Schedule

Sir Simon Rattle conducts the Berlin Philharmonic in the 2016 edition of the Europakonzert. This time, it takes place at the beautiful Baroque church of Røros, a Norwegian mining town whose intact picturesque old town makes it a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The talented Norwegian violinist Vilde Frang is the star soloist in Mendelssohn’s songful Violin Concerto, Op. 64, which she plays with warmth, elegance and effortless virtuosity.

In celebration of the great composer, Ullrich Böhme performs on the new Bach organ at St. Thomas Church in Leipzig. An exact replica of the organ on which Bach played during his 27 years in Leipzig, it was first introduced at Whitsun 2000.

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.

Pierre Boulez (1925-2016) was undoubtedly one of the most important figures in modern music. In this performance by the Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra, Boulez displays his masterful understanding of 20th century music as he traces the revolutionary harmonic development of musical modernism in three key "modern classics": Richard Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, “Prelude” (1859), Arnold Schönberg's Pelleas und Melisande (1903), and Alban Berg's Violin Concerto (1935). The Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra was founded through conductor Claudio Abbado's initiative in 1986. It consists of musicians under the age of 26 from all over Europe. The soloist in Berg's Violin Concerto is Akiko Suwanai, the youngest first-prize recipient (1990) in the history of Moscow's International Tchaikovsky Competition.

Countertenor Nils Wanderer (Germany, 1993) performs ‘Stille amare’ from George Frideric Handel’s opera Tolomeo, re d'Egitto; ‘I know a bank’ from Benjamin Britten’s opera A Midsummer Night’s Dream; and ‘Oblivion soave’ from Claudio Monteverdi’s opera L’incoronazione di Poppea, during the first round of the Voice Edition of the Concours musical international de Montréal 2022 (CMIM). This performance was recorded at the Bourgie Hall of the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

The 2017 Prague Spring festival is brought to a powerful close as Krzysztof Penderecki conducts the Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra and Slovak Philharmonic Choir in a performance of his monumental seventh symphony "Seven Gates of Jerusalem". This work bears witness to an introspective thought about faith, written in honour of the city of Jerusalem, for soloists, choir and orchestra, with libretto taken from Old Testament. For expressive purposes, Penderecki uses specific instruments: the tubaphone, percussive objects designed by the composer himself, and the shofar, an ancient Jewish liturgical instrument. Soloists for this performance include Iwona Hossa (soprano), Karolina Sikora (soprano), Anna Lubanska (mezzo-soprano), Adam Zdunikowsk (tenor), Piotr Nowacki (bass) and David Švehlík (speaker). Also featured in the programme is a rendition of the "Serenade for Orchestra" by Czech composer Isa Krejci. Recorded at Smetana Hall in Prague, Czech Republic.

In this recital, Roberto Giordano plays the Six Pieces for Piano, op. 118 of Brahms, a collection completed in 1893 and dedicated to Clara Schumann who will be the penultimate produced by the composer during his lifetime. The concert program also includes two Beethoven sonatas, the famous Moonlight Sonata No. 14, op. 27, and Sonata No. 31, op. 110, one of the last sonatas signed by the composer. This concert was recorded at Villa Visconti Borromeo Litta, in the Italian city of Lainate, in 2017. Directed by: Pietro Tagliaferri.

In 'Dance on screen', renowned film maker Reiner E. Moritz explores how twentieth-century modern media influenced the development of dance, and vice versa. The invention of the film camera and television has allowed audiences to see not only beautiful dancing and wonderful choreography, but it also brought the dancers’ facial expressions and stage presence to the screen. These technical developments allowed this essentially ephemeral art form to be preserved. 'Dance on screen', about both classical ballet and modern dance, features interviews with recognized choreographers and directors. Moreover, many of the great dancers of the twentieth century are seen in performance, including Alvin Ailey, Anna Pavlova, and Pina Bausch.

Roberto Prosseda (1975) performs Mozart's Piano Sonata No. 5 (KV. 283) and four Impromptus Op. 90 by Franz Schubert. The performance ends with Chopin's technically demanding Ballade No. 4, Op. 52. Prosseda is particularly noted for his performances of newly discovered works by Mendelssohn and has recorded a nine-CD series for Decca of the piano works of Mendelssohn. Since 2012, Prosseda also gives lecture-concerts with the robot pianist TeoTronico, as educational or family concerts, to demonstrate differences between a literal production of music and human interpretation.

