It was billed as „Pavarotti in the Park,“ but Luciano Pavarotti‘s 30th-anniversary concert in Hyde Park this evening could just as well have been called „Pavarotti in the Deluge.“ The Prince and Princess of Wales, the Duchess of York, Prime Minister John Major and his wife, Norma, the composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, the actor Michael Caine and a crowd estimated at 125,000 turned out despite an incessant downpour to hear the 55-year-old Italian tenor sing a selection of his favorite arias to observe 30 years of a sterling career. He was accompanied by the 82-member Philharmonia Orchestra and the 120-voice Philharmonia Chorus.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream – A Ballet by John Neumeier
Choreographer John Neumeier created his version of Sommernachtstraum in 1977 and the piece has been a steady part of the Hamburg Ballet’s repertory. Proof lies in its unique and thoughtful, virtuosic approach to developing drama. After all, the complex mixture of musical layers would be worth a separate panel discussion. Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy’s atmospheric musical score for Sommernachtstraum reflects the world of the mortals, while Györgi Ligeti’s siren-esque organ pieces bring to mind the fairy kingdom depicted in Shakespeare’s play. The craftsmen’s dance is underlined by dominant opera paraphrases for the barrel organ which satirize even the noblest melodies. As with the musical layers, together with his stage- and costume designer Jürgen Rose, Neumeier mixes the historical settings cleverly. What would be more suited to the sounds of Mendelsohn’s score than a sweet Biedermeier set? An olive tree is a perfect symbol of the antique, mythology and fairy tales in one. John Neumeier’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream always has been a wonderful representation of an full-length classical ballet made in the ladder half of the 20th century, the 1970s in Germany.
Rachlin conducts Tchaikovsky
Pianist Denis Matsuev and his good friend, the violinist Julian Rachlin, perform in the venerable Moscow Conservatory. On this occasion, the artists dare to try something new: instead of his violin, Julian Rachlin reaches for the conductor’s baton to conduct a piece which he, with his violin, would neve approach. Together and for the first time, they give an interpretation of a work put to paper by Tchaikovsky in the Moscow of 1874: his Piano Concerto No. 1 as well as the Symphony No. 5.
Beethoven Celebration Berlin
In 2020, Ludwig van Beethoven is the focus of the Staatskapelle Berlin’s suberb open-air concert. With star violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter playing Beethoven’s Violin Romances Nos. 1 & 2, the composer anticipated the romantic genre of the „song without words“. In capturing the expressive „singing on the instrument“, the virtuoso talent and remarkable art of Anne-Sophie Mutter are once again demonstrated. Daniel Barenboim has devoted his life to Beethoven‘s work and mentality. The musical director, pianist and cultural activist conducts the Staatskapelle Berlin and the State Opera Chorus in this concert. Giving justice to the 9th Symphony with its insistent appeal to humanity and its forward-looking utopian character, are the high calibre artists: Julia Kleiter, Waltraud Meier, Andreas Schager and René Pape.
Jan Lisiecki plays Mendelssohn, Beethoven, Chopin
Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki has won acclaim for his extraordinary interpretive maturity, distinctive sound, and poetic sensibility. The New York Times has called him “a pianist who makes every note count”. Lisiecki’s insightful interpretations, refined technique, and natural affinity for art give him a musical voice that belies his age. The concert halls in Germany opened their doors during difficult times: Jan Lisiecki played a classic-romantic program on June 9th, 2020 in the Philharmonie Essen at the Ruhr Piano Festival with sensitivity and strength. “Perhaps the most ‘complete’ pianist of his age” BBC Music Magazine
Jimmy Carter – Rock & Roll President
JIMMY CARTER: ROCK & ROLL PRESIDENT shows how Carter‘s lifelong passion for music gave him an unexpected edge as a presidential candidate as he tapped into a force that transcended racial and generational divides, and often party lines. Carter’s appreciation for all genres of music and friendships with the likes of Bob Dylan, Gregg Allman, Johnny Cash and June Carter Cash, and Willie Nelson helped to define his administration. JIMMY CARTER: ROCK & ROLL PRESIDENT combines intimate interviews with Carter and an eclectic cast of contributors including Willie Nelson, Bono, Bob Dylan, Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Jimmy Buffett, Rosanne Cash, Chuck Leavell, Paul Simon, Andrew Young and Madeleine Albright. Featuring rare archival era-defining live performances from Willie Nelson, Jimmy Buffett, Paul Simon and Bob Dylan, among others, director Mary Wharton traces how Carter’s genuine approachability, combined with the unifying power of music, became key to his political appeal, and allowed him to connect with voters who may only have known him as a small-town peanut farmer. „As joyful and buoyant as its music.“ The Hollywood Reporter
HAUSER and Friends
A spectacular performance from the world-famous ancient Roman amphitheatre, Arena Pula, Croatia. HAUSER performs his favourite classical compositions with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra with virtuoso guest appearances from Caroline Campbell, Lola Astanova, Petrit Çeku and Ksenija Sidorova.
HAUSER – Live in Zagreb
HAUSER performing his favorite classical music pieces recorded at the prestigious Lisinski Concert Hall Zagreb, with the Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir Zvjevdice, conducted by Elizabeth Fuchs. The concert including HAUSER’s deeply moving performance of the Adagio by Albinoni.
Le Concert de Paris 2020
It is now a well-established tradition: every year, on July 14, the Orchestre National de France welcomes the summer with a large musical gathering at the foot of the Eiffel Tower with stunning fireworks. Conducted by Eun Sun Kim, and accompanied by the Chorus of Radio France, the orchestra invites the audience around the world and 1.000 people on the spot, to experience great arias and famous concert pieces in the company of prestigious soloists like Sol Gabetta, Lisa Batiashvili, Sonya Yoncheva, Khatia Buniatishvili, Ludovic Tézier, Fatma Said, Benjamin Bernheim, Lucienne Renaudin Vary and Angelique Kidjo!
Kit Armstrong plays Wagner and Liszt
Bayreuth is not only the city of Richard Wagner, but also of his father-in-law Franz Liszt. Described by the New York Times as a “brilliant pianist” who combines “musical maturity and youthful daring in his exceptional playing”, Kit Armstrong performed at the famous Margravial Opera House Bayreuth, a masterpiece of Baroque theatre architecture, works by Wagner, Liszt and Mozart in a concert that was “technically sophisticated – and poetically poignant”. (Der Opernfreund) Alfred Brendel, who has guided Armstrong as teacher and mentor since 2005, ascribes to him “an understanding of the great piano works that combines freshness and subtlety, emotion and intellect”. PRPGRAM: Works by Franz Liszt, Richard Wagner and W.A. Mozart