RCO: Gatti conducts Haydn & Mahler

Joseph Haydn’s Cello Concerto in C major was long thought to have been lost, but in 1961 the manuscript was discovered in the archives of the Prague National Museum. Chief conductor Daniele Gatti leads the principal cellist of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Tatjana Vassilijeva, in Haydn’s animated, ingenious work, before performing Gustav Mahler’s Fourth Symphony together with his orchestra. Mahler himself led the RCO in the Dutch premiere of the work in 1904. In the 3rd movement “Ruhevoll”, the orchestra’s sound is “so beautiful it makes you want to cry” (NRC). With her angelic voice, soprano Julia Kleiter sings an ode to Das himmlische Leben in the finale. The soprano solo, originally intended for the song cycle Des Knaben Wunderhorn, alternates with fast orchestral runs. PROGRAM Haydn: Cello Concerto in C major; Mahler: Symphony No. 4

Mariss Jansons – The Farewell Concert

For one last time, Mariss Jansons – who will bear the title of conductor emeritus as of now – descends down the red carpeted stairs of the Great Hall as Principal Conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. After his resignation, this concert turnes out to be his last in this capacity. The final performance assisted by Thomas Hampson is part of the AAA Festival based on the theme “Origins – Folk Art as Inspiration”, an adventurous series exploring composers inspired by folk music. PROGRAM Mahler: “Des Knaben Wunderhorn”; Copland: “Old American Songs”; Bartók: Concerto for Orchestra; Padding: Ick seg adieu (World premiere)

RCO: Daniele Gatti conducts Mahler Symphony No. 2

For his first series of concerts as Chief Conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Italian maestro Daniele Gatti conducts the iconic Symphony No. 2, “Resurrection”, by Gustav Mahler, in a spirited performance. Gatti and the RCO are joined by German soprano Annette Dasch and Scottish mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill. “Gatti’s magic” (Trouw) makes clear that “a new era has definitely begun by now. Gatti is a conductor who really makes You think about what an interpretation should be like in the year 2016” (NRC).

Oksana Lyniv conducts Mozart & Mahler

After debuts in Europe and abroad, Ukrainian conductor Oksana Lyniv is now one of the best-known female maestros in the world. In 2021, after 145 years of Bayreuth Festival history, she was the first female conductor in the Festspielhaus with her debut production of The Flying Dutchman as the opening of the festival. In 2022, Oksana Lyniv became chief conductor of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna. From 2017-2020 she was chief conductor of the Graz Opera and the Graz Philharmonic (Austria). Since the beginning of the escalation of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, Oksana Lyniv has become a symbol of a fighter in the international music world against the war that broke out in her country. The Opening Concert of the 2022 anniversary season of the Ludwigsburg Festival 2022 is an explicit concert for peace. Together with the Israeli pianist Iddo Bar-Shaï, Oksana Lyniv takes the stage, leading an emotional programme offering the audience a world of consolation and hope while acknowledging the darker side of our existence, its pain and suffering. PROGRAM Mozart: Piano Concerto No. 23, K.488; Mahler: Symphony No. 5

Elbphiharmonie: Hengelbrock conducts Mozart and Mahler

After one of the last guest performances by piano philosopher Piotr Anderszewski with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra, one impressed critic wrote: »Even the most discerning of Mozart connoisseurs were stunned.« Anderszewski can now be seen performing Mozart’s dramatic Piano Concerto in c minor at the Elbphilharmonie. The second half of the concert features Gustav Mahler’s Fifth Symphony, about which Mahler himself once said: »The Fifth is a cursed work. No one understands it.« PROGRAM Mozart: Piano Concert No. 24, KV 491; Mahler: Symphony No. 5

BPO: Dudamel conducts Bernstein & Mahler

Gustav Mahler described his Fifth Symphony as a “cursed work” that “no-one understands”. While the extreme variety of expression actually overwhelmed the audience at the time, the symphony enjoys the highest popularity today, especially thanks to ist gossamer-like Adagietto movement. Gustavo Dudamel, music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, also conducts Leonard Bernstein’s cheeky occasional piece, Divertimento, which – here in Europe at least – is far too rarely heard. PROGRAM Mahler: Symphony No. 5; Bernstein: Divertimento for Orchestra

Paavo Järvi conducts Mahler: The Symphony Cycle

„Mahler’s heaven’s gates open“ exults the press on the occasion of Mahler’s first symphony, presented by Paavo Järvi and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra during the Rheingau Music Festival, as part of a multi-year cycle “at the highest niveau” (FAZ). Not only with this one, but with each individual symphony, succeeds Järvi, “the musical dramatist of superior vision” (FAZ) to excite the audience. Also in Mahler’s Eighth, he creates “richness of colour, depth and a visionary force that literally sweeps the listener” (FAZ). And so it is this very cycle that „contributes significantly to the rise of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra into the top group of German Radio Orchestras” (FAZ) and with which they reinforce their reputation as Mahler specialists. The Rheingau Music Festival provides for the Mahler cycle, not least for the “Symphony of a Thousand” the ideal stage: it is one of Europe’s largest music festivals with numerous concerts in churches and palaces, among others the very prestigious performing arts centers Kloster Eberbach and the Frankfurt Opera House. Programme includes Symphonys 1-10.