Requiem A – the ‘A’ in the title stands for ‘Beginning’ (German ‚Anfang’), ‘setting off’ (Aufbruch), ‘ash’ (Asche), and ‘breathing’ (atmen). Words that describe the mourning, reconciliation and new beginnings after a time of conflict. Composer Sven Helbig wrote his Requiem A in commemoration of the 80th anniversary of Dresden’s destruction and the end of the Second World War. However, war is not at the centre of his piece; he wants to thematise the subsequent reconciliation and forgiveness. Helbig, a self-taught composer of music for choir, orchestra, and chamber ensembles and a multi-instrumentalist, has collaborated with artists such as Snoop Dog, Rammstein, and the Pet Shop Boys. The performance of Requiem A features visuals by the Icelandic film artist Máni M. Sigfusson, underscoring the Staatskapelle Dresden, the Kreuzchor Dresden, soloist René Pape, and the live electronics of Sven Helbig himself.
Verdi: Requiem from Santa Cecilia
Set in the astonishing context of the “Basilica di San Paolo fuori le Mura”, one of the papal basilicas of Rome, this program combines Verdi’s Requiem, the excellent baton of British conductor Daniel Harding and one of the leading Italian orchestras and choir, the Accademia di Santa Cecilia. Harding’s interpretation of Verdi’s famous funeral mass recreates “an immaterial, disembodied, spiritual sound, suitable for this extreme meditation on the end of life and on the mystery that lies after life” (Il giornale della musica). The excellent soloists Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha, Yulia Matochkina, Charles Catronovo, Roberto Tagliavini contribute to an outstanding performance and an optimal fusion with the choir’s sound. “The last bars, with the crescendo never heard so full of controlled tension and the following pianissimo “dum veneris judicare saeculum per ignem”, left the audience deeply touched and speechless: Only after a silence of emotional recollection, which seemed to never end, did the intense applause break out” (il giornale della musica).
Christmas in Versailles – Sonya Yoncheva
Sonya Yoncheva is the star of this Christmas concert at the Royal Chapel of the Palace of Versailles. Accompanied by the Choir and Orchestra of the Opéra Royal of Versailles under the baton of Stefan Plewniak, Sonya Yoncheva performs popular carols from around the world. Works by Handel, Gounod, Puccini, Mascagni, Berlin, Adam and Mohr – can be heard while enjoying stunning footage of the various magnificent halls and gardens of the Palace of Versailles, with exclusive access granted to the Bulgarian opera diva.
Christmas with Benjamin Appl
The acclaimed baritone Benjamin Appl is constantly on the move, primarily in Europe, Japan, and South America. Now he returns to his hometown of Regensburg and joins forces with the Regensburger Domspatzen and soprano Elsa Dreisig to give a Christmas concert featuring carols from around the world. Melodies by John Rutter, Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Cécile Chaminade, Michael Praetorius, as well as Traditionals from France, Sweden and Austria resound in the Basilica of the Nativity of Our Lady to the Ancient Chapel in Regensburg. The international Christmas programme musically draws on the traditions of multiple cultures and regions, hence appealing to a wide audience.
The Baltic Festive Concert – Kristine Opolais & Friends
Latvian soprano Kristine Opolais is the evening’s star soloist and will perform highlights from her secular and sacred repertoire. Under the baton of Constantine Orbelian, we experience a concert in the magnificent Basilica of Kaunas. Stars from Latvia, Armenia and the USA perform popular highlights from opera, ballet and orchestral song.
Macelaru conducts La Damnation de Faust
90 years of the Orchestre National de France – that’s something to celebrate! To mark this special occasion, chief conductor Cristian Macelaru has decided to perform a work by the great Hector Berlioz. And what could be more suitable for this anniversary concert than La Damnation de Faust?
Berlioz himself described the work at the interface between symphony and opera as a “dramatic legend”. It achieved great popularity, not least due to the famous Rákóczi March, and enjoys cult status among many music lovers.
To present Berlioz’s work in all its glory, the Orchestre National de Fe is supported by the Chœur de Radio France as well as tenor John Irvin (Faust), mezzo-soprano Stéphanie d’Oustrac (Margarethe) and the two basses Paul Gay (Mephisto) and Frédéric Caton (Brander). The performance is further enhanced by the magnificent Art Deco décor of the Théâtre des Champs Elysées.
Jonas Kaufmann – The Sound of Movies
Jonas Kaufmann is an ardent film enthusiast and now, for the first time, he brings this passion to the
stage. In his new program, „The Sound of Movies,“ Kaufmann presents film music hits from 80 years of film history, featuring music from various eras and genres including Ennio Morricone, Hans Zimmer, and musical hits like “West Side Story” and “The Sound of Music.” The program offers a cinematic experience for the ears, culminating in a captivating journey through the magic of cinema.
Bryn Terfel – Celtic Beethoven
In this concert from the Festival Saint Denis, bass-baritone Bryn Terfel joins forces with gaïta-player and flautist Carlos Núñez and the Orchestre National de Bretagne under Grant Llewellyn for a special exploration of Beethoven’s arrangements of Scottish, Irish and Welsh folk songs. The composer made his arrangements of the folk songs for voice and piano trio, dressing them up for 19th-century salon, but here – in new arrangements by Benoît Menut and Pierre Chépélov – they come full circle to be reconnected with their Celtic origins.
Le Concert de Paris 2024
The 2024 Concert de Paris was hosted in occasion of the worldwide followed celebration of the Olympic Games. For this unique occasion, the stage was placed in front of an iconic point of the city: the Hôtel de Ville. Several classical music stars participated in the event: pianists Lang Lang and Khatia Buniatishvili, singers Nadine Sierra, Pene Pati and Fatma Said, cellist Gautier Capuçon and violinist Renaud Capuçon just to mention a few. With them on stage, the Orchestre National de France and the Chorus of Radio France conducted by Cristian Macelaru presented an extremely various program that can be enjoyed by the broadest audience: from the famous Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto no. 2, to the well known French song “Sous le ciel de Paris” and opera arias from the French and Italian tradition.
Mariss Jansons conducts Brahms’ Requiem
‘Ich will euch trösten’ (I will comfort you), sings the soprano in Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem. Indeed, this is music of comfort, not of lamentation. With this work, Mariss Jansons is continuing the Requiem ritual started in 2011 to allow listeners to contemplate the transience of life at the beginning of autumn. Rather than using the standard Latin mass text, however, Brahms selected his own text from the Bible. He completed the work after the death of his mother. Following the premiere, the music critic Hanslick wrote, ‘Since Bach’s Mass in B minor and Beethoven’s Missa solemnis, nothing in this vein has been written which is comparable to Brahms’s Ein deutsches Requiem.’ It was this work, which became immensely popular, that truly established Brahms as a composer.