Keywords: Symphony Concert
| Lorenzo Viotti | Conductor |
| Wiener Philharmoniker | Orchestra |
| Oedipus Rex. Opern-Oratorium in zwei Akten | Igor Stravinsky |
| Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, op. 36 | Piotr Tchaikovsky |
These events are similar in terms of concept, place, musicians or the program.
Was it winter when Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov wrote his »Capriccio espagnol«? One can certainly vividly imagine the composer well warpped-up and seated before the fireplace as he dreamt his way to warmer regions. But whenever it was written, the work conjures up the flamenco, fiestas and mild nights under a southern sky. With their musical journey beyond the boundaries of space and time, the fantastic Vienna Philharmonic under the baton of young Swiss conductor Lorenzo Viotti once again show that their reputation as one of the world’s best orchestras is well-deserved. Sergei Rachmaninov’s »Toteninsel« (Isle of the Dead): is a strong contrast to Rimsky-Korsakov’s »Capriccio«. Inspired by an Arnold Böcklin painting, the composer depicts life after death in the swelling, rushing sound of infinity. And in his Seventh Symphony of 1884, Antonín Dvořák likewise portrays a different world: with dramatic conflicts and echoes of Bohemian folk songs, the music dreams of the political independence of the Czech Republic, which was still part of the Hapsburg Empire at the time.
The Netherlands Philharmonic is one of the most versatile cultural organisations in The Netherlands. The orchestra organises a diverse concert program in The Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam and is a welcome guest on foreign stages and festivals. The Netherlands Philharmonic brings classical music to life at the highest level and collaborates closely with international guest soloists and conductors. It takes great pleasure in welcoming and developing new musical talent. Lorenzo Viotti is the principal conductor of Dutch National Opera and the Netherlands Philharmonic.
The Netherlands Philharmonic is one of the most versatile cultural organisations in The Netherlands. The orchestra organises a diverse concert program in The Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam and is a welcome guest on foreign stages and festivals. The Netherlands Philharmonic brings classical music to life at the highest level and collaborates closely with international guest soloists and conductors. It takes great pleasure in welcoming and developing new musical talent. Lorenzo Viotti is the principal conductor of Dutch National Opera and the Netherlands Philharmonic.
Karen Gomyo, photo: Gabrielle Revere It is generally accepted that short pieces performed at the beginning of symphonic concerts play the role of a kind of overture (even if they are not overtures in the strict sense of the word). What, then, is the function of the composition Ceci n'est pas une ouverture [This is not an overture], written a dozen years ago by Paweł Szymański for the Warsaw Philharmonic and the Polish Composers' Union? Perhaps similar to French surrealist René Magritte’s famous painting signed Ceci n'est pas une pipe, which depicts nothing but a pipe. Szymanski's thrilling piece conjures up the image of a laboratory technician dissecting classical scores in front of an audience in the anatomical theatre he has built. Sergei Prokofiev’s ‘Classical’ Symphony, on the other hand, provides a fascinating answer to the question of how Joseph Haydn might have composed if a time machine had transported him to the twentieth century. Another great composer writing at the beginning of the last century took an imaginary journey (this time in space). Ibéria, the middle and longest movement in Claude Debussy’s Images cycle, is regarded as one of the great musical evocations of Spain, although the composer was never fated to visit the country. Max Bruch, who was already old at the time, reportedly found it difficult to come to terms with the end of romanticism. His Violin Concerto No. 1, composed while Johannes Brahms was still alive, was so successful that hardly anyone noticed that the German composer had written two others!
Michał Nesterowicz, photo: Łukasz Rajchert He jokingly says that he loves the Warsaw Philharmonic Concert Hall as much as he hates it. He knew it much better than many Polish artists long before he first came to Warsaw. In order to follow the live broadcasts of the Chopin Competition in his country, he had to get up at 3.00 a.m. He longed to one day stand on the stage where Martha Argerich and Kristian Zimmerman won the competition. That dream of performing in Warsaw came true in 2015, when Korean pianist Seong-Jin Cho triumphed in the Chopin Competition. He now returns to the capital’s stage as the soloist in Johannes Brahms’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major. Brahms used to refer to his powerful work, which posed a considerable challenge for both pianist and orchestra, as a ‘little concerto’. Shortly after the premiere, however, it was more appropriately labelled a ‘symphony with obbligato piano part’. This grand Romantic concerto will be followed by a true Romantic symphony. One of Anton Bruckner’s more popular works, his Fourth Symphony is regarded as one of the finest musical contemplations of nature. Although it does not have a clearly defined literary programme, the composer wove into it the sounds of the morning, the sounds of nature – including the singing of a tit or a mountain echo – and of hunting.
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