philharmonic Society, which Saint Petersburg-born composer Dmitri Shostakovich himself once described as playing a significant role "in the development of musical life [in Russia]. It is a kind of university which is attended by millions of music lovers and thousands of musicians.” The Moscow Philharmonic Society was founded in 1922 by then-Commissar for Culture, Anatoly Lunacharsky, and has over the years come to be Russia's leading concert organizing institution.

Italian cellist and conductor Enrico Bronzi leads the Orchestra da Camera di Perugia in this intimate concert at the magnificent Basilica di San Pietro in the Italian city of Perugia, recorded on September 27, 2021. Opening the program is a cello performance by Bronzi with the Orchestra da Camera di Peruglia: the Andante cantabile from Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 13 in D major, Hob. I:13. Then, Italian pianists Linda Di Carlo and Marco Scolastra join the orchestra for a performance of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Concerto for two pianos and orchestra in E-flat major, K. 365. Next up is Mozart’s concert aria "Ch'io mi scordi di te? ... Non temer, amato bene", K. 505, sung by Italian mezzosoprano Marina Comparato. Accompanied by Linda Di Carlo on piano, she closes the concert with the aria “Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix” from Camille Saint-Saëns’s opera Samson and Delilah.

The 2007 Europa-Konzert takes place in Berlin, on the occasion of the 125th anniversary of the Berliner Philharmoniker. Under the theme "The Year 1882", the acclaimed orchestra is lead by conductor Sir Simon Rattle as it interprets Brahms’ “Concerto for violin, cello and orchestra”, his Fourth Symphony and Wagners’ “Prelude to Act I” from Parsifal - the piece that marked the orchestra's first recorded work of September 1913 under the baton of Alfred Hertz. The soloists are Lisa Batiashvili (violin) and Truls Mørk (cello), established as sought-after young virtuosos and appearing regularly with leading orchestras and in recitals throughout the world. The “Kraftwerk und Kabelwerk Oberspree (power and cable factory)”, the remarkable venue of this concert, is one of the most impressive historical industrial building from the late 19th century in Berlin. As its impressive presence is infused with Brahms and Wagner, there is an air of total commitment, only enhanced further by the unusual surroundings. The collaboration of Lisa Batiashvili and Truls Mørk ensures a moving performance of Brahms’s last orchestral work, his Double Concerto. Following this, Rattle and the orchestra continue to demonstrate their outstanding musicianship, delivering Wagner's amazingly fresh and dynamic Fourth Symphony.

Testing Mozart is a 60 minute film about the Mozart effect; the power of Mozart's music to fight disease and increase the mental ability of listeners. It is common knowledge that cows give more milk and tomatoes grow bigger when Mozart is played, but what effect does his music have on humans? In this journey into the worlds of music and medicine, Testing Mozart examines the latest scientific discoveries that shed new light on the influence the composer’s work has on the brain. The documentary by award-winning director Frederick Baker explains why Mozart is so special. Produced in 2006 as part of Mozart Year, this captivating documentary caters to a wide audience and introduces neophytes to the work of Mozart.