Mandelring Quartett / Roland Glassl
Laeiszhalle, Kleiner Saal (Hamburg)
Mandelring Quartet
Mandelring Quartet
British conductor Simon Halsey leads »SINGING!« 2025 and, together with the NDR Vokalensemble, the award-winning choral conductor wants to breathe new life into the participatory concert after the coronavirus years. Register now to take part!
»Mahler is a must!« That was absolutely clear to Jakub Hrůša when our journey together began in 2016 – as his late Romantic music is »genetically very close« to both him and ourselves. We have already performed five of his symphonies together in recent years. This programme includes the enchanting »Blumine« movement, which Mahler erased from his autobiographical first symphony and described himself as a »blissful infatuation«: he wrote it in 1884 as a young conductor when he had a crush on a soprano. However, his affection was not returned – and a year later, the »Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen« (»Songs of a Travelling Companion«) emerged from his emotional misery. Together with Konstantin Krimmel, we embark on the restless wanderings of the lovesick artist. After that we say: Not only Mahler is a must. For some time now, Jakub Hrůša has also been working more intensively on Bruckner, as he has recognised that only an orchestra that »really loves this music enough« will be able to make it work. He described the phase in which we immersed ourselves in the Symphony No. 4 in the 2018/2019 season as a »blissful experience with Bruckner« – and it was deepened even further: In the 2020 pandemic, we recorded our Chief Conductor’s personal take on all three versions of the work for a phenomenal and award-winning recording. In this programme, the »Romantic« is performed in the 1878/1880 version – first in Bamberg, as is traditional, of course. Then we will once again become »travelling companions« ourselves and present the works in two of the best halls in Europe: in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and (for the 10th time already!) in Hamburg’s Elbphilharmonie – where we have come to love and appreciate the inspiring acoustics.
What do Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto and Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony have in common? That’s right: they both have the catalogue number 107 and – and this is the real point – the cello can be heard at the beginning. One could assume that the similarities end here. While Bruckner focusses on long melodic lines and vocal arches, Shostakovich is much more rhythmic. Nevertheless, both composers pursue the same goal: the expression of the greatest and most intense emotions. With Tugan Sokhiev and the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden, they are in the best of hands. With its unique sound – Herbert von Karajan compared it to the »lustre of old gold« – the venerable orchestra puts the two sound monoliths at the Elbphilharmonie in the perfect acoustic light. Star cellist Sol Gabetta provides the right pitch on the cello.
The Festspielhaus Baden-Baden celebrates Pierre Boulez's 100th birthday with several concerts, including two of his "younger" works alongside Bruckner's last symphony. Boulez admired Bruckner, frequently conducting his works. "Figures – Doubles – Prismes" showcases variations and doublings of musical figures, culminating in a re-examination of the earlier work. Boulez also sets E. E. Cummings's poems to music, creating a unique blend of text and sound.