Herbert von Karajan leads the Berliner Philharmoniker in a concert program exploring the idea of homeland. Rossini’s William Tell tells the story of the legendary folk hero whose love for his son led him to confront the menacing Hapsburg invaders. The opera’s overture counts among classical music’s greatest hits. Next Smetana’s unforgettable melodies bring the beautiful Bohemian countryside near the banks of the Moldau river to life in his symphonic cycle “My Homeland” (Má vlast). Finnish composer Jean Sibelius’s Valse triste was originally written as incidental music for his brother-in-law’s play Kuolema (Death). The famed maestro presents an exquisite reading of these works before closing the program with two typically brilliant waltzes by the great Austrian waltz-master Johann Strauss: Delirien and the Overture to Der Zigeunerbaron.
HK Phil – Tarmo Peltokoski & Lang Lang
Tarmo Peltokoski, Music Director Designate of the HK Phil, leads a captivating Nordic-inspired programme that showcases Finland in both its traditional and cosmopolitan forms. The evening opens with Castor, a dazzling orchestral work by Esa-Pekka Salonen, HK Phil’s Composer-in-Residence for the 2025/26 season and a compatriot and mentor of Peltokoski. The piece is inspired by the twin brothers of Greek mythology, Castor and Pollux. Superstar pianist Lang Lang then brings radiant virtuosity to Grieg’s lyrical Piano Concerto, before the concert concludes with Sibelius’s Lemminkäinen Suite, evoking the mythic heart of Finnish folklore in all its power and poetry. PROGRAM Salonen: Castor; Grieg: Piano Concerto; Sibelius: Lemminkäinen Suite