Elektra
It is the concertante performance of Elektra in which the Staatskapelle Dresden under the baton of its principal conductor Christian Thielemann does justice once again to its reputation as Richard Strauss’s favourite orchestra and leaves us in no doubt: this is where the Strauss sound is at home! Evelyn Herlitzius leads a brilliant cast including Waltraud Meier, René Pape and Anne Schwanewilms.
Bach, Weihnachtsoratorium (Christmas Oratorio) BWV 248
Considered one of the world’s leading specialists of Baroque music, Nikolaus Harnoncourt founded the “Concentus Musicus Wien” in 1953. It has since become one of the world’s most respected ensembles specializing in the performance of early music on original instruments or faithful reproductions. With its opulent decor and gilt ornamentation, the Austrian Baroque church of Waldhausen provides a setting evocative of Bach’s times. An added highlight of the program is the retelling of the Nativity story with the magnificent carved figures of two master wood-carvers of the Baroque period from Upper Austria. Also heard on the recording are the distinguished tenor Peter Schreier, bass Robert Holl and the Tölzer Boys’ Choir.
Hermann Prey – The Schubert Song Cycles
Prey’s legendary Schubert song cycle for the first time on BD. Prey, best known as a master of German art song, was a worldwide celebrated baritone with an international career over 45 years at the MET, Bayreuth, Salzburg, Japan, La Scala, etc. “In his finest interpretations Hermann Prey sang Winterreise and Die schöne Müllerin with a captivatingly natural phrasing that flowed organically like a river and as such was the very opposite of the more intellectual approach of his rival, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau.” – DIE ZEIT Online, 1998
Highlights of Neuschwanstein Castle Concerts
My dear swan! – No other line from Richard Wagner’s “Lohengrin” sums up the diverse programme of the Neuschwanstein Concerts 2025 better than this one.
The inner courtyard of Neuschwanstein Castle is once again be transformed into a world-class sound cosmos. The five exclusive open-air concerts in front of the breathtakingly illuminated dream backdrop are a true summit meeting of the classical music scene. World-class artists present unmistakable arias and works from the Romantic and modern eras, which merge with musical flair and artistic finesse to create a unique overall composition.
Messa da Requiem
In honour of Italian poet and writer Alessandro Manzoni, Maestro Riccardo Frizza conducts this special performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem in the grand, historic cathedral of Milan with the Symphony Orchestra and Symphony Choir of Milan. Verdi composed his masterpiece of sacred music in 1874 to pay homage to Manzoni on the first anniversary of his death. In this celebration of two greats of Italian culture and history, the orchestra was joined by a vocal cast composed of Serena Farnocchia, soprano, Anna Maria Chiuri, mezzo-soprano, Luciano Ganci, tenor, and Luiz-Ottavio Faria, bass. “This work is so great because it is the affirmation of the personal feelings that a human being faces during mourning, which comes to us through the anguish, pain, and hope that the strength of Verdi’s music expresses.” Maestro Frizza said in an interview with Gramiliano.
Hélène Grimaud & Konstantin Krimmel
Klavier-Festival Ruhr presents Hélène Grimaud and Konstantin Krimmel. The young baritone, a member of the ensemble of the Bavarian State Opera, is pursuing a stellar career and developing into one of the most important Lied singers of our time. Hélène Grimaud has been performing the music of the Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov for many years, and the audience of the Ruhr Piano Festival is also familiar with his music. His Silent Songs are music that he composed to poems with powerful images. Grimaud and Krimmel’s interpretation from Konzerthaus Dortmund gets under your skin, especially when paired with the Songs op. 32 by Johannes Brahms. PROGRAM Brahms: 9 Lieder und Gesänge, Op. 32; Silvestrov: Selection from Silent Songs
Ein deutsches Requiem
The “German Requiem” made Johannes Brahms one of the most famous composers of his time. He himself later said of his work, “I have now found consolation.” Under the direction of Gianandrea Noseda, who presented himself with this extraordinary concert as the new General Music Director of the Zurich Opera House, the choir and orchestra performed in an empty hall – the orchestra on the stage, the choir facing it in the parquet and the tiers of the auditorium. Distanced, yet united in consolation. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
The Creation (Die Schöpfung)
To mark its 40th anniversary, the International Baroque Days of Melk Abbey are returning to their roots: Under the musical direction of Stefan Gottfried, the Concentus Musicus Wien, the Bach Choir Salzburg, together with soloists Anna Lucia Richter, Michael Schade and Florian Boesch, perform Joseph Haydn’s famous oratorio “Die Schöpfung” (The Creation). First performed in Vienna in 1798, Haydn’s three-part oratorio is still considered a reference work today. The creation of the world, the chaos of all beginnings is marked by picturesque depictions of nature in the composition.
Dudamel conducts Berlioz’s Requiem
“If I was threatened with the destruction of all my works but one, I would save the Requiem,” wrote Berlioz shortly before his death. Berlioz composed it in 1837, a few years after what has surely remained his most popular work ever since its successful premiere, the Symphonie fantastique. Under Gustavo Dudamel’s direction, it was revealed as “a Requiem of the highest calibre” (El Pais). Both orchestras – “his” Simon Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela and the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France that supplemented it – and the two choirs “set the vault and columns of Notre-Dame de Paris vibrating” (Toute la Culture).