Yannick Nézét-Seguin Special

For the 2016 edition of the Waldbühne, the Georgian violinist Lisa Batiashvili and the Québécois conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin join the Berliner Philharmoniker for a beautiful concert. They present an all Czech program! We always think of Germany, Austria, and Italy when we name great classical composers, but the Czech Republic also delivered some master composers such as Antonin Dvorák, Bedrich Smetana, Leos Janacek, and Bohuslav Martinu. This concert starts with Smetana’s famous Vltava from Má Vlast. Lisa Batiashvili plays Dvorák’s Violin Concerto in A minor, and the concerts centerpiece is Dvorák’s Symphony No. 6.

Canadian conductor and pianist Yannick Nézet-Séguin is the current music director of the Orchestre Métropolitain, the Metropolitan Opera, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Born and raised in Montréal, Yannick became chief conductor of the Orchestre Métropolitain in 2000. Before taking the role of the Musical Director at the prestigious the Metropolitan Opera New York in 2018, he had been the 11th Principal Conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, where he was active from 2006 until 2018. As a tribute to Nézet-Séguin's contribution to the flourishing classical music scene of the Netherlands, Dutch film producer Christiaan van Schermbeek dedicated this 2018 portrait to the Canadian star conductor. Complete with beautiful renditions of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra and Montréal's Orchestre Métropolitain, "Yannick" paints a beautiful picture of the musician's work and impact.

In this 2018 concert, the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra is lead by Canadian conductor and pianist Yannick Nézet-Séguin in a performance of Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 4 in C minor, Op. 43. Born in 1975 in Montréal, Québec, the charismatic young musician was awarded the role of the 11th Principal Conductor of the Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra in 2006. For 12 years, he played a leading role in the orchestra's performances, before returning to North America to take on multiple key positions at the Orchestre Métropolitain (Montréal), the Metropolitan Opera, and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Next to having been awarded 8 acclaimed classical prizes, Nézet-Séguin is also an honorary member and guest conductor of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.