00:00
Gluck - Iphigénie en Tauride
Iphigénie en Tauride (1779) is a four-act tragic opera by German-born composer Christoph Willibald Gluck. Written for the French stage, the work’s premiere in 1779 at the Parisian Royal Academy of Music was a great success. Iphigénie en Tauride is one of the composer’s ‘reform operas’, meaning that the music was to follow the drama and its expression. Nicolas-François Guillard’s libretto is based on Claude Guimond de La Touche’s play of the same name, but ultimately it derives from Euripides’s famous ancient Greek drama. Set shortly after the Trojan War, Iphigénie, who was to be sacrificed by her father Agamemnon, is saved and carried off by the goddess Diana to Tauris, where Iphigénie becomes Diana’s high priestess. Diego Fasolis conducts the Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire and the Chœur d’Angers Nantes Opéra in this production. Among the soloists are Marie-Adeline Henry (Iphigénie), Charles Rice (Oreste), Sébastien Droy (Pylade), Jean-Luc Ballestra (Thoas), and Élodie Hache (Diane). This performance was recorded at the Grand Théâtre d’Angers, France, in 2020.
01:50
A Night in Vienna
A Night in Vienna recreates the magical atmosphere of 19th century Viennese ballrooms. In the breathtaking surroundings of Vienna's Hofburg Palace, the Wiener Akademie period orchestra, conducted by Alfred Eschwe, plays some of the Strauss family's and Joseph Lanner's favorite pieces, including "The Beautiful Blue Danube", "Tritsch-Tratsch-Polka", and the "Radetzky March". Former residence of the Habsburg dynasty, the Hofburg contained the apartments of Emperor Franz Joseph and Empress Elizabeth. A Night in Vienna features soloist Lesley Garrett, the most popular soprano from the UK. The spirit of the Strauss era is perfectly recreated by the addition of waltz dancers adorned with historical costumes. This concert was presented in 2004, under the direction of David Amphlett.
03:19
Pianomania - Daniil Trifonov
Hannu Lintu conducts the Gulbenkian Orchestra in a Finnish flavoured concert program, since the concert features Cantus Articus, Op. 61 by Einojuhani Rautavaara, and Jean Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2. Furtermore, Daniil Trifonov (1991) is star soloist in Schumann’s Piano Concerto, Op. 54, which was premiered in 1841 by Clara Wieck, wife of the composer. Trifonov rose to fame after winning prizes at both the Tchaikovsky International Chopin competition in Moscow as well as the Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw. Trifonov has been called "arguably today's leading classical virtuoso,” and “without question the most astounding pianist of our age." This concert is recorded at the Grand Auditorium of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation of Lisbon, in 2018.
05:08
Beethoven - String Quartet No. 5, Op. 18, No. 5
Renowned French string quartet Quatuor Ébène marked the 250th birth anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) with a remarkable project: recording all of the great composer’s sixteen string quartets. For five years, violinists Pierre Colombet and Gabriel Le Magadure, violist Marie Chilemme, and cellist Raphaël Merlin immersed themselves in Beethoven’s 650 pages of sheet music. Their efforts culminated in the performance of the composer’s complete repertoire for string quartet, which covers three decades of Beethoven's musical creativity, during six impressive concerts at Philharmonie de Paris in the autumn of 2020. Quatuor Ébène explored every facet of Beethoven's string quartet repertoire: from the youthful Opus 18 string quartets to the Razumovsky, Harp, and Serioso quartets (Opus 59, 74, and 95) from his middle period, and finally, the depth of his late quartets (Opus 127 to 135). This program features Quatuor Ébène performing Beethoven’s String Quartet No. 5 in A major, Op. 18, No. 5; String Quartet No. 4 in C minor, Op. 18, No. 4; and String Quartet No. 12 in E-flat major, Op. 127. This concert was recorded at Philharmonie de Paris on December 17, 2020.
06:00
Bach – Musical Offering in C minor
The Kuijken Ensemble is made up of the three Belgian Kuijken brothers on flute, violin, and viola da gamba, as well as harpsichordist Robert Kohnen. The brothers don’t look alike, but their shared musical heritage is evident. Together, The Kuijken Ensemble are among the most distinguished present-day early-music specialists. Though each has branched out into conducting and other far-reaching ways of propagating authentic Baroque style, they are each masters of a different set of instruments. Their occasional reunions for concerts are legendary. With J. S. Bach's The Musical Offering, played here in a shorter score, they show off their stylish flair and extensive experience. Bach’s late masterpiece, The Musical Offering (1747) is a homage to King Frederick the Great of Prussia in Potsdam. Recorded in the beautiful setting of the historical Old Town Hall in Leipzig during the Bach year of 2000, the film captures some of the essence of the composer’s era.
