Ludwig van Beethoven’s “Sonatas for Piano and Violin” were almost all composed in a relatively quick succession between 1797 and 1803, in Beethoven’s early days, and are now part of the classic repertoire of the violin literature. Leonidas Kavakos’s and Enrico Pace’s interpretation of the complete Sonata Cycle set new standards, was nominated for the Grammy Award and was celebrated by the press: “Together these two make magic” (Buffalo News), “an ideally attuned, technically perfect duo” (Die
Presse).
Under the heading “Party in the Felsenreitschule,” the Munich daily Münchner Merkur boldly proclaimed: “Venezuela’s Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra guests at the Salzburg Festival – and delivers the biggest audience hit of the summer.” Two days after the concert reviewed by the Merkur, the ensemble united its massive forces once again for a spectacular concert in the Grosses Festspielhaus – another unqualified success! Rarely has an orchestra reached out and grabbed its audience in such a visceral manner; and even more rarely has such a feat been accomplished by an orchestra of youngsters between the ages of 12 and 26! The Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra, the Salzburg Festival’s resident orchestra of 2008, is a product of the “Sistema de Orquestas” set up to allow children of all social levels to learn a musical instrument and play in an ensemble. Today, 250,000 youths are learning from 15,000 instructors and playing in over 120 youth orchestras and nearly 60 children’s orchestras. Some of the Sistema’s finest players were picked to form the S.B.Y.O. and to work in Salzburg with such outstanding musicians as Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Martha Argerich. Documenting their activity there is the program “School for the Ear” featuring works by Beethoven and Mahler (also available from UNITEL CLASSICA). Conducting the present concert is the Sistema’s most celebrated alumnus, Gustavo Dudamel, born in 1981. The young maestro, who was appointed chief conductor of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra in 2007, is, in the words of the Salzburg Festival’s music director, Markus Hinterhäuser, “the most charismatic conductor since Leonard Bernstein.” The concert opens with Beethoven’s sparkling Triple Concerto. The distinguished soloists are Martha Argerich (piano), Renaud Capuçon (violin) and Gautier Capuçon (cello). Ravel’s orchestration of Mussorgsky’s monumental Pictures at an Exhibition forms the second part of the concert, in which “Dudamel channels his juvenile forces into a compelling flow with dynamic gestures” (Der Standard). The young conductor proved that “he has an extraordinary talent not only to stimulate his players, but also to accompany creatively and imaginatively” (Die Presse).
The idea of uniting young musicians from Israel, Palestine and various Arab countries into a musical ensemble still seems incredible today. Yet such an orchestra has been flourishing since 1999, when Daniel Barenboim and Edward Said founded the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. At the 2007 Salzburg Festival, during the orchestras residency, Daniel Barenboim led a musical workshop called ‘School for the Ear.’ In the first part, Barenboim explores the phenomenon of sound and the importance of the human ear. The second part features the fiery 24-year-old conductor Robin Ticciati in a rehearsal of Beethoven’s third Leonore Overture punctuated by the Maestro’s insightful comments and heated discussions with the young conductor. In the third part the great composer and conductor Pierre Boulez rehearses Béla Bartók’s rarely played ‘Four Orchestral Pieces,’ answering questions from the audience and the musicians.
Unlike the piano, the violin or even the flute, the oboe is a relatively rare instrument for a solo career. And when a soloist such as Albrecht Mayer plays the oboe, one wishes composers had written more works for this sweetly mellow instrument. Critics write about the “divine spark” that inspires his playing, and about the “miraculous oboe” that turns into “an instrument of seduction.” With his particularly warm tone and exceptionally broad palette of nuances, it’s no surprise that Albrecht Mayer is one of today’s most sought-after international oboists. In this documentary portrait of the oboist, we retrace the musician’s impressive career and witness some of its many high points.
The German magazine Stern describes Thomas Quasthoff as ‘the man with the most beautiful voice in the world’. Furthermore, his power of interpretation and unerring sense of taste go hand in hand not only when performing Italian arias but also when singing famous American songs. After his performance and recording of ‘Tell it like it is’ at the famous A-Trane jazzclub in Berlin, ‘unbounded cheering’ (Die Welt) by the audience had the effect of singling out certain numbers. With each of their appearances in February 2010, Thomas Quasthoff and his hand-picked instrumentalists (Bruno Müller, guitar, Frank Chastenier, keyboard, Dieter Ilg, bass, Wolfgang Haffner, drums) worked their way deeper into these pieces of jazz and soul. Works by Marvin Gaye, Percy Mayfield, Tony Joe White, Stevie Wonder, John Lennon, Ray Charles, Randy Newman, et al.
‘The most popular pianist on the planet’ (CNN) performs at the stunning Musikverein in Vienna, recorded for the first time at a special TV recital! “For me, there are few halls around the globe that have the same prestige as Carnegie Hall and the Musikverein. Of course there are other great halls, but I always feel these two have a unique place in people’s hearts. So I felt that after Carnegie Hall, the Musikverein would be the place where I should do another live recordings.” (Lang Lang) The programme also includes special backstage features, interviews and much more. ‘To his millions of fans worldwide the 27-year-old Chinese musician is a God-like star, whose skill and energetic performance style put him in a league of his own.’ (CNN) Works: Beethoven: Piano Sonata No. 3 in C major, Op. 2, Piano Sonata No. 23 in F minor, Op. 57 “Appassionata”, Albéniz: Iberia Book 1, Prokofiev: Piano Sonata No. 7 in B flat major, Op. 83, Chopin: Étude No. 1 in A flat major, Op. 25, Polonaise No. 6 in A flat major, Op. 53 “Heroic”, Grande Valse Brillante No. 2 in A flat major, Op. 34, No. 1
Since going on sale in November 2012, tickets for classical pianist Lang Lang’s solo recital at the Royal Albert Hall on November 15th 2013 sold out within 48 hours, a record for a recital by any classical musician at the venue in recent times. We’re delighted to be able to preserve his performance for the screen, so his many worldwide fans have a chance to experience the programme: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Piano Sonata No. 5 in G major, KV 283 – Piano Sonata No. 4 in E flat major, KV 282 – Piano Sonata No. 8 in A minor, KV 310 – Frédéric Chopin: Ballade No. 1 Op 23 in G minor – Ballade No. 2 Op 38 in F Major – Ballade No. 3 Op 47 in A flat – Ballade No. 4 Op 52 in F minor.The word’s first 4K classical music production. (Length of the 4K version: 115′ min.)
Kimmo Pohjonen is one of the cutting-edge accordion virtuosi and composers of our time. After having heard a record of Pohjonen’s during their concert tour in Finland, Kronos Quartet – who is well known for breaking new musical grounds – decided to get in touch with him. The Kronos/Kluster project entitled “Uniko” is a mutually beneficial sonic/visual adventure with this goal: to create unique and never-before-heard-of sounds from accordion and strings. The Making-Of is a short documentary giving an insight into the collaboration between Kimmo Pohjonen, who has taken the accordion to new dimensions, his Kluster-partner Samuli Kosminen, Finland’s sampling guru, and the world’s most revolutionary string quartet – the Kronos quartet.
