Originally performed at La Scala in 1967 to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Toscanini’s death, this production with the orchestra and chorus of the Teatro alla Scala was presented in Moscow, Montreal and New York, in addition to Milan. It was recorded on film in 1967, now with the young Luciano Pavarotti replacing Carlo Bergonzi. One of Karajan’s earliest film productions (and his first color film), it reflects his innovativeness especially through his choice of Henri-Georges Clouzot as director. Clouzot was the creator of classic “films noirs” such as “Quai des Orfèvres” and “Wages of Fear”.
Mozart, Violin Concerto No.1 in B flat major, K.207
Mozart, who was also an accomplished violinist, wrote all of his five violin concertos in Salzburg in 1775, apparently for his own personal use. Their style can best be described as cosmopolitan and reflects the many musical currents he had been exposed to while on his travels in Italy and elsewhere. Aristocratic, suave, witty, wonderfully melodious, they are dazzling gems that conceal an inner core of challenging material that can be truly mastered only by the very best violinists.
Dvorák, Symphony No.9 in E minor, op.95 “From the New World”
I take my hat off to a man who is not a professional musician but has learned a score like that of the Requiem in only ten days”, wrote Herbert von Karajan to Henri Georges Clouzot in 1967. When Karajan began recording on film in the mid 1960s, one of the men he turned to for artistic assistance was the noted film director Clouzot, the creator of classic “films noirs” such as “Quai des Orfèvres” and “Wages of Fear” (Le salaire de la peur). Between 1965 and 1967, Clouzot directed five works for Karajan, whereby he displayed a marked talent for underlining the conductor’s “star” aspect. Dvorák’s Ninth Symphony was produced in 1966. The performance is preceded by a filmed rehearsal which offers valuable insights into Karajan’s art of conducting and into his interpretation of Dvorák’s “great intimacy with nature, which his music expresses in every tune and which is also a kind of folklore” (Herbert von Karajan).
Schubert, Mass in E flat major No.6, D. 950
Franz Schubert’s Mass in E flat major D. 950 is an uncontested masterpiece of Viennese sacred music. Composed in 1828, the year of Schubert’s death, it reaches a depth and a grandeur equaled in his sacred works perhaps only by the A flat major Mass. Did premonitions of his fatal illness and death stir him to pour his soul into this work? In any event, it breaks away from the rather perfunctory quality of his earlier masses. The tragic tones, austere contrapuntal textures and expressive, dramatic choral writing are nothing less than profoundly gripping. The unusually large wind section without flutes recalls Mozart’s Requiem, which was the last composition written by Mozart before his death. The Vienna State Opera Chorus’s All Saints’ Day concert has become an institution in Vienna. Although the superbly homogeneous and subtly shading chorus plays the most important role throughout this concert, the orchestra also unfolds its warm and colorful and, at times, forceful personality. The concert in which this work was recorded took place on All Saints’ Day 1986 under the musical direction of Claudio Abbado.
Wagner, Overture to “Tannhäuser”
Sir Georg Solti (1912-1997), one of the greatest conductors of the 20th century, was a testament to the elegance and impeccable tastefulness of Central European music-making. Born in Budapest in 1912, he studied with Béla Bartók, Ernö von Dohnányi, Zoltán Kodály and Leo Weiner. In 1937, Toscanini chose him to be his assistant at the Salzburg Festival. After the war, Solti was appointed Music Director of the Bavarian State Opera. Further stations in his career were the Frankfurt Opera, the Royal Opera House Covent Garden and the London Philharmonic. His remarkable partnership with the Chicago Symphony began in 1954; he was named Music Director in 1969 and held this post for a phenomenal 22 years. He is credited with greatly extending and enhancing the orchestra’s worldwide reputation. Solti died in September 1997, just before his 85th birthday. This recording with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was made in 1976 at the Orchestra Hall in Chicago.
Brahms, Symphony No.4 in E minor, op.98
To watch Carlos Kleiber conduct is to be reminded that the basic channel of communication between conductor and players is above all the body. This emerges with mesmerizing vividness in this concert, recorded live in the Herkulessaal of the Munich Residenz on 21 October 1996.
