This remarkable concert led by designated Chief Conductor Daniele Gatti marks the return of master cellist Yo-Yo Ma’s (after twenty years) to the Concertgebouw Orchestra. In this season opening night they perform Shostakovich’s intense First Cello Concerto, which bears witness to the strained relationship between the composer and the Soviet authorities. Maestro Gatti juxtaposes the concerto with two successful works from the great Russian dance tradition: The three-part suite from Tchaikovsky’s ballet “The Nutcracker” being enormously popular, partly as a result of the Disney film “Fantasia” and Stravinsky’s “Firebird”, which, with his phenomenal orchestration, is evoking an exotic and often brooding atmosphere. “After twenty years, this is a unique opportunity to work together with the wonderful RCO again – very special indeed!” (Yo-Yo Ma)
Nelsons conducts Shostakovich & Bartók
In this concert evening the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and Andris Nelsons turn their attention to the Seventh Symphony of Shostakovich. The work, which Shostakovich wrote during the Germans’ siege of Leningrad, is a symbol of resistance against the Nazi regime and a musical testament to the millions of Soviet citizens who died during the Great Patriotic War. Furthermore, star violinist Janine Jansen performs Bartók’s Violin Concerto No. 1, a work which had to wait fifty years after it was written, in 1958, for its first performance.
Beethoven, Missa Solemnis
With this performance of the Missa solemnis Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Honorary Guest Conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, once more attained the status of a living legend, due mostly to his wide-ranging expertise of music from the Baroque and Classical era. The highly acclaimed soloists are Marlis Petersen (Soprano), twice the singer of the year by the renowned Opernwelt magazine, Elisabeth Kulman (Alto), Werner Güra (Tenor), winner of the BBC Music Magazine Award for the best vocal performance, and Gerald Finley (Bass), Grammy-Awardwinner for the best opera recording. They are accompanied by the famous Netherlands Radio Choir.
RCO: Daniele Gatti conducts Mahler Symphony No. 2
For his first series of concerts as Chief Conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Italian maestro Daniele Gatti conducts the iconic Symphony No. 2, “Resurrection”, by Gustav Mahler, in a spirited performance. Gatti and the RCO are joined by German soprano Annette Dasch and Scottish mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill. “Gatti’s magic” (Trouw) makes clear that “a new era has definitely begun by now. Gatti is a conductor who really makes You think about what an interpretation should be like in the year 2016” (NRC).
RCO: Kerstmatinee 2017 – Bach: Mass in B minor
The RCO’s annual “Kerstmatinee” (Christmas Matinee) has become a much loved holiday tradition. For this edition, the orchestra, led by Philippe Herreweghe, performs J.S. Bach’s Mass in B minor, one of the gems of his oeuvre – for the first time in 45 years! The choir Collegium Vocale Gent shares the stage with outstanding soloists Dorothee Mields, Hana Blažikova, Alex Potter, Robin Tritschler and Krešimir Stražanac. Often referred to as Bach’s “Hohe Messe” (High Mass), the full-scale Catholic mass was given this name in the 19th century to distinguish it from the Baroque composer’s other, small masses. Why the Lutheran Bach decided to create a Catholic mass late in life, remains unclear; what is evident, however, is that his work is nothing less than a monumental masterpiece. Herreweghe’s Mass is “grand and yet moving!” (Het Parool)
Le lacrime di Eros
“A panopticon of emotions” (Süddeutsche Zeitung) This one-of-a-kind production explores “the dark sides of love” with a pasticcio of Renaissance pieces centered around Claudio Monteverdi, his predecessors and contemporaries. Dreamed up by director Romeo Castelucci and conductor Raphaël Pichon, Le lacrime di Eros occupies a space between opera and performance art, marrying a mosaic of Renaissance compositions with electronic music by Scott Gibbons and presenting it in a series of scenes that are visually stunning, yet disturbing: “There is not a second of this show that is not perfectly beautiful: composition, colours, choice of costumes, lighting…” (Classique News) and Pichon “conjures the most beautiful colours from his orchestra” (Trouw). Pichon’s ensemble Pygmalion and the excellent soloists leave nothing to be desired: “Pygmalion has a sound that you must hear at least one: it bursts with lust for life” (nrw).
Barenboim conducts Strauss & Tchaikovsky
On the occasion of the Festival de Música y Reflexión at the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, Daniel Barenboim returns to his native city to perform with the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra who regularly “exceed all expectations” (FAZ) with their festival programme. During their Summer Residency at the magnificent theatre, they play Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5 and Richard Strauss’s Don Quixote, enlisting the help of Kian Soltani and Miriam Manasherov. The soloists unite effortlessly with Barenboim’s orchestra which famously brings together young Israeli and Arab players from the warring states of the Middle East in a model of peaceful harmony. PROGRAM Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 5; Strauss: Don Quixote
Barenboim conducts the Brahms Symphonies
On the occasion of the Festival Barenboim in Buenos Aires, Daniel Barenboim returns to his native city to perform with the Staatskapelle Berlin the entire cycle of Johannes Brahms’s symphonies. In the concert hall of Kirchner Cultural Centre, the former main post office of the city, famous for its magnificent acoustics, Barenboim’s rendition of the Symphonies elicits “bravos and standing ovations in the audience” (Berliner Morgenpost).
Mariss Jansons conducts Shostakovich Symphony No. 5
In the first concert of their tournee through the musical metropolises of South-America starting in Buenos Aires, the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks under the baton of their musical director Mariss Jansons were celebrated by the audience for their interpretation of the 5th symphony by Shostakovich. In the sold out Teatro Colón, one of the biggest and most beautiful opera houses in the world, they “succeeded in delivering a moving, profound interpretation at the highest musical level” (SZ).
Teatro Colón – West-Eastern Divan Orchestra Opening Concert
“A city in a state of emergency” was the euphoric title of the article in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung describing the performance of the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra in Buenos Aires. Daniel Barenboim and the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra make a guest appearance every year during their Summer Residency in several evening concerts at the Teatro Colón. With the greatest of ease, they represent one of the highlights of the Festival de Música y Reflexión: the musicians enthralled their audience with Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 – the piece Martha Argerich played at her debut at the Teatro Colón at the age of eight and with which she returned to the Teatro after a prolonged abstinence – plus two premieres of works by Roustom and Adler and Ravel’s evergreens. In the Ravel in particular, the Divan musicians were able to prove “their filigree tone, their mastery of pianissimo through to the barely audible and many other merits”. (FAZ)