Vissi d’arte – ‘I lived for art, I offered song to the stars and the heavens,’ sings Floria Tosca in the second act of Puccini’s opera, before she attempts to extract the release of her lover Cavaradossi from the despot Scarpia by any means necessary. The famous aria will be performed by soprano Krassimira Stoyanova as the highlight of a gala concert featuring arias, duets and orchestral works by Giacomo Puccini and Franz Lehár, also known as the ‘Puccini of operetta’. The audience in Trieste will also hear other earthly and heavenly songs from the opera stars – alongside Stoyanova, tenor Francesco Meli. These include the popular Vilja song from the operetta The Merry Widow, from which the symphony orchestra will also play the waltz Ball-Sirenen, along with other instrumental delicacies such as Puccini’s precocious, sumptuous Preludio Sinfonico.
Christmas Concert from Vienna’s St. Stephen’s Cathedral
Experience a musical highlight of the pre-christmas season in the heart of Vienna: the advent concert of the Wiener Symphoniker with chief conductor Petr Popelka in the beautiful St. Stephen’s Cathedral. In 2025, the focus will be on a “Bohemian Christmas” – with touching works by Antonín Dvorák, Bedrich Smetana, Josef Suk and others. You can look forward to special moments such as the enchanting “lullaby” from the opera Hubicka (“the kiss”), masterfully interpreted by Katerina Knežíková. Other top-class soloists of the evening: Stepánka Pucálková, Pavel Cernoch and Adam Plachetka. The crowning finale: the joint “O du fröhliche” – the unforgettable end to an evening full of magic and anticipation of christmas.
Festive Advent Concert at the Frauenkirche Dresden 2021
The Festive Advent Concert has become a much loved tradition in Dresden and one of German TV’s biggest classical music success stories. In 2021, conductor Petr Popelka, the Staatskapelle Dresden and the Staatsopernchor join forces with soprano Katharina Konradi, tenor Jonathan Tetelman and organist Samuel Kummer to present a programme ranging from Bach to festive arias and works of Tchaikovsky, Saint-Saëns, Handel, Grieg, Humperdinck and Lili Boulanger.
Vienna Prater Picnic Concert 2025
The Wiener Symphoniker once again welcomed the summer with their yearly open-air concert in the heart of Vienna. For the fourth time, the Kaiserwiese – set against the iconic Giant Ferris Wheel – becomes the backdrop of a shared musical experience connecting generations, styles and stories. With a cross-genre programme combining operetta, musical, jazz and pop, the orchestra traces a lively Viennese tradition that has been bringing people together since the 19th century. Bass-baritone Thomas Quasthoff brought Frank Sinatra’s repertoire to life with his unmistakable voice, joined by soprano Alina Wunderlin, who moved effortlessly between classical music, operetta and jazz. Double bassist and composer Georg Breinschmid and his trio offered a jazz-inflected tribute to Johann Strauss, while singer-songwriter Lemo added a contemporary touch.
125 Years Wiener Symphoniker – The Anniversary Concert
The Wiener Symphoniker celebrate their anniversary at the Wiener Musikverein, the very place where their inaugural concert took place 125 years ago. The concert looks back to the orchestra’s very first program in 1900 with Wagner’s rarely performed Faust Overture. It also celebrates two landmark premieres: In Alban Berg’s Seven Early Songs, “the orchestra provided Hanna-Elisabeth Müller with a soundscape reminiscent of an Art Nouveau painting” (Kurier); Anna Vinnitskaya’s performance of Ravel’s Piano Concerto for the Left Hand was “gripping and full of energy” (Der Standard) The evening concludes with Mozart’s Jupiter Symphony, performed an extraordinary 282 times over the orchestra’s 125-year history. PROGRAM Wagner: Faust Overture; Berg: Sieben Frühe Lieder (Seven Early Songs); Ravel: Piano Concerto for the Left Hand; Mozart: Symphony No. 41
Popelka conducts Dvorak and Strauss
Together with the Wiener Symphoniker and cellist Gautier Capuçon, Petr Popelka proves to be “a conductor who knows how to unleash storms” (Kurier). First, Capuçon shines with a repertoire favourite – Antonin Dvorák’s cello concerto in B minor. “In the midst of the marvellously accompanying symphony orchestra, he was able to showcase all his skills and, above all, his stunningly full-bodied instrument” (Die Presse). What followed in the second half was equally brilliant with Strauss’ tone poems Don Juan and Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche: The Dream Team captivated the audience with their exuberant joy of playing and a cornucopia of sound…enchanting changes of mood and tempo, magical moments of calm, poetry and light-footed mischief: it was all there” (Der Standard). PROGRAM: Dvorak – Concerto for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 104; Strauss – Don Juan, Op. 20; Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, Op. 28
Springtime in Vienna 2023
For more than 40 years, “Springtime in Vienna”, the TV Easter Concert of the Wiener Symphoniker, has been a major highlight of Vienna’s musical calendar. Featuring the world’s most in demand soloists, the Wiener Symphoniker celebrate the upcoming spring with a colorful bouquet of lively melodies. This edition features Swiss soprano Regula Mühlemann. Within just a few years, she has established herself as one of the leading sopranos of her generation being acclaimed by audiences and critics alike for her exceptionally beautiful timbre and sensitive performances, most recently “outstanding as a radiant Pamina” (The Telegraph) at the Salzburg Festival. She has received numerous awards and prizes and in 2015, she was finalist of the “Cardiff Singer of the World” Competition.
Die Fledermaus
On 5 April 1874, at what is now Linke Wienzeile, a world premiere took place that changed the genre of operetta and the history of the Theater an der Wien for good. To mark Johann Strauss’ 200th birthday, artistic director Stefan Herheim surprises with a fresh new production of the “queen of operettas”: Musical references that tie back to the Theater an der Wien, political warnings and precise character work make for a truly unique spin on an old classic. “Alina Wunderlin is a delightful grumpy Adele with coloratura qualities, Hulkar Sabirova throws herself wholeheartedly into the role of Rosalinde and Thomas Blondelle is a pompous, sleazy Eisenstein, just as one could wish for” (APA). Chief conductor Petr Popelka “achieves success with the confident and supple orchestra and the enthusiastic and splendid Schoenberg Choir” (Die Presse). “A brilliant performance by conductor and orchestra!” (FAZ)
Popelka conducts Schönberg
“Schönberg is one of my heroes”, conductor Petr Popelka said in an interview (Der Standard) – and you can really hear his dedication to the composer as he leads the well-oiled machine of 400 musicians, consisting of the Wiener Symphoniker, three choirs and 5 soloists in their interpretation of Gurre-Lieder: “Perfectly organised, always striving for a balance between pointillist precision, a sense of the grotesque and romantic emphasis” (Die Presse). The soloists shone, above all Vera-Lotte Boecker as a “youthfully blossoming Tove with a bright, secure high register” (Die Prse) PROGRAM: Schönberg: Gurre-Lieder
A Johann Strauss Celebration – The Wiener Symphoniker in Trieste
For decades, the Wiener Symphoniker has welcomed spring with a bouquet of lively melodies. This edition goes international as the orchestra and chief conductor Petr Popelka ring in the season in Trieste with works by Johann Strauss, the composer of the year, but also pieces by Franz Lehár, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky and Erich Korngold.