06:53
J. S. Bach - Arias, solos, and duets
Baritone Matthias Goerne teams up with violinist Vilde Frang, cellist Nicolas Altstaedt, flutist Stathis Karapanos, and harpsichordist Michaela Hasselt in this program dedicated to the music of J. S. Bach. They perform baritone arias from Bach’s most beautiful cantatas, as well as solo pieces and duets. On the program are Sonata No. 3 in C major for violin solo, BWV 1005; arias ‘Hier, in meines Vaters Stätte’, BWV 32 and ‘Die Welt mit allen Königreichen’, BWV 59; Suite No. 5 in C minor for cello solo, BWV 1011; ‘Wenn Trost und Hülf ermangeln muß’, BWV 117; ‘Ja, ja, ich halte Jesum fest’, BWV 157; Invention No. 7 in E minor, BWV 778; Invention in A major, BWV 783; and ‘Welt ade, ich bin dein müde’, BWV 158. This performance was recorded at St. Mary’s Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
07:51
Schumann - Violin Concerto and Symphony No. 1
German conductor Christian Zacharias leads the Orchestre national de Lille in a concert program dedicated to Robert Schumann. The concert opens with the ‘Genoveva’ Overture, Op. 81. Although Schumann’s only opera Genoveva is not often performed, its overture established itself as an autonomous work in concert halls. After, the composer’s Violin Concerto in D minor, WoO 23, is performed, featuring Dutch violinist Isabelle van Keulen as the soloist. Written in 1853, it is Schumann’s only violin concerto. The concert ends with a performance of Schumann’s Symphony No. 1 in B-flat major, Op. 38, also known as the ‘Spring Symphony’. This optimistic work is written in 1841 and is the most performed of Schumann’s four symphonies. This concert was recorded at Auditorium du Nouveau Siècle in Lille, France, on June 16, 2017.
09:12
CMIM Piano 2024 – Eerste Ronde: Seungmin Shin
Pianist Seungmin Shin (South Korea, 2004) performs Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Sonata in B-flat major, K. 281; Frédéric Chopin’s Ballade No. 4 in F minor, Op. 52; and Sonata tragica from Nikolai Medtner’s piano cycle Forgotten Melodies, Op. 39 No. 5, 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.
10:05
Sing, Fight, Weep, Pray
One of the world's most important festivals of Early Music takes place in the Dutch city of Utrecht every summer. World-class musicians, who specialize in the music of the Middle Ages, Renaissance and Baroque, gather in Utrecht to illustrate the magic of the music of the distant past. In 2017, the focus was on the music from the Reformation period. The documentary 'Sing, fight, cry, pray' serves as an introduction to this period, explaining why theologian Martin Luther attached his Ninety-five Theses to the door of a church in the German town of Wittenberg in 1517.
10:34
Brahms - The 3 Violin Sonatas, Op. 78, 100 & 108
In this splendid 2013 concert from the Church of Verbier, Switzerland, Greek violinist Leonidas Kavakos and Chinese pianist Yuja Wang join forces to interpret three sonatas by Johannes Brahms. Leonidas Kavakos rose to fame in 1985, when he became the youngest musician to ever win the first price of the prestigious Sibelius Competition. With Yuja Wang, an accomplished artist at young age herself, he forms a masterful duo of chamber music interpretation. The programme features Brahm's Sonata for Piano and Violin, No. 1 in G major, Op. 78, also known as the "Regensonate," Sonata for Piano and Violin, No. 2 in A major, Op. 100, the "Thuner Sonata," a portrait of the Swiss lake of Thun's peaceful scenery. It comes to a fiery and passionate finale with Brahm's Sonata for Piano and Violin, No. 3 in D minor, Op 108.
11:56
Beethoven - Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 55
Swiss conductor Philippe Jordan and the Orchestre de l’Opéra national de Paris recorded all of Ludwig van Beethoven’s symphonies in 2014-2015. In this program, Jordan conducts Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 55, ‘Eroica’. Composed in 1803 and 1804, this symphony is regarded as a major turning point in Beethoven’s oeuvre as well as Western music history. Symphony No. 3 is longer in duration than any previous symphony. The customary long introduction is replaced by two powerful chords, followed by the introduction of the main theme by the lower strings. The slow second movement is a Funeral March, followed by a quick Scherzo. The fourth and final movement is dominated by a theme from Beethoven’s ballet music for ‘The Creatures of Prometheus’. This performance was recorded at Opéra Bastille in Paris, France, in 2014.
