In this subscription concert, Franz Welser-Möst and the Wiener Philharmoniker whisk the audience away to the early 20th century and its variety of styles, from preserving tradition to embracing modernity. Starting with Hindemith’s Konzertmusik for wind orchestra, the superb wind section shows what they are made of: “From the very first fanfare sounds of the opening movement you could feel the fun they had” (Die Presse). With the rarely performed Strauss fantasy on Die Frau ohne Schatten, Ravel’s La Valse and Schönberg’s Variations for orchestra, Welser-Möst shows top form at the podium: “It’s impressive how Welser-Möst gives each piece its own aura. How he leads the perfectly studied musicians to snappy steps and artfully stylised dance forms, or how he revels in the splendour of sound in Strauss and Ravel” (Kronenzeitung).
Vienna at the Turn of the 20th Century – A Recital with Renée Fleming
Renée Fleming has always been willing to expand her repertoire into new territory. This recital is a foray into musical jugendstil as embodied in works by composers active in Vienna at the turn of the 20th century – a natural progression from her long association with music by Richard Strauss: Familiar cycles from WOLF and MAHLER morph into the more progressive textures of ZEMLINSKY and SCHOENBERG, with KORNGOLD (and echoes of Johann Strauss II) supplying the necessary dose of kitschy gemütlichkeit. Renée Fleming and her piano partner Maciej Pikulski succeed in creating the “ideal combination of emotion and interpretation” (Der Kurier).
Happy Birthday, Lucerne! Anniversary Season Opening Concert conducted by Claudio Abbado
2013 marked the 75th birthday of Lucerne Festival. Additionally, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra celebrates its 10th anniversary, and its founder, Claudio Abbado, celebrates his 80th birthday! For the anniversary season opening concert in 2013 Abbado gathers world-famous soloists, who are willing to ‘do the craziest things I ask of them in the interest of the compositions: to fly or to go through the fire.’ The maestro spans a wide and quite contrasting range, from the romantic sounds of BRAHMS’ Tragic Overture to the orchestral interlude and the Song of the Wood-Dove from SCHOENBERG’s Gurrelieder, back to BEETHOVEN’s Eroica. —– PROGRAM: Johannes Brahms: Tragic Overture, Op. 81 / Arnold Schoenberg: Orchestral Interlude and Song of the Wood-Dove from ‘Gurrelieder’ (with Mihoko Fujimura, Mezzo-soprano) / Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, Op. 55 ‘EROICA’