Symphoniker Hamburg is a renowned orchestra based in Hamburg, Germany. Established in 1957, it performs a diverse repertoire across classical and contemporary works. The orchestra resides at the Laeiszhalle, contributing significantly to the city's vibrant cultural landscape and engaging audiences with its dynamic performances.
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Concerts featuring Symphoniker Hamburg in season 2024/25 or later
Christoph Willibald Gluck's opera "Alceste" deeply impressed the young Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Years later, Mozart completed a symphonic trio. Franz Liszt, inspired by a drawing, revisited his symphonic poem form two decades later. Richard Wagner's "Tristan" prelude encapsulates the struggle of hopeless love.
The two works on this evening mark the beginning and climax of Antonín Dvořák’s success for good reason: After its premiere in Prague in 1880, the »Stabat mater« laid the foundation for Dvořák’s international career. In London in 1883, the audience was so enthusiastic that Dvořák was invited the following year to personally conduct a performance at the Royal Albert Hall with 800 singers, a large orchestra and an audience of 12,000. The magnificent success marked Dvořák’s international breakthrough. Almost ten years later, the »Te Deum« was premiered at Carnegie Hall in New York. Dvořák, known for his Bohemian, native national colour, was commissioned to help the Americans in their search for their own national musical style. During his time in the USA, Dvořák composed his most famous works today, such as the Ninth Symphony »From the New World« and the Cello Concerto.
This text discusses Charlie Chaplin's movie "Modern Times," focusing on its tragicomic nature and Chaplin's innovative use of music and sound. It highlights the film's emotional impact, Chaplin's unique performance style, and the timeless message of hope conveyed in the ending. The text also mentions a live performance of the film's score conducted by Stefanos Tsialis, emphasizing the complexity and precision of Chaplin's musical composition.
Mozart's "little" G minor symphony, written at age 17, gained fame through Miloš Forman's 1984 film "Amadeus." Mozart valued it enough to request the score ten years later. Completed on October 5, 1773, after his third Italian trip, it's his first minor key symphony, inspired by Haydn's 39th symphony. Mahler's Fifth Symphony quotes Mozart's "Abduction from the Seraglio." Mahler struggled with the Fifth, revising it multiple times. The famous Adagietto, a love letter to his wife Alma, shouldn't be played too slowly.
In 1829, 20-year-old Felix Mendelssohn sketched the Hebrides Overture while in Scotland. Years later, it premiered in London after revisions. Benjamin Britten's Violin Concerto, influenced by Alban Berg, premiered in New York in 1940 after revisions. Beethoven's Second Symphony, despite being composed during a difficult period, is surprisingly bright and unconventional, challenging traditional forms.
Stravinsky's "Jeu de cartes" ballet was inspired by a Parisian taxi ride and his love for card games. The music incorporates various quotes, including Rossini, Strauss, Ravel, and Beethoven. The text also discusses Mozart's Clarinet Concerto in A major, written for his friend Anton Stadler and his basset clarinet, and Schubert's Symphony No. 4, nicknamed "Tragic," reflecting the composer's personal struggles and triumphs.
Toru Takemitsu's "Signals from Heaven" (1987) for wind ensemble evokes a dialogue reminiscent of Venetian church music, drawing inspiration from nature and Duke Ellington. A Divertimento, attributed to Mozart but actually containing works by Starzer and Gluck, inspired Dvorak's Serenade in D minor after his 1877 Vienna visit. Composed in just two weeks, the Serenade premiered in 1878 to great acclaim. Rodion Shchedrin's popular Carmen Suite (1967), based on Bizet's opera, was written for his wife, Bolshoi ballerina Maya Plisetskaya, after Shostakovich and Khachaturian declined. She performed the role over 350 times, even at age 65.
Luciano Berio, a prominent 20th-century Italian composer, had a unique relationship with tradition, creating numerous arrangements and transcriptions of various composers. In his 1989 work "Rendering," based on Schubert's unfinished Symphony No. 10, his arranging and composing skills merge. Berio likened his restoration approach to that of frescoes, reviving old colors without hiding time's damage. 1907 was a devastating year for Mahler, marked by his daughter's death, a heart condition diagnosis, anti-Semitic attacks, and his resignation from the Vienna Court Opera. Seeking solace, he found "The Chinese Flute," which inspired "Das Lied von der Erde," his personal farewell to the world, with the final song, "Der Abschied," being the longest.
»That was my first work played by an orchestra and my first contact with a large audience. I was 22 years old at the time,« reports Olivier Messiaen. Les offrandes oubliées (The Forgotten Offerings) was composed in 1930 and premiered on 19 February 1931 at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées by the Orchestre des concerts Straram under the direction of its chief and namesake Walther Straram. The »symphonic meditation« (the subtitle) is based on linguistically tangible yet abstract ideas. The texts were written by Messiaen himself. The themes of the three verses (Cross – Sin – Eucharist) can be understood as situations of contemplation, descent and rapture and form the three sections of the work.
From canyons to stars, Olivier Messiaen's composition, commissioned by Alice Tully for the US bicentennial, celebrates God's creations. Inspired by Utah's landscapes and birdsong, the piece blends nature's beauty with Messiaen's theological vision, incorporating birdsong from various regions. His longest work, it projects earthly beauty into a transcendental dimension, linking it with biblical names given to Utah locations by Mormons.
Mysteriöse Todesfälle sind in der Klassik keine Seltenheit! Mord und Totschlag gehören zur Tagesordnung. Da rollen die Köpfe, Menschen werden erschossen, erhängt und vergiftet. Bei diesem Krimikonzert läuft die Sache völlig aus dem Ruder, und die Grenzen zwischen Spiel und Realität verschwimmen. Eigentlich soll es ein Konzert mit kriminalistischen Anekdoten aus der Klassikwelt geben, doch dann hält ein Mord im Backstage die Musiker:innen und Juri Tetzlaff auf der Bühne in Atem. Alle stehen unter Verdacht, niemand darf den Saal verlassen, bis der Kriminalfall gelöst ist. Ein Konzert mit köstlichen Klassikhäppchen, garniert mit kriminalistischen Knobelaufgaben. Ein Programm für Krimiliebhaber:innen, Klassikeinsteiger:innen und alle, die mal etwas Neues ausprobieren wollen. Angsthäsinnen und Angsthasen können zu Hause bleiben! Ein spannendendes und interaktives Krimikonzert für Jugendliche ab 16 und Erwachsene. Jüngere Zuhörer:innen mit starken Nerven sind natürlich aber auch willkommen.
Johann Strauss (son) was born into a musical family near Vienna on 25 October 1825 and became the first pop star in music history during his lifetime as the »Waltz King«. To mark his 200th birthday, the Kölner Männer-Gesang-Verein (KMGV) and the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra will be presenting original works for male choir by Johann Strauss (son) as well as his world-famous super hits and the most beautiful and lively melodies of his Viennese contemporaries – and of course a waltz or two... Following the performance of the world-famous »Fledermaus« as a Cologne musical at the Divertissementchen 2025 and two major concerts in Cologne in the summer, the KMGV will be returning to Hamburg for the first time since 2011. Together with the Symphoniker Hamburg, it builds a bridge between Rhenish joie de vivre, Viennese waltz bliss and Hanseatic cosmopolitanism.
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