12:48
Berg - Piano Sonata, Op. 1
Italian pianist Andrea Molteni (1998) performs Alban Berg’s Piano Sonata in B minor, Op. 1. Molteni began studying the piano at the age of six. He graduated with honors and honorable mention at the Conservatorio di musica Giuseppe Verdi di Como, and was awarded a master’s degree Magna cum Laude in Advanced Performance Studies by the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano. He has appeared at the Wiener Saal of the Mozarteum University in Salzburg, Scriabin Museum in Moscow, National Opera Center in New York, and several other international venues. This performance was recorded at the Verbrugghen Hall of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Australia, in 2023.
13:00
IVC 2021 - Semi-finals: Debussy, Schubert a. o.
Mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Chayka-Rubinstein (Germany, 1998) and pianist Maria Yulin (Israel, 1988) perform ‘Colloque sentimental’ from Claude Debussy’s Fêtes galantes II; ‘Die Geister am Mummelsee’ from Hugo Wolf’s Mörike-Lieder; ‘Bei dir allein’ from Franz Schubert’s Vier Refrainlieder, D. 866; Bart Visman’s Vermeer’s Gold; ‘La fleur qui va sur l'eau’ from Gabriel Fauré’s Trois melodies, Op. 85; ‘Dance of the moon in Santiago’ from George Crumb’s Sun and Shadow (Spanish Songbook II); and ‘Den’ li tsarit?’ (Does the day reign?) from Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Seven Romances, Op. 47, 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.
13:27
Glière, Op. 20 and Shostakovich, Op. 57
The Valerius Ensemble, consisting of Robert Windak (violin), Michael Rein (violin), Eva Šušlíková (viola), Judith Chapman (cello) and Ingo Lylofs (piano) played a concert in Muziekcentrum Enschede on April 15, 2018. On the concert program are the Allegro Moderato from Glières String Quartet No. 2 and the Scherzo, Intermezzo, and Finale from Shostakovich’s Piano Quintet, Op. 57. The work is one of the more popular chamber music works by the composer and a year after its premiere it was awarded the Stalin Prize in 1941.
14:01
Da Caserta and Filipotti - Dulcedo et Subtilitas
Filippotto and Antonello da Caserta were the first Neapolitan composers whose music was preserved. It is anything but primitive: these two belong amongst the prominent representatives of ars subtilior and the melodic Italian style which musicologist Nino Pirrotta christened “dulcedo.” La Fonte Musica immerses itself in the heritage of the first Neapolitan School, and gives us a taste of both early notated compositions and the unwritten traditions.
15:03
Symphony No. 3, in D minor
Mahler's Third Symphony, composed between 1895 and 1896, is an expansive, programmatic work that explores themes of nature, humanity, and spiritual ascent. It features a massive orchestra, a female choir, a children's choir, and a mezzo-soprano soloist, creating a vast soundscape depicting everything from nature's beauty to deeper philosophical questions about existence. The symphony is structured in six movements, moving from the "awakening of nature" to a spiritual conclusion, inspired by Nietzsche and folk poetry.
16:48
Beethoven - Symphony No. 9
Conrad van Alphen conducts Sinfonia Rotterdam, the Octopus Symphonic Choir, and four vocal soloists in a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 at De Doelen, Rotterdam, in 2019. Van Alphen founded Sinfonia Rotterdam in 2000. Under his passionate leadership, this orchestra has developed into one of the Netherland's best-known orchestras. Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 is widely considered Beethoven’s greatest composition. He completed this symphony in 1824, when he was almost completely deaf. This symphony is unique, since Beethoven included a choir and vocal soloists in the last movement, in which he set parts of Friedrich Schiller's poem “Ode an die Freude” (“Ode to Joy”) to music. The symphony consists of four movements: Allegro ma non troppo, un poco maestoso, Molto vivace, Adagio molto e cantabile, and Finale. The four vocal soloists are Gulnara Shafigullina (soprano), Claire Barnett-Jones (mezzosoprano), Matthew Newlin (tenor), and Frederik Bergman (baritone).
