This suite of five concerts at Munich’s Philharmonic Hall performed by the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, the Mariinsky Orchestra and several soloists, forms part of the MPhil 360° Festival. The MPhil 360° Festival is a new festival which marks the beginning of Valery Gergiev’s collaboration with the Munich Philharmonics. Core of the program of the festival’s first edition are the five piano concertos of Prokofiev which enter into a dialogue with history and modern age. All of Prokofiev’s piano concertos are complemented by works of the German musical literature. Such a compilation appeals to the audience – the press raved: “The interpretations [of the five piano concertos] were so different, that an extremely enlightening portrait of Prokofiev came off“, not least “the new maestro was shining with the Munich Philharmonics” (SZ).
The Prokofiev Marathon
This suite of five concerts at Munich’s Philharmonic Hall performed by the Münchner Philharmoniker, the Mariinsky Orchestra and several soloists, forms part of the MPhil 360° Festival. The MPhil 360° Festival is a new festival which marks the beginning of Valery Gergiev’s collaboration with the Münchner Philharmoniker. Core of the program of the festival’s first edition are the five piano concertos of Prokofiev who enter into a dialogue with history and modern age. All of Prokofiev’s piano concertos are complemented by works of the German musical literature. PROGRAM Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 5; Widmann: “Con Brio”, Concert Overture for Orchestra; Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A major, KV 622
The Prokofiev Marathon
This suite of five concerts at Munich’s Philharmonic Hall performed by the Münchner Philharmoniker, the Mariinsky Orchestra and several soloists, forms part of the MPhil 360° Festival. The MPhil 360° Festival is a new festival which marks the beginning of Valery Gergiev’s collaboration with the Münchner Philharmoniker. Core of the program of the festival’s first edition are the five piano concertos of Prokofiev who enter into a dialogue with history and modern age. All of Prokofiev’s piano concertos are complemented by works of the German musical literature. PROGRAM Prokofiev: Piano Concerto (for the left hand) No. 4; Shchedrin: “Tanja – Katja”, Romance in Folk Style for Woman’s Voice and String Orchestra; Concerto for Orchestra No. 1 “Naughty Limericks”; Hartmann: Simplicius Simplicissimus, Suite
The Prokofiev Marathon
This suite of five concerts at Munich’s Philharmonic Hall performed by the Münchner Philharmoniker, the Mariinsky Orchestra and several soloists, forms part of the MPhil 360° Festival. The MPhil 360° Festival is a new festival which marks the beginning of Valery Gergiev’s collaboration with the Münchner Philharmoniker. Core of the program of the festival’s first edition are the five piano concertos of Prokofiev who enter into a dialogue with history and modern age. All of Prokofiev’s piano concertos are complemented by works of the German musical literature. PROGRAM Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 3; Max Reger: Four Tone Poems after Arnold Bocklin, Op. 128
The Prokofiev Marathon
This suite of five concerts at Munich’s Philharmonic Hall performed by the Münchner Philharmoniker, the Mariinsky Orchestra and several soloists, forms part of the MPhil 360° Festival. The MPhil 360° Festival is a new festival which marks the beginning of Valery Gergiev’s collaboration with the Münchner Philharmoniker. Core of the program of the festival’s first edition are the five piano concertos of Prokofiev who enter into a dialogue with history and modern age. All of Prokofiev’s piano concertos are complemented by works of the German musical literature. PROGRAM Prokofiev: Piano Concerto No. 2, von Weber: “Invitation to the Dance” arr. for orchestra by Hector Berlioz
The Fiery Angel
Prokofiev’s Fiery Angel is one of the outstanding operas of the 20th century. Director Andrea Breth transfers the story of Renata, who is plagued by visions, to a clinic. The atmosphere is characterised by agonising hopelessness, but at the same time heightened by the emotional excesses of the inmates. This monochrome approach, which dispenses with any historical embellishment, is legitimised by the careful elaboration of the characters. Aušrine Stundyte, one of the outstanding singing actors of our time, and the congenial Bo Skovhus play out the consequences of traumatisation with merciless precision in Breth’s interpretation. “Musically gripping, scenically intense.” (Wiener Zeitung) / “A scenic sensation.” (Kurier) / “Aušrine Stundyte succeeds in her singing balancing act between eruptive power and vulnerability.” (Die Presse)
The Fiery Angel
Valéry Gergiev is said to be at his best when interpreting Russian composers. Convincing evidence is given with this production of Sergei Prokofiev’s “The Fiery Ange”l from the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg. Prokofiev’s disturbingly enigmatic opera was never performed during his lifetime – it was considered too decadent by Stalin and his successors – but David Freeman’s imaginative production asserts it as one of the composer’s greatest masterpieces. Galina Gorchakova and Sergei Leiferkus inspire with brilliant performances in the two main roles.
The opera is derived from a novel by the Russian decadent Valéry Bryusov. Ostensibly, it is a tale of religious hysteria and demonic possession and also explores symbolically the love triangle endured by the writer and his self-destructive lover, the poet Nina Petrovskaya.
David Freeman has completely entered into this opera’s strangely unnerving world. Evil is all around us and in his sensational production the image is taken quite literally.
War and Peace
From the Kirov Opera St. Petersburg 1991 This production marked an historic ‘first’ collaboration between Russian and British operatic talent. Producer Graham Vick, designer Timothy O’Brien and lighting designer Matthew Richardson mounted a War and Peace that was revolutionary in staging terms for the Kirov Opera. The galvanic conductor Valery Gergiev fielded a cast of the company’s finest singers, including Nicolai Othotnikov, Irina Bogachova, Yuri Marusin and Yelena Prochina, supported by a huge, expertly-rehearsed chorus. The impact of this War and Peace is formidable. (Sung in Russian)
Cinderella
Specially staged in studio for this recording, Maguy Marin’s reworking of the Cinderella story is astonishingly original and magical. “This is not Prokofiev’s Cinderella but Marin’s version – a brilliantly conceived one at that” (Anna Kisselgoff, New York Times). Montserrat Casanova’s designs transform the dancers into doll characters, using masks and paddedvcostumes, and her doll’s house set, with ist compartmentalised rooms, is equally inventive, Prokofiev’s wistful music has been cut, and additional sound effects added, to enhance Marin’s vision.
The Gambler
Based on a short novel by Dostoyevsky, Prokofiev’s The Gambler unfolds in the fictional casino town of Roulettenburg, where a variety of characters converge and clash. These characters include a General indebted to a covetous Marquis, the General’s resentful stepdaughter Polina, and Alexey, who harbors feelings for her. Director Peter Sellars, known for his insightful interpretations of overlooked masterpieces, challenges us to mirror the bravery of Dostoyevsky and Prokofiev – the courage to confront our inner darkness. The musical direction of Russian conductor Timur Zangiev shines together with the vocal performances of the exceptional cast: “Asmik Grigorian portraying a passionate Polina, and Sean Panikkar delivering a powerful performance as Alexei” (Financial Times) “Peter Sellars…has done what this exceptional director always tries to do: present an old, distant story as an analysis of the here and now” (Süddeutsche Zeitung) “A triumph of vision and passion” (European News Agency) “Grand sound cinema” (Bachtrack)