Close-up: the French horn takes centre stage

Close-up: The harp takes centre stage

In this Close-up concert, the harp takes centre stage. The orchestra’s principal harpist Petra van der Heide and other Concertgebouw Orchestra musicians will be treating you to chamber works for various instrumental combinations. In a colourful series of compositions, the harp takes on an ever-different character – Romantic in Fauré’s Fantaisie for flute and harp, virtuoso in César Franck’s Prelude, Fugue and Variations, more supporting in Isang Yun’s Novellette, dreamy in Pierné’s Impromptu-caprice. Two works by Debussy, the kaleidoscopic Sonata and the famous harp solo Danse sacrée et Danse profane will be topped off by Pearl Chertok’s jazzy notes. Musicians of the Concertgebouw Orchestra perform their own programmes in the Recital Hall as part of the Close-up chamber music series. Each of these concerts is unique and performed only once as part of the series. It’s the very best way to experience the individual qualities of the orchestral musicians! These intimate concerts are organised by the Friends of the Concertgebouw and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Close-up: Metamorphosen

Musicians of the Concertgebouw Orchestra perform their own programmes in the Recital Hall as part of the Close-up chamber music series. Each of these concerts is unique and performed only once as part of the series. It’s the very best way to experience the individual qualities of the orchestral musicians! These intimate concerts are organised by the Friends of the Concertgebouw and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Close-up: Early birds

Musicians of the Concertgebouw Orchestra perform their own programmes in the Recital Hall as part of the Close-up chamber music series. Each of these concerts is unique and performed only once as part of the series. It’s the very best way to experience the individual qualities of the orchestral musicians! These intimate concerts are organised by the Friends of the Concertgebouw and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Close-up: Widor and Bruckner

Musicians of the Concertgebouw Orchestra perform their own programmes in the Recital Hall as part of the Close-up chamber music series. Each of these concerts is unique and performed only once as part of the series. It’s the very best way to experience the individual qualities of the orchestral musicians! These intimate concerts are organised by the Friends of the Concertgebouw and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Close-up: Schubert and Widmann

Musicians of the Concertgebouw Orchestra perform their own programmes in the Recital Hall as part of the Close-up chamber music series. Each of these concerts is unique and performed only once as part of the series. It’s the very best way to experience the individual qualities of the orchestral musicians! These intimate concerts are organised by the Friends of the Concertgebouw and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.

Concertgebouworkest, Altstaedt & Weilerstein: the cello takes centre stage

The composer–conductor Matthias Pintscher conducts a programme that puts the cello centre stage. In his extremely subtle un despertar (‘an awakening’, its title taken from the poem by Octavio Paz), cellist Alisa Weilerstein performs as soloist. Nicolas Altstaedt is the soloist in Liza Lim’s brand-new A Sutured World. Henri Dutilleux gave pride of place to the cello section, and the beautifully submerged orchestral sound is reminiscent of Vincent van Gogh’s Starry Night. The final work on the programme is a twentieth-century gem. In Ligeti’s San Francisco Polyphony, the fog slowly lifts, gradually allowing instrumental colours and melodies to stand out.The Concertgebouw Orchestra is performing this unique programme not only at the Concertgebouw, but also for the first time at two major Dutch music festivals – the Cello Biënnale Amsterdam and November Music in ’s-Hertogenbosch.

Pearls in Baroque: The French Connection of Purcell