Ravel and Tchaikovsky

Ravel and Tchaikovsky

Snow sparkles in the pale winter sun, a horse-drawn sleigh glides through a light birch forest. Ice flowers grow on the window pane, while the samovar boils in the room. Tchaikovsky, with his First Symphony, makes a atmospheric declaration of love to the famous-infamous Russian winter with all its manifestations. In addition, two completely different but equally fascinating piano concertos are heard: Prokofiev's First Piano Concerto bursts with energy and sophistication. It is a youthful work full of spirit and shows Prokofiev as a true virtuoso of the piano. On the other hand, Ravel's Piano Concerto "for the left hand" is characterized by darker tones and was written for the pianist Paul Wittgenstein, who lost his right hand in World War I. It is so cleverly composed that as a listener, one does not realize that in this almost 20-minute concert, piano and orchestra only play together for six minutes. A challenge for our Artist in Residence, who once again can demonstrate the full range of his abilities.

Works by Strauss, Ravel and Tchaikovsky

Works by Strauss, Ravel and Tchaikovsky

Sibelius and Tchaikovsky

Sibelius's violin concerto is now the most performed of all violin concertos from the 20th century. Yet its musical language belongs to the late 19th century, and the music is warm and lyrical, dramatic and melancholic. Sibelius, himself a violinist, possibly wrote the concerto he himself would have wanted to play – albeit on a technical level far beyond his own. In this way, the violin concerto can be seen as a farewell to the youthful dreams of a career as a violin virtuoso. It is among the more challenging in the genre, as many violinists have attested.Taking on the challenge is the young award-winning violinist Maria Ioudenitch. In 2021, she won first prize in the prestigious Ysaÿe International Music Competition and the same year also the Tibor Varga International Violin Competition. Maria Ioudenitch was born in Russia but moved to the USA with her family at the age of two.Tchaikovsky composed his fifth symphony during a few summer months in 1888. He had complained about a lack of inspiration in the spring: "Am I burned out? No ideas, no desire?" But the fifth became a vital, emotionally charged, and in many respects brilliant symphony. It premiered under the composer's direction at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg in November of the same year.The concert opens with the Swedish composer Andrea Tarrodis's Liguria, music that takes us on a journey between five small fishing villages clinging to the cliffs along Italy's northwest coast.Read more about chief conductor Ryan Bancroft

Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich

Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt unfortunately had to cancel his participation in the two concerts due to an injury. We are pleased that we were able to secure Ivan Karizna as the soloist. Tchaikovsky was not known for self-praise, but in his Sixth Symphony he did not hold back, considering it highly successful - a judgment that can definitely be agreed upon today. It is a compositional masterpiece and at the same time so peculiar and unique. Tchaikovsky's brother Modest gave it the nickname "Pathétique". Indeed, it is pathetic. More so, the Sixth is tragic, dramatic, gripping, ominous. And it is Tchaikovsky's swan song: Nine days after the premiere, he died of cholera under circumstances that remain unclear to this day.

Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich

Wolfgang Emanuel Schmidt unfortunately had to cancel his participation in the two concerts due to an injury. We are pleased that we were able to secure Ivan Karizna as the soloist. Tchaikovsky was not known for self-praise, but in his Sixth Symphony he did not hold back, considering it highly successful - a judgment that can definitely be agreed upon today. It is a compositional masterpiece and at the same time so peculiar and unique. Tchaikovsky's brother Modest gave it the nickname "Pathétique". Indeed, it is pathetic. More so, the Sixth is tragic, dramatic, gripping, ominous. And it is Tchaikovsky's swan song: Nine days after the premiere, he died of cholera under circumstances that remain unclear to this day.

Works by Brahms and Tchaikovsky

Thomas Dausgaard condcuts Tüür and Tchaikovsky

»Music with soul« – this is how the Estonian Arvo Pärt describes the time of Gregorian chants, which he often reflects in his contemplative »Tintinnabuli style«. His »Silouan‘s Song« from 1991 transposes this monk‘s prayer into the fluency of a string-only ensemble – the meditative music speaks from the poetically powerful words it carries: »My soul longs for the Lord, and in tears I seek him.« Then a new work by Erkki-Sven Tüür, who was born in 1959 on the Estonian island of Hiiumaa, will be heard – a fascinating artist who likes to tackle current social issues in his gripping pieces. So we can look forward with anticipation to the world premiere of his cello concerto, which we will perform together with Nicolas Altstaedt. On 10 March, our First Concertmaster Ilian Garnetz will perform the passionate violin concerto by Alexander Glazunov. Born in 1865, the composer was a wunderkind and was later titled the »Russian Brahms«: His indulgent works are characterised by an impeccable awareness of form, a sense of enchanting melody and a perfect art of richly coloured instrumentation. Although Tchaikovsky certainly saw a rival in Glazunov at the time, he admired his incredible talent – and wrote warmly to him: »Don't be angry with me, but I love you so much.« Both concert evenings conclude with Tchaikovsky's fifth symphony from 1888, which is permeated with a great sense of inner conflict – after all, he said that there was »not a single bar« that would not be »the reverberation of my innermost soul life«. And so the restless symphony is characterised by a fate motif: according to a diary entry, it represents »doubts, complaints, reproaches« – but at the end, the melancholic tone is transformed into optimistic confidence.

Works by von Weber and Tchaikovsky