Wagner’s overture to “Tannhäuser” is as beloved as his “Flying Dutchman” overture and also structured primarily around two themes. The first, which later becomes the motif of the Pilgrims’ Chorus, glows with all the solemnity of a chorale and unfolds with majesty, presented first by the clarinet, bassoon and horns. The second theme evokes the realm of love and is dominated by the chromatic theme of the Venusberg before the entire orchestra joins forces to intone Tannhäuser’s dazzling hymn. This recording of the “Tannhäuser” Overture dates from 1975 and is part of a special “overture” special directed by Herbert von Karajan and produced with the Berlin Philharmonic for Unitel.
Rienzi, der Letzte der Tribunen
Wagner’s early opera is stylistically closer to Meyerbeer and bel canto than to his later works. Director Philipp Stölzl, who started his career with video clips for Rammstein and Madonna and later turned to directing films (“North Face”, “Goethe!”) and opera, sets the story of the rise and fall of a charismatic medieval Roman leader in the 20th century. “One can make surprising analogies to the despots of this time: Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler, Ceausescu “, says Stölzl. Torsten Kerl is a brilliant Rienzi; his sister Irene, sung by Camilla Nylund with lyrical intensity, is paired with a lover, Adriano, who is performed by the luminous mezzo Kate Aldrich. Also worthy of praise is the chorus, which masters its demanding part with presence and precision.
La Scala and the Magic of Gold
The Transformation of the World into Music – Werner Herzog in Bayreuth.
Im Ozean der Sehnsucht (In the Ocean of Longing) – The Life and the Death of King Ludwig II of Bavaria.
Concierto Barroco
Introduction to Wagner’s “Der Ring des Nibelungen”
Salzburg Festival 2020: Thielemann conducts Wagner & Bruckner
“Ignited monumental chamber music: Together with an orchestra that breathes with her, Garanca proved that she currently represents the non plus ultra in the mezzosoprano
category. Grandiose the fusion of intensity and noble sound” Der Standard. PROGRAM Wagner: Five Poems for female voice and piano “Wesendonck Lieder”; Bruckner: Symphony No. 4 “Romantic”
Salzburg Festival 2020: Barenboim conducts the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra
“Fluid, but without hectic, Barenboim let the endless melody blossom, strength and tenderness were no opposites. Emmanuel Pahud from the Berliner Philharmoniker played the flute […] and was not the only celebrity in the orchestra: in addition to Barenboim’s son Michael as concertmaster and Kian Soltani as solo cellist, the conductor and pianist Lahav Shani, the successor of Zubin Mehta at the head of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, was on the double bass” Die Presse. PROGRAM Wagner: Siegfried Idyll for Chamber Orchestra; Schönberg: Chamber Symphony No. 1, Op. 9; Boulez: Mémoriale (…explosante-fixe… Originel) for solo flute and eight instruments; Beethoven: Große Fuge, Op. 133 (Version by Daniel Barenboim, 2020)
Salzburg Festival 2012: Mariss Jansons
With four opera productions and its concert cycle, the Vienna Philharmonic once again forming the centre of the Salzburg Festival. Furthermore, in 2012, its concerts bring the musicians not only to the Grosses Festspielhaus, where they are heard under the baton of four of the most important conductors of our times, but – with smaller forces – also to the Main Auditorium of the Mozarteum. With a programme dedicated to the second half of the 19th century, Mariss Jansons, the Vienna Philharmonic and soprano Nina Stemme offer a “superlative concert experience.” (Kurier).