Classical Halloween
October 30 and 31 | 21:00
Stingray Classica joins the annual celebration of Halloween this month. Enjoy a selection of haunting pieces of music on October 30 and 31! On October 30 at 21:00 CEST, Stingray Classica presents Les bains macabres, a romantic contemporary thriller opera by French composer Guillaume Connesson. It tells the story of the Bains Terminus, a thermal establishment where the guests mysteriously disappear, one after another… Afterward, Chinese pianist Chen Xue-Hon performs Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35, which includes the iconic Funeral March that has been heard at funerals the world over, including Chopin’s own. On October 31 at 21:00 CEST, Stingray Classica broadcasts Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem, performed by the Berliner Philharmoniker under the baton of Claudio Abbado. This impressive work contains the haunting and powerful ‘Dies Irae’, depicting the horrors of the Last Judgement. This is followed by Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14. The work’s fifth and final movement, ‘Songe d’une nuit de Sabbat’ (Dream of a Night of the Sabbath), features church bells tolling in combination with the Dies irae sequence, creating a sinister atmosphere. This movement introduced a long tradition of using the Dies irae as a symbol of death, the macabre, and the diabolical. Stingray Classica’s Classical Halloween specials concludes with Franz Liszt’s Totentanz, S. 525 (Dance of Death), performed by Russian pianist Dina Ivanova. Like Berlioz, Liszt used the Dies irae theme in his composition, creating a series of variations based on the macabre theme.
Les Bains Macabres
Monday, October 30 | 21:00
French composer Guillaume Connesson (1970) is building an impressive musical oeuvre, to which he has recently added an opera: 'Les bains macabres'. For this romantic contemporary thriller opera he worked closely with librettist Olivier Bleys (1970), a successful French author with dozens of novels to his credit. The result is an enigmatic narrative with a film noir soundtrack about the macabre 'Bains Terminus': ailing patrons who come to take the waters here never leave. When the Pool police investigates their mysterious deaths, the realms of life and death turn out to be not as separate as expected… In this February 2020 production, directed by Florent Siaud, soprano Sandrine Buendia plays the part of Célia and baritone Romain Dayez plays Mathéo. Conductor Arie van Beek conducts the Orchestre des Frivolités Parisiennes.
Chopin - Piano Sonata No. 2, Op. 35
Monday, October 30 | 23:05
Chinese pianist Chen Xue-Hong plays Frédéric Chopin’s Piano Sonata No. 2 in B-flat minor, Op. 35, in this performance recorded at the beautiful Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, France. Chopin first wrote the sonata’s famous third movement, the Funeral March. He composed the remaining movements two years later, completing the sonata in 1839. The Funeral March is often performed as a standalone piece and has been used in funeral services all over the world – including Chopin’s own.
Verdi - Requiem
Tuesday, October 31 | 21:00
The Berliner Philharmoniker celebrated the Verdi year 2001 in style. The Italian maestro Claudio Abbado conducted the Berliner Philharmoniker and four first-class soloists (Angela Gheorghiu, Daniela Barcellona, Roberto Alagna and Julian Konstantinov) in Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem, one of the most impressive pieces ever.
Berlioz - Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14
Tuesday, October 31 | 22:25
Maestro Mariss Jansons conducts the Berlin Philharmonic in a performance of Hector Berlioz' Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14. This performance is part of the Europakonzert 2001, recorded at Hagia Irene in Istanbul, Turkey.
Liszt - Totentanz, S. 525
Tuesday, October 31 | 23:20
Russian pianist Dina Ivanova performs Franz Liszt’s Totentanz, S. 525, during the Solo finals of the 11th International Franz Liszt Piano Competition, held at TivoliVredenburg in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Totentanz (Dance of Death) is one of Liszt’s many works that reflect the Romantic composer’s fascination with death. The piece is a series of variations on the macabre Gregorian Dies irae theme.
