Sergei Rachmaninov is perhaps most remembered—and beloved—for his piano concertos, which still stand as pillars of Romanticism, though mostly written in the 20th century. At the 2022 Lucerne Festival, virtuoso pianist Mao Fujita performs the composer’s celebrated Piano Concerto No. 2—absolutely brimming with memorable melody and poignant harmony—alongside maestro Riccardo Chailly at the head of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra!
Christmas Oratorio
Bach’s timeless, irresistible Christmas Oratorio returns to Leipzig – and to St. Thomas’s Church, where several of its six gorgeous cantatas were heard for the very first time in 1734-35! Adding to the historical import of this unmissable event are the Gewandhausorchester, one of the world’s oldest and most venerated orchestras founded in 1781, and the Thomanerchor (St. Thomas Choir of Leipzig), a legendary ensemble formed over eight hundred years ago in 1212 and directed by Bach himself between 1723 and 1750. The eighteenth person to hold the post of Thomaskantor since Bach, Andreas Reize leads the impeccable orchestra and choir – joined by soloists Christina Landshamer, Benedikt Kristjánsson, and Konstantin Krimmel – in a festive and delightful performance of one of those cherished works from which the holiday spirit flows unfettered and ebullient.
Lucerne Festival: Simon Rattle conducts Stravinsky and Rachmaninov
The Berliner Philharmoniker have been a regular festival guest in Lucerne since 1958 performing much acclaimed concerts every year. In 2014, the orchestra completed their cycle “Moving to Modern Times” under the baton of Sir Simon Rattle with Igor Stravinsky’s “Firebird”, set to gorgeous, scintillatingly colorful ballet music in 1909-10. Simon Rattle and the Berliner Philharmoniker paired this lush score of oriental lyricism with another masterpiece of the Russian late romanticism: Sergei Rachmaninov’s rousing Symphonic Dances, which likewise escorted listeners into a magical realm of fantasy and “made the Russian soul dance, too.” (Der Spiegel) – PROGRAM: Rachmaninov: Symphonic Dances, op. 45; Stravinsky: The Firebird. Fairy-tale ballet in two tableaux for orchestra. (Cat. No. UNITEL: A955500050000)
Bach, Mass in B minor
Under the direction of Bach’s successor as “Thomaskantor”, Georg Christoph Biller, the St. Thomas Boys Choir and an outstanding soloist quintet perform with the prestigious Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, playing on authentic period instruments.