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Seven years after the light-hearted and ironic Symphonie classique, Prokofiev’s Second Symphony was to be a work “of steel and iron” – and its disjointed, dissonant sounds delivered an intense physical punch. This rarely performed work has been called “brutal,” “painful,” and “unloved.” However, this is certainly not Franz Welser-Möst’s view – he holds it in high esteem. This is similar to Tchaikovsky’s Fifth, his “Fate Symphony,” about which Tchaikovsky himself wrote: “After every performance, I become more and more convinced that my last symphony is a failed work. It has turned out to be too colorful, too bulky, too insincere, too long, and generally unappealing. Has the beginning of the end really already arrived?” It has become one of the most popular orchestral works of all time.
Seven years after the light-hearted and ironic Symphonie classique, Prokofiev’s Second Symphony was to be a work “of steel and iron” – and its disjointed, dissonant sounds delivered an intense physical punch. This rarely performed work has been called “brutal,” “painful,” and “unloved.” However, this is certainly not Franz Welser-Möst’s view – he holds it in high esteem. This is similar to Tchaikovsky’s Fifth, his “Fate Symphony,” about which Tchaikovsky himself wrote: “After every performance, I become more and more convinced that my last symphony is a failed work. It has turned out to be too colorful, too bulky, too insincere, too long, and generally unappealing. Has the beginning of the end really already arrived?” It has become one of the most popular orchestral works of all time.
Seven years after the light-hearted and ironic Symphonie classique, Prokofiev’s Second Symphony was to be a work “of steel and iron” – and its disjointed, dissonant sounds delivered an intense physical punch. This rarely performed work has been called “brutal,” “painful,” and “unloved.” However, this is certainly not Franz Welser-Möst’s view – he holds it in high esteem. This is similar to Tchaikovsky’s Fifth, his “Fate Symphony,” about which Tchaikovsky himself wrote: “After every performance, I become more and more convinced that my last symphony is a failed work. It has turned out to be too colorful, too bulky, too insincere, too long, and generally unappealing. Has the beginning of the end really already arrived?” It has become one of the most popular orchestral works of all time.
Long live the classics! Rudolf Buchbinder, the grandseigneur of the piano and a welcome guest at the BRSO, will play Mozart’s C minor Piano Concerto of 1786. The gloomy, ominous opening is unusual for Mozart’s concertos; and even if a more relaxed, almost cheerful mood reigns in the Larghetto, the final set of variations returns us to the wind-swept C minor atmosphere. Elim Chan, a conductor born in Hong Kong, will open the concert with Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, a paean to the ideal of liberty and revolt against political suppression. Rounding off the evening is a piece never before played in Munich by the BRSO: Tchaikovsky’s Second Symphony.
Long live the classics! Rudolf Buchbinder, the grandseigneur of the piano and a welcome guest at the BRSO, will play Mozart’s C minor Piano Concerto of 1786. The gloomy, ominous opening is unusual for Mozart’s concertos; and even if a more relaxed, almost cheerful mood reigns in the Larghetto, the final set of variations returns us to the wind-swept C minor atmosphere. Elim Chan, a conductor born in Hong Kong, will open the concert with Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, a paean to the ideal of liberty and revolt against political suppression. Rounding off the evening is a piece never before played in Munich by the BRSO: Tchaikovsky’s Second Symphony.
At least since 2020, when she gave her rousingly acclaimed début at the Salzburg Festival in Così fan tutte, Joana Mallwitz has figured in the top echelon of international conductors. She entered the festival’s history as the first woman to conduct a new opera production, and became a darling of the audience with her at once engaged and effortless artistry. Since 2018 she has also enriched the music life of Nuremberg as the city’s general music director and impassioned musical communicator, and in 2023/24 she will become the principal conductor of the Berlin Konzerthaus Orchestra. For her eagerly awaited BRSO début she has chosen classic repertoire items that demand utmost precision and a fresh approach. On one of her riveting video tours we can already follow her through the rhythmic complexities of Beethoven’s Seventh. As soloist, the BRSO greets the Dutch violinist Janine Jansen, a welcome guest of the orchestra since 2012.
At least since 2020, when she gave her rousingly acclaimed début at the Salzburg Festival in Così fan tutte, Joana Mallwitz has figured in the top echelon of international conductors. She entered the festival’s history as the first woman to conduct a new opera production, and became a darling of the audience with her at once engaged and effortless artistry. Since 2018 she has also enriched the music life of Nuremberg as the city’s general music director and impassioned musical communicator, and in 2023/24 she will become the principal conductor of the Berlin Konzerthaus Orchestra. For her eagerly awaited BRSO début she has chosen classic repertoire items that demand utmost precision and a fresh approach. On one of her riveting video tours we can already follow her through the rhythmic complexities of Beethoven’s Seventh. As soloist, the BRSO greets the Dutch violinist Janine Jansen, a welcome guest of the orchestra since 2012.
The BRSO is continuing its chamber music series “Watch This Space” at various venues in Munich’s Werksviertel-Mitte district, striking ever-deeper roots into its future home and giving audiences keen on small formats a chance to explore and enliven the location with the musicians. This time flautist Natalie Schwaabe will focus on trios, a format which, though not exactly unusual, is seldom heard in recitals. She and her colleagues Bettina Faiss (clarinet) and Lukas Maria Kuen (piano) will devote themselves mainly to sprightly dance pieces, from tarantella, tango and csárdás to bebop, blues and techno. Kuen will supply the dance backdrop for “Dancing With Winds”, creating a dialogue for flute and clarinet, and round off the series with three piano waltzes by Tchaikovsky.