»Le Passion de Carmen«

Bizet: Carmen

Free and untamed is how the heroine of Bizet’s world-famous opera »Carmen« wants to live her life – and she would rather perish than submit to a man’s will. And at the end Carmen does indeed die to the sounds of what may be the most passionate opera music ever written. After countless highlights in the Baroque repertoire, masterful Mozart interpretations and excursions into the world of German Romanticism, conductor René Jacobs and the B’Rock Orchestra venture into the heated bullfighting atmosphere of this piece, which premiered in 1875 2 in a very special version. »Carmen« is performed in a version that Bizet originally intended before the director of the Opéra comique urged him to make far-reaching changes. The original manuscripts of the original version have now been analysed and used as a basis to reconstruct a »Carmen« that has never been heard before. Gaëlle Arquez as an experienced Carmen and Sabine Devieilhe as her rival Micaëla sparkle as the two female leads, creating an explosive, passionate mixture together with the baritone Thomas Dolié as toreador Escamillo and tenor François Rougier as the man obsessed with Carmen, Don José. In this concert performance version, too, »Carmen« promises to set the auditorium on fire.

La Passion de Simone

Kaija Saariaho's opera "La Passion de Simone" commemorates the French philosopher and mystic Simone Weil. This personal work, which Saariaho considered her musical testament, marks her third collaboration with author Amin Maalouf and director Peter Sellars. The opera, originally premiered in Vienna in 2006, is now presented at the Cologne Opera, directed by newcomer Friederike Blum and conducted by Christian Karlsen. Further performances are scheduled for May 19, 25, 28, and 31, 2025, as a collaboration between the Cologne Opera and the ACHT BRÜCKEN | Musik für Köln festival.

Microcosmos – Le Peuple de l’herbe

With its up-close-and-personal approach to filming insects, Microcosmos was hugely popular with audiences when it came out in 1996. This screening with live musical accompaniment by the Yellow Socks Orchestra the suggestive power of this fascinating gem of wildlife cinema.

Le Fantôme de l’Opéra

Cinema enthusiast and master of French improvisation, organist and composer Thierry Escaich exploits all the facets of his instrument to accompany Rupert Julian’s silent masterpiece. A dialogue interwoven with the images, to be experienced live.

Le Voyage de Nyamba

The Orchestre National d'Île-de-France accompanies a children’s choir in Le Voyage de Nyamba, a musical tale composed by Coralie Fayolle in 2022.

Johannes-Passion

Béla Bartók / Le Château de Barbe-Bleue

Bluebeard’s Castle, the sole opera by Bartók, is a powerful work—an existential drama in which romantic love is laid bare in a condensed form, exalted by ever-inventive orchestration.

Club Classique: Highlights from Carmen (reinvented)

The SummerConcerts powered by VriendenLoterij presents two months of wonderful concerts, from classical to jazz and from pop to film music. Top musicians from the Netherlands and around the world bring you all your favourite classical pieces, as well as video game music and hits from Broadway musicals.We also present a host of young talent in our summer concerts, including youth orchestras from Greece, Australia and Cuba, and top young classical soloists. After many of the concerts, we offer a meet-and-greet with the artists in an informal setting, or an afterparty with DJ in the Entrance Hall. In one of the world’s finest concert halls, there’s something for everyone this summer at The Concertgebouw!

St Matthew Passion

Every year, for more than a century, we have been performing one of Bach’s most popular works: the St Matthew Passion. This year, the prominent German conductor Hans-Christoph Rademann is leading our ensemble.Bach’s masterly music keeps moving us“Betrayal, condemnation and death, but above all – love. Although the words of the St Matthew Passion are age-old, the story and the message are still relevant today. And every year, Bach’s masterly music moves us once again. Bach’s masterpiece is in good hands with Rademann. In every St Matthew Passion he performs, this real Bach man – founder of the Dresdner Kammerchor, artistic director of the Bachakademie Stuttgart and regular name at the international music festival Bachfest – seeks out a new contemporary approach, always keeping a careful eye on the monumental character of the work. For decades, he has been one of the most successful choral conductors in Germany. Plenty of reason, therefore, to invite Rademann as the guest conductor for our traditional Passion concerts.