KölnChor | Rheinischer Kammerchor Köln

Concerto Köln

Soprano Jeanine De Bique from Trinidad and Concerto Köln bring heroic female figures to life in arias and orchestral works in the Great Hall. The basis is the singer's debut album 'Mirrors', which “from furor to goosebumps, from breathtaking coloraturas to sensual, beautiful, simple melodies” revels in the entire range of baroque opera emotions.

Rodenkirchener KammerChor und Orchester

Joseph Haydn's "The Creation" impressively portrays the biblical story of creation. The predominantly beautiful aspects highlighted in this 1798 oratorio feel almost utopian today, amidst crises and environmental disasters. Haydn's music, full of wit and virtuosity, uplifts and reminds us of our existence. Based on an English libretto inspired by Milton's "Paradise Lost", it also has a German version by Gottfried van Swieten.

Meister in Köln

Gürzenich-Chor Köln

Bob Ingalls' symphonic plea for the protection of Mother Earth, "Mother Earth Cries Out!", culminates in Dvořák's powerful setting of the Stabat Mater. Inspired by Pope Francis' encyclical "Laudato si'", Ingalls' work depicts Mother Earth's desperate cry for care. Dvořák's Stabat Mater contemplates Mary's grief and the believer's compassion, ultimately turning to the prospect of paradise.

Polizeichor Köln | Eugen Momot

Chor des Bach-Vereins Köln

Beide erblickten 1685 das Licht der Welt, schufen bereits mit 22 Jahren packende Vokalwerke von höchster Kunstfertigkeit und gelten heute als die herausragenden Komponisten-Persönlichkeiten des Barocks: Johann Sebastian Bach und Georg Friedrich Händel. Ihre Vertonungen »Christ lag in Todesbanden«, »Gloria« und »Dixit Dominus«, allesamt 1707 entstanden, sind eindrucksvolle Zeugnisse ihrer schon in jungen Jahren ausgeprägten musikalischen Meisterschaft in hochdramatischer, bildhafter Textauslegung.

Kammerchor & Orchester der Universität Hamburg / UniversitätsChor München

Universitätsmusik Hamburg cordially invites you to a musical event that celebrates the cultural exchange between the symphony orchestra and chamber choir of the University of Hamburg and the University Choir of LMU Munich. The impressive »German Requiem« by Johannes Brahms, which will unfold its touching power on this evening, will take centre stage. Over 200 talented musicians will perform together on stage. The evening begins with the solemn overture to Wagner’s »Parsifal«, which prepares the audience for the climax of the concert. The concert will be conducted by Thomas Posth.

Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin, RIAS Kammerchor Berlin

Really old and extremely lively: For many seasons now, the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin has been demonstrating how thrilling music from the 17th to the early 19th century can sound in its own series at the Konzerthaus Berlin.Bach's „St Matthew Passion“ was premiered for the second time in 1829 - in the Singakademie building in Berlin, which is now home to the Maxim Gorki Theatre. The conductor was Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, who was only twenty years old. He paved the way for a Bach renaissance with the version he arranged and shortened. In the era of Viennese Classicism, Bach's music had simply hardly ever been performed. The Passion, however, which was first presented to the congregation of St Thomas' Church in Leipzig in 1727, is one of the most haunting musical depictions of the story of the crucifixion.

Guest at the Philharmonie Köln

Ludwig van Beethoven: genius, freethinker and troubled soul – as well as a master of coping with crises through music. In 1809, he lamented: »We have experienced a rather crowded misery. The entire course of events has affected my body and soul. What a destructive, desolate life around me! Nothing but drums, cannons, all kinds of human misery!« At that time, he was greatly distressed by the current situation, as Vienna was occupied by Napoleon's troops. Food shortages, the black market and inflation were making life difficult for the people. Beethoven often sought shelter in the cellar – and put pillows over his head to avoid hearing the noise. But despite these unfavourable conditions, he wrote his great Fifth Piano Concerto: a gigantic work that gives the impression as if he wanted to drown out the chaos of war with the power and splendour of his music. For long segments, it spreads a belligerent sound – but with the Adagio, a very contemplative movement is interwoven: Beethoven is said to have been thinking of the »chants of devout pilgrims«. These fragmented states of mind are already pervasive in his Fifth Symphony, which was premiered a year earlier and can certainly be understood as a statement on the political fate of Europe at that time. With its famous obsessive motif, the work is at first full of anxiety and emotional complexity over long stretches. But an astounding inner force is able to find its way out of the initial darkness and into the ever brightening light. Like Beethoven wrote in one of his conversation books, which he used because of his deafness and in which he also collected essential ideas: »With music I have transformed my suffering into hope«.

Junge Deutsche Philharmonie / RIAS Kammerchor / Roderick Cox

The premiere of Igor Stravinsky’s ballet »Le sacre du printemps« in Paris in 1913 was one of the biggest scandals in music history: the radically modern choreography and music prompted the audience to heckle, whistle and even start scuffles. But today, »The Rite of Spring« regularly receives standing ovations for its gripping rhythms and dramatic intensity. As Germany’s national orchestra of music college students, the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie under the baton of Roderick Cox has the talent and youthful vigour to perform Stravinsky’s masterpiece to perfection. »Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres)« by US composer Missy Mazzoli orbits like a planet in the solar system. Compound rhythms and stylised Baroque ornaments become intertwining passages. »The piece is stirring and agitated at the same time,« says the composer. While »Sinfonia« in Mazolli’s title refers to the Baroque elements in the score, for Luciano Berio, who would have celebrated his 100th birthday in 2025, it refers to the origin of the word – harmony. In Berio’s »Sinfonia« for orchestra and eight voices, the orchestra joins forces with the renowned voices of the RIAS Kammerchor to present exciting music full of quotes from Samuel Beckett to Gustav Mahler.