Once again, the historic Waldbühne in Berlin provided the setting for a sparkling open air concert in 2011. The Waldbühne, one of the most attractive open air amphitheatres of the European continent, constitutes the home base for the Berliner Philharmoniker’s summer concerts. With over 20,000 visitors, these concerts are among the most popular performances of classical music in the world. Under the baton of Riccardo Chailly, the 2011 edition presents compositions by Dmitri Shostakovich, Nino Rota, and Ottorini Respighi. Chailly is universally recognized for his wide-ranging repertoire which stretches from Bach and the symphonic sounds of Beethoven, Brahms, and Bruckner, to the great 20th century opera repertoire. As this concert once again proves, Chailly is an omnivorous conductor: from Nino Rota’s film music to the jazz-influenced compositions of Dmitri Shostakovich, Chailly tackles it all with his trademark grandeur.

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’.

Antonio Gades’ last choreographed work, Fuenteovejuna, is a signature piece of purity and precision of Spanish dance. Based on a true event that inspired Lope de Vega to write this classic play in 1619, Fuenteovejuna is about the people of a village in Córdoba ruled by a tyrannical commander whose actions of droit de seigneur, violence and abuse engender their intense hatred. Until one day, encouraged by their women, the villagers choose freedom and, armed with farming implements, they take the law into their own hands. When the villagers are interrogated by a magistrate sent by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella to establish who was responsible, no one admits to having done anything, each inhabitant only saying “I.” In other words, “Fuente Ovejuna did it.” First performed in 1994 in Genoa, Fuenteovejuna is considered as the ultimate work of Spanish dance. Gades highlights the enormous richness of flamenco and the folklore. The stylised Spanish dance and flamenco serve as a universal story to perfectly tell the story of solidarity.

On Saturday, August 27, 2016, OVG and Sinfonia Rotterdam presented a new Veerhavenconcert under the direction of Conrad van Alphen. As part of this annual event presented in the port of Rotterdam, the musicians perform on a floating stage, and audiences watch the show on the dock and on boats. This fantastic concert features soloists Maria Warenberg (mezzo-soprano) and Melle de Vries (cello), who perform works by Mendelssohn, Mozart, Haydn, Rossini, Beethoven, and Fauré.

Renowned soloists Nancy Argenta (soprano) and Guillemette Laurens (alto) perform music by J. S. Bach with the Baroque ensemble I Barocchisti under Diego Fasolis. Bach's arrangement of G. B. Pergolesi's Stabat Mater was recorded in Italy at the Villa Medici Giulini, built in 1643. The room, with its great acoustics, was named Zuccarelli Hall after Francesco Zuccarelli who made the frescos adorning the walls and depicting the beautiful local landscape in the late 18th century. In addition to the performance, this program includes a short documentary about the Italian influence on J. S. Bach's music.

The Orchestra Mozart, founded in 2004, is supposed to give young, talented musicians a possibility to play in a world-class orchestra being conducted by one of the outstanding conductors of our time. Claudio Abbado, the artistic director, is responsible for its profile, inviting musicians and chamber ensembles of international reputation. The Orchestra Mozart, conducted by Claudio Abbado, with their leader Giuliano Carmignola is playing Johann Sebastian Bach's Brandenburg Concertos. Recorded at the Teatro Municipale Valli, Reggio Emilia. "Does the world need another set of Brandenburgs? Yes, when they are as freshly minted and as adventurously sonorous as this marvellous set from Abbado's young period-style Orchestra Mozart" (The Observer).

Aleksandr Khramouchin (cello) and Eliane Reyes (piano) perform Sergei Prokofiev’s Cello Sonata, Op. 119. Prokofiev was so impressed by young cellist Mstislav Rostropovich’s performance of a sonata written by the composer’s long-time friend Nikolai Miaskovsky, Prokofiev was determined to compose a cello sonata of his own for Rostropovich. The result was Prokofiev’s Cello Sonata, Op. 119 (1949), which saw its premiere at the Small Hall of the Moscow Conservatory in 1950, with Rostropovich as the soloist. Prokofiev’s musical partnership with Rostropovich influenced some of his other cello works as well. His Symphony-Concerto in E minor for cello and orchestra, Op. 125 (1950-1952) is another product of this collaboration between composer and cellist. The current performance was recorded as part of the Musicorum Festival at the Royal Museums of Fine Arts in Brussels, Belgium, 2021.

Henk de Graaf (clarinet) and Wladislav Warenberg (cello) perform Ludwig van Beethoven's Duo No. 3 in B-flat major, WoO 27.