ConcertPulse
Guest performance
Philharmonie Berlin, Main Auditorium (Berlin)
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It is with great pleasure that we welcome back the superstar Yo-Yo Ma to Konserthuset Stockholm! He has graced our stage several times before, most recently in 2022 when he received the Birgit Nilsson Prize, the world's largest prize in the classical music world. Together with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, he performed Dvorák's famous cello concerto.”Culture is meant to strengthen society. I want to create networks for people in different places where people live”, said Yo-Yo Ma at the presentation of the Birgit Nilsson Prize. Ten years earlier, Ma received the Polar Music Prize with the citation: ”Yo-Yo Ma has, with his virtuosity and his big heart, devoted his life to musical journeys all over the world. With his cello and curiosity in tow, he has travelled along the Silk Road, crossing both cultural and musical boundaries. Yo-Yo Ma unites people all over the world and shows us that music is communication, passion, and the exchange of experiences.”Now, we have the privilege to meet this world-renowned musician and global citizen again in a recital together with pianist Kathryn Stott, his longtime friend and musical collaborator, and one of England's most versatile pianists. Together, they have toured the world and released several albums.They visited Konserthuset in 2019 for a recital featuring music by Stravinsky, Rachmaninoff, and Prokofiev. This time, the program spans from Gabriel Fauré's beautiful Berceuse to César Franck's powerful sonata for cello and piano. In between, music by Brazilian Sergio Assad, Dvorák, Nadia Boulanger, and Shostakovich, with his muscular and lyrically graceful sonata for cello and piano. Finally, Arvo Pärt’s magical Spiegel im Spiegel.
If the term all-star team applies to one line-up, then it’s this one: violinist Leonidas Kavakos, cellist Yo-Yo Ma and pianist Emanuel Ax are among the greatest in their respective fields – and are a force to be reckoned with as a trio. The Washington Post raved about the musical chemistry of their interaction as »almost supernatural«. For the opening of the Elbphilharmonie season, the three of them take to the stage of the Grand Hall, which they easily fill with their luxurious sound and concentrated charisma. On the programme: seemingly symphonic trios by Johannes Brahms and Ludwig van Beethoven. Since their first encounter in 2014 at the Tanglewood Festival in the US, the three superstars have appeared together many times, and have released two albums with arrangements of his Symphonies Nos. 2, 5 and 6. »The fullness of sound here almost makes you forget that it’s not a large orchestra playing,«, marvelled Rondo magazine. The Archduke Trio, which Beethoven dedicated to his aristocratic patron and music lover, the Habsburg Archduke Rudolph, and a trio arrangement of his Sixth Symphony will now be performed in the Elbphilharmonie. The Trio in C major by Johannes Brahms was composed at almost the same time as his Second Piano Concerto. The piano part in the trio is also extremely virtuosic and soloistic, while the violin and cello become a miniature orchestra, but of course also appear as soloists repeatedly themselves. Yo-Yo Ma is looking forward to the concert: »We tend to put people in categories: soloists, chamber musicians, orchestral musicians and so on. Such pigeonholing prevents creativity and fruitful collaboration. That’s why we’re returning to a basic principle of music – interaction between friends who want to do something together.«