Julia Fischer plays Martinu Violin Concerto

This concert was a quite special occasion for Julia Fischer, who was presented with the Martinu Medal of the Bohuslav Martinu Foundation following the concert in the Rudolfinum in Prague. Julia Fischer had just thrilled her audience with her interpretation of Martinu’s Violin Concerto. “Technically everything was perfect with the utmost fullness of sound. Thanks to her rich and full sound, which she deployed with great taste and imagination, Fischer displayed exceptional talent for the Czech and Slav repertoire. It was a serious matinee, at which Fischer brought out virtuoso ornamentation seldom to be heard in this context.” Such was the admiring press comment. Fischer’s solo performance was the centrepiece of a concert that also featured works by Dvorák (Concert Overture) and Beethoven (Symphony No. 6), which wonderfully portray the world of nature.

Dvorak – The Complete Symphonies

Antonín Dvorák (1841–1904) stands alongside Smetana as a founder of the new Czech music. His nine symphonies, presented here for the first time as a filmed cycle, show Dvorák to be a thoroughly individual and original composer whose symphonic concepts and wealth of musical expression are often surprising, representing a distinctly different engagement with the formal legacy of the nineteenth century from one symphony to the next. The Czech Philharmonic regards Dvorák’s symphonic output as an essential part of its repertoire. All the symphonies in this cycle were performed in the Dvorák Hall of the Rudolfinum in Prague, one of Europe’s oldest and loveliest concert halls and also where

Dvorák conducted the first concert by today’s Czech Philharmonic in 1896. Jirí Belohlávek, Chief Conductor of the Czech Philharmonic, is considered an established authority on the Slavic music of his homeland.

Nine Sketches of Dvorák

Documentary to the complete Dvorak Symphonies Cycle recorded in the Rudolfinum, Prague, by Czech Philharmonic under the baton of chief conductor Jirí Belohlávek: Alongside the performances in concert, the symphonic cyle is presented in a special interpretative version in which conductor Jirí Belohlávek explains how each symphony came to be written and highlights the key musical features of the individual movements. Jirí Belohlávek visits important places in the composer’s life, interviews experts and key figures and investigates how his symphonies came to be so successful.

Busch Trio – Antonín Dvorák‘s complete chamber works for piano and strings

Named after the legendary violinist Adolf Busch, this young piano trio has received enthusiastic responses from audiences and critics across Europe. Winners of the 2012 Royal Overseas League Competition and further prizes in international competitions in Italy and Germany, the Trio performs regularly in some of Europe’s leading venues and festivals. They have been recognized for their achievements and playing of “incredible verve” with their recent Wigmore Hall appearance described in The Times as “most impressive was the group’s effortless musicianship and unity of thought and attack. The threesome even seemed to be breathing in synch.”

Dvorák, Symphony No.9 in E minor, op.95 “From the New World”

The opening of Copenhagen’s new concert hall, the spectacular Koncerthuset, was celebrated with a very special project: to present their new home to a broad public the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and its chief conductor Thomas Dausgaard performed four popular works within the classical symphonic tradition, Nielsen’s Symphony No. 3 (Length: 39’), Dvorák’s Symphony No. 9 (Length: 45’), Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 (Length: 49’) and Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5 (Length: 35’). Additionally, the performances were filmed on highest standards and with an extensive setup of cameras.

Danish National Symphony Orchestra Nielsen – Dvorak – Brahms – Sibelius

The opening of Copenhagen’s new concert hall, the spectacular Koncerthuset, was celebrated with a very special project: to present their new home to a broad public the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and its chief conductor Thomas Dausgaard performed four popular works within the classical symphonic tradition, Nielsen’s Symphony No. 3 (Length: 39’), Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 (Length: 45’), Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 (Length: 49’) and Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5 (Length: 35’). Additionally, the performances were filmed on highest standards and with an extensive setup of cameras.

RCO Opening Night 2017: Hengelbrock conducts Mozart and Dvorak

With its festive RCO Opening Night, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra kicks off the new season with a hall full of loyal listeners and new music lovers. The RCO is joined by celebrated conductor Thomas Hengelbrock and – for the first time ever – by German star soprano Diana Damrau. Together they perform well-loved arias and orchestral works by W.A. Mozart, as well as Antonín Dvorák’s Symphony No. 8. Dedicated to the genius of Mozart, the first half of the concert kicks off with the overture to Don Giovanni, played with gusto by the RCO and Thomas Hengelbrock, an expert in historically informed performance practice. Diana Damrau’s “L’amerò, sarò costante” is a sincere declaration of love while the concert aria “Bella mia fiamma, addio” is a dramatic farewell letter to a loved one which the singer performs with great passion. The programme is rounded off by Antonín Dvorák’s Symphony No. 8, an exuberant ode to the great outdoors.

The Belcea Quartet performs Haydn, Ligeti & Dvorák

The Belcea Quartet, one of the world’s leading chamber music ensembles, lights up the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin with their exciting programme consisting of three string quartets from three different centuries. The hall with its perfect acoustics specifically caters to the needs of performers of chamber music and provides an intimate setting for the multinational quartet, here beautifully captured on film. Haydn’s 18th century masterpiece is followed by Ligeti’s String Quartet No. 1 and an atmospheric rendition of Dvorák’s so-called “American Quartet”. The musicians’ journey through the history of string quartets is rounded off by the encore “O Albion”, the sixth movement of contemporary English composer Thomas Adès’s String Quartet Op. 12 “Arcadiana”. “The Belcea Quartet searches and finds the essence of this music” (Der Tagesspiegel).

BPO: Dudamel conducts Dvorak & Adams

City Noir, John Adams’s work for orchestra, is a conglomeration of sophisticated solos, that pays homage to film noir with its title but also with its sinister and sensual sound language. Gustavo Dudamel leads the Berliner Philharmoniker “with lots of humour and real swing through the brilliantly instrumented urban jungle.” (Berliner Morgenpost). In an exciting juxtaposition, the Venezuelan conductor also performs Dvorák’s 9th symphony. Premiered in New York, the colourful work with the nickname “From the New World” brilliantly fuses American impressions and symphonic music. While the Largo can “hardly be imagined in a more noble way”, the Scherzo bursts with great energy, making the endless expanses of the Midwest “almost physically tangible in the swirling stream of sounds” (Tagesspiegel). PROGRAM Dvorak: Symphony No.9; Adams: City Noir