The “spectacular opening” (Salzburger Nachrichten) of the Grafenegg Festival 2018 presented at the Midsummer Night´s Gala lots of famous opera aria and orchestral hits from Verdi, Puccini, Rossini, Bellini, Offenbach, Elgar and more. The Tonkunstler Orchestra under Yutaka Sado was joined by the “terrific singer” (Kurier) Pretty Yende, her “congenial partner” (Kurier) Joseph Calleja and the wonderful cellist Harriet Krijgh. “A feast for the ears” (Kurier)
Festive Concert at Grafenegg Festival 2016
Freedom, fraternity and humanity – this is what Beethoven’s 9th Symphony stands for. It opens the 10th Grafenegg Festival, performed by the Tonkunstler Orchestra, joined by 24 alumni of the European Union Youth Orchestra (EUYO) and “a soloist quartet which no one could possibly imagine to be more prestigious” (Die Presse). “Vogt’s tenor and the Wiener Singverein were especially moving” (Wiener Zeitung) and “the vocal performance by excellent bass René Pape, the fabulous soprano Camilla Nylund and the brilliant mezzosoprano Elena Zhidkova … in Beethoven’s Ninth was just sensational. Bravo!” (Kurier). Composer in Residence Christian Jost’s new work also centres around Beethoven, featuring the song “An die Hoffnung” (“To Hope”), and “convincingly used an impressive orchestra” (Der Standard), with “tenor Klaus Florian Vogt as a well-cast soloist” (Salzburger Nachrichten).
Yutaka Sado conducts Mahler No. 5
During their first tour of Germany together, the Tonkunstler-Orchester and their music director Yutaka Sado give their acclaimed debut in the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg with Gustav Mahler’s impressive Symphony No. 5. Mahler described his Fifth Symphony as a “cursed work” that “no one understands”. While the extreme variety of expression actually overwhelmed the audience at the time, the symphony enjoys the highest popularity today, especially thanks to its gossamer-like Adagietto movement.
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2023
For a decade and a half, the Midsummer Night’s Gala has ushered-in the summer season at the Wolkenturm. It is also Grafenegg’s flagship media event, televised around the world. The best artists take centre stage, casting their spell over the audience amidst the idyllic scenery of the Castle grounds. For the cast of this edition – Lithuanian soprano Asmik Grigorian, American tenor Eric Cutler and French cellist Gautier Capuçon – Yutaka Sado, principal conductor of the Tonkünstler-Orchester, has put together a dramatic gala programme, with works by Verdi, Wagner, Puccini, Prokofiev, Leoncavallo and Dvorák. “Eric Cutler’s tenor was soaring, Gautier Capuçon’s cello melting, the Tonkünstler Orchestra sovereign. And simply stunning the soprano of Lithuania’s opera superstar Asmik Grigorian” (Niederösterreichische Nachrichten)
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2022
“A nonchalant Erwin Schrott (baritone), a stormy Marlies Petersen (soprano) and a stunning Selina Ott, who does somersaults with her trumpet. Conclusion: A summer night dance over the rainbow! ” (Niederösterreichische Nachrichten) A splendid start to the open air season, full of pathos and tender whispers: every year the Midsummer Night’s Gala in Grafenegg strikes the most beautiful notes of the opera and concert repertoire. As the sun slowly descends behind the castle, the colourful sound of the Tonkunstler Orchestra ascends from the Wolkenturm, captivating listeners with its commitment and the best soloists from all over the world. In 2022, two important voices will be heard with the German soprano Marlis Peterson, who has gained international attention with her creative power, and the Uruguayan-Spanish bassbaritone Erwin Schrott, who will enchant listeners with his rich tone. These two international stars are joined by the young trumpet virtuoso Selina Ott, who is on the verge of conquering the world’s great concert halls.
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2021
Every year some of the world’s finest soloists meet at the Wolkenturm in Grafenegg. The Tonkünstler Orchestra, under the baton of Yutaka Sado, rolls out a scintillating carpet of sound in the Schlosspark. In 2021, soprano Rachel Willis-Sorensen, one of the most exsiting contemporary vocalists, takes charge of the Wolkenturm. Together with tenor Benjamin Bruns and the pianist and artistic director of Grafenegg, Rudolf Buchbinder, they delight the audience with masterpieces from Schumann to Lehár. The wonderful open-air setting is illuminated by a “light score” by light artist Marcus Neustetter.
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2017
It is the season’s sparkling highlight: the Midsummer Night’s Gala at the Wolkenturm with international stars in the open air! 2017 sees Russian vocalists Aida Garifullina and Dmitri Hvorostovsky adding Grafenegg to the roll-call of leading operatic venues around the world where their great voices have been heard. The young soprano Garifullina is in the ensemble of the Vienna State Opera and baritone Hvorostovsky sang at the Red Square concert in Moscow in 2013.
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2018
Stars by starlight in the traditional Midsummer Night’s Gala! Two of the great voices and one of the best cello virtuosos of our time promise a musical firework at the Wolkenturm: the South African soprano Pretty Yende and the Maltese tenor Joseph Calleja, both celebrated across the world of opera, and the Dutch cellist Harriet Krijgh, with her irrepressible delight in making music. These are the famous guests with whom the Tonkunstler Orchestra and their Music Director Yutaka Sado greet the summer solstice in Grafenegg with a musical festival for all the senses.
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2019
Stars by starlight in the traditional Midsummer Night’s Gala! The 2019 season at Grafenegg opens with voices and violin: Bulgarian soprano Sonya Yoncheva, French baritone Ludovic Tézier and Austrian violinist Emmanuel Tjeknavorian are accompanied by the Tonkunstler Orchestra in the romantic setting of the castle grounds. Yutaka Sado conducts a programme of arias and duets, with a firework display set to «Pomp and Circumstance».
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2016
For the Summer Nights Gala world stars assemble under the night sky on Grafenegg’s “Wolkenturm” (“cloud-tower”) stage, the futuristic stage design that has become a symbol of the Festival. Bass-baritone Bryn Terfel and soprano Olga Peretyatko present works by Gounod, Bizet, Verdi, Donizetti and Lehár, pianist Rudolf Buchbinder plays Weber’s Concert Piece in F minor. The gala conclude with a firework display to Elgar’s Pomp and Circumstance in front of the beautiful backdrop of the idyllic castle grounds. “A triumph for Peretyatko, Terfel and Buchbinder!” (Kronenzeitung) “A feast of great voices and uppermost piano-art.” (Kurier)