Ein Deutsches Requiem
When Brahms composed his “German Requiem”, he thought little of the salvation of the deceased. With his music, Brahms wanted to give comfort to the bereaved, so he decided against the usual Latin text of the Roman Catholic Church and chose German texts from Luther’s Bible instead. Nevertheless, or precisely because of this, the work thrilled the audience and made it a triumphant success for Brahms. In this performance Christian Thielemann, doubtless one of the leading conductors for the romantic symphonic music, at the podium of the Wiener Philharmoniker, together with the Wiener Singverein, the choir that first performed the first three movements of the Requiem in December 1867, and a duo of outstanding singers, “conjures unforgettable moments” (BR Klassik). Soloists of the evening were French-Danish soprano Elsa Dreisig (“delicate”, Der Standard) and German baritone Michael Volle. Thielemann’s “differentiated conception finds a harmonious balance between intimacy and archaic moments and transports Brahms’s core message of consolation to the audience’s delight in an immediate way.” (Salzburger Nachrichten)
Evgeny Kissin – The Salzburg Recital
Evgeny Kissin appeared in Salzburg with compositions of the late Romantic and classical modern periods in the Großes Festspielhaus. Since his debut in 1987, the pianist has been a welcome guest at this festival, impressing with the maturity and brilliance of his playing. Kissin loves the dialogue with the audience and the direct power of the concert moment. With his solo recital, Evgeny Kissin presents the audience with a truly remarkable programme, a musical offering which inspires throughout, until the very last note fades away: “In a selection of encores, Kissin delivers the B-flat minor scherzo like a momentous pronouncement, alongside works by Debussy and Mendelssohn, as well as an original composition – he pulls them out of his sleeve, as impulsive and refined as if the concert had just begun.” (Salzburger Nachrichten) “Kissin blossoms into his full greatness” (Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung) PROGRAM Chopin: Nocturne in B major op. 62/1, Impromptus Nos. 1–3 opp. 29, 36 & 51, Scherzo No. 1 & 2, Polonaise op. 53; Berg: Piano Sonata, op. 1; Khrennikov: Dance op. 5/3, 5 Pieces op. 2; Gershwin: Preludes for Piano; Mendelssohn Bartholdy: Andante con moto (“Duetto”) op. 38; Debussy: Clair de lune; Kissin: Dodecaphonic Tango op. 1/2
Bruckner 11: The complete Symphonies -Christian Thielemann & Wiener Philharmoniker
On the occasion of the Bruckner bicentenary, the Vienna Philharmonic recorded its first ever complete Bruckner cycle with a single conductor, Christian Thielemann. In addition to the well-known canon of nine symphonies, the two earliest Bruckner symphonies in F minor and D minor were also recorded for the first time in the orchestra’s history. This uniquely complete edition from the Musikverein and Salzburg Festival, featuring 11 symphonies also includes extensive conversations with Christian Thielemann about each symphony and insights into his rehearsal work. “In this audiovisual edition Bruckner 11, the Vienna Philharmonic pays tribute to the symphonic works of the great Austrian composer Anton Bruckner, whose 200th birthday anniversary will be celebrated in 2024. For the first time in our orchestral history we have made a complete recording of all nine symphonies and two of his brilliant yet rarely performed early works with a single conductor. We enjoy a very close artistic partnership and friendship with Christian Thielemann, who is an acknowledged expert on the music of Anton Bruckner and one of the most influential contemporary conductors in this repertoire. In this recording, our long tradition comes alive in both sound and images. We hope it will encourage people to rediscover the treasures of Bruckner’s music, a legacy that the composer bestowed upon present and future generations of music lovers.” Prof. Daniel Froschauer, Chairman of the Wiener Philharmoniker.
Daniel Barenboim: Beethoven – The complete Piano Sonatas
Few musicians in the world are as intimately familiar with Beethoven’s piano sonatas as Daniel Barenboim, who has been exploring these works since the earliest days of his career – a musical novel in 32 chapters and an artistic cosmos in itself. Barenboim recorded the full cycle of Beethoven sonatas in the Pierre Boulz Saal in 2020 and presents these works in chronological order of their creation – providing an exciting look at the composer’s artistic development. With this sonata cycle, Daniel Barenboim has set himself a legacy! The box includes 234 mins Bonus: a 42-minutes interview with Daniel Barenboim on Beethoven and 3 masterclasses with Daniel Barenboim, working with students of the Barenboim-Said Academy feat. Alexandre Kantorow (winner of the 1st price and gold medal at the Tschaikowsky Competition, working on Sonata No. 2), Nathalia Milstein on Sonata No. 15 “Pastoral” and Fabian Müller on Sonata No. 23 “Appassionata”). “No matter how many times you play them there are always freshpersonal perspectives waiting to be discovered.” Daniel Barenboim