Classical concerts featuring

Christoph Eschenbach

Christoph Eschenbach, Christian Schmitt

Happy 85th birthday on 20 February 2025! We wish this to our Honorary Conductor, for whom one thing is for sure: »Music gives you youth, freshness and lots of new beginnings.« Christoph Eschenbach always leaves an impression with his unmistakable aura: he is not a podium matador by any means, but rather comes across at times like a Buddhist monk with his convincing gestures and penetrating eyes full of warm-heartedness. A conductor who prefers silence rather than many words – and one who sees himself as a »musician among musicians«. This results in captivating interpretations with a great sense of mutual understanding, including such works close to his heart as in this year’s programme: Christoph Eschenbach once said that Bruckner was one of his »greatest treasures«. He discovered his love for Bruckner’s music while listening to a radio programme as a boy. And it still fascinates him to this day, so he explores the fascination of Bruckner’s first work with us – this »cheeky little fellow«. It is truly a great blessing that we have been able to come together with such a charismatic artistic personality for such a long time. It is like a longstanding and very close love affair that is constantly being revitalised – also with Saint-Saëns’ »Organ Symphony«: this powerful piece was recorded with Christoph Eschenbach and our orchestra at the Bamberg Cathedral back in 1987 for an audio release. We have every reason to be excited about how the work will sound together with our house organist Christian Schmitt on the concert organ our audience loves so much – after all, our Honorary Conductor remains curious in his old age: »I want to still be conducting when I’m 100, because I might be able to discover even more at the age of 99 than I can at the moment.«

Christoph Eschenbach, Christian Schmitt

Happy 85th birthday on 20 February 2025! We wish this to our Honorary Conductor, for whom one thing is for sure: »Music gives you youth, freshness and lots of new beginnings.« Christoph Eschenbach always leaves an impression with his unmistakable aura: he is not a podium matador by any means, but rather comes across at times like a Buddhist monk with his convincing gestures and penetrating eyes full of warm-heartedness. A conductor who prefers silence rather than many words – and one who sees himself as a »musician among musicians«. This results in captivating interpretations with a great sense of mutual understanding, including such works close to his heart as in this year’s programme: Christoph Eschenbach once said that Bruckner was one of his »greatest treasures«. He discovered his love for Bruckner’s music while listening to a radio programme as a boy. And it still fascinates him to this day, so he explores the fascination of Bruckner’s first work with us – this »cheeky little fellow«. It is truly a great blessing that we have been able to come together with such a charismatic artistic personality for such a long time. It is like a longstanding and very close love affair that is constantly being revitalised – also with Saint-Saëns’ »Organ Symphony«: this powerful piece was recorded with Christoph Eschenbach and our orchestra at the Bamberg Cathedral back in 1987 for an audio release. We have every reason to be excited about how the work will sound together with our house organist Christian Schmitt on the concert organ our audience loves so much – after all, our Honorary Conductor remains curious in his old age: »I want to still be conducting when I’m 100, because I might be able to discover even more at the age of 99 than I can at the moment.«

8ZEHN30 – Kurzkonzert

The one-hour short concerts ‘8Zehn30’ on Thursdays from 18:30 at the Konzerthaus Berlin are always short and sweet: let go of everyday life and simply immerse yourself in 60 minutes of music without a break - regardless of whether the end of the working day is already in sight or another evening shift has to be put in. The orchestra musicians of the Konzerthausorchester Berlin accompany their audience through a short(er) concert evening - from the personal introduction to the after-concert drinks at the bar in the Beethoven Hall.This time, they will perform Bruckner's Symphony No. 3, which the composer revised more often than any other of his nine symphonies.

Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Christoph Eschenbach

Our former chief conductor Christioph Eschenbach is back on the podium of the Konzerthausorchester and is bringing a highly talented young pianist with him: The 19-year-old Simon Haje will play Beethoven's fourth piano concerto from 1805, which already points in the direction of Romanticism. Robert Schumann was not the only one who loved the work, which is the first of its genre to begin directly with the solo instrument. The audience also liked it extraordinarily well straight away. Bruckner's Symphony No. 3 did not fare so well at first, which is why the easily unsettled composer revised it more often than any other of his nine symphonies. It was not until 1890 (17 years after the completion of the first version) that musicians and Viennese audiences finally stopped objecting and the work was finalised!

Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Christoph Eschenbach

Our former chief conductor Christioph Eschenbach is back on the podium of the Konzerthausorchester and is bringing a highly talented young pianist with him: The 19-year-old Simon Haje will play Beethoven's fourth piano concerto from 1805, which already points in the direction of Romanticism. Robert Schumann was not the only one who loved the work, which is the first of its genre to begin directly with the solo instrument. The audience also liked it extraordinarily well straight away. Bruckner's Symphony No. 3 did not fare so well at first, which is why the easily unsettled composer revised it more often than any other of his nine symphonies. It was not until 1890 (17 years after the completion of the first version) that musicians and Viennese audiences finally stopped objecting and the work was finalised!

Eschenbach, Melnikov · Dvořák, Rachmaninoff