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).
Arnold Schönberg – The Restless Visionary
He was the founder of a new musical age and the overpowering father figure of musical modernism. With his departure from tonality and the invention of twelve-tone music, Arnold Schönberg left his mark on the music of the 20th century more momentously than any other composer. The founder of the Second Viennese School, whose concerts in the first decade of the 20th century provoked notorious scandals among audiences, did not see himself as a radical subversive but rather as a staunch upholder of the great German-Austrian musical tradition. On his way into new musical territory, he was guided by an uncompromising desire for the integrity of musical expression. To celebrate the 150th anniversary of his birth, the 90 min. film Arnold Schönberg. The Restless Visionary uses previously unpublished archival material to paint a long overdue, comprehensive portrait of one of the most important, yet also most original and versatile artistic personalities in history. The film also provides surprising insights into lesser-known aspects of his life and personality: his religious conflicts, his family environment, setbacks, his painful emigration to America, and his enigmatic fear of the number 13.
Blomstedt conducts Bruckner 9
To mark the bicentenary of Anton Bruckner’s birth, Herbert Blomstedt and the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra are bringing his Symphony No. 9 in D minor to the sumptuous Austrian abbey of St Florian, with which the composer had a strong bond.
Lucerne Festival 2024: Chailly conducts Mahler 7
The Lucerne Festival Orchestra opens the 2024 edition of the summer festival on Lake Lucerne with Gustav Mahler’s Symphony No. 7, the most complex and mysterious of his symphonies and for a long time his least frequently performed work. The conductor will be none other than the Italian conductor Riccardo Chailly, himself an ardent admirer of the Viennese master.
Lucerne Festival 2024: Chailly conducts Rachmaninoff
The Lucerne Festival Orchestra under Riccardo Chailly continues its Rachmaninov journey on Lake Lucerne. The program includes the rare Symphonic Movement in D minor, the Symphonic Dances, Op. 45 and the Scherzo in D minor. In the spotlight: the shooting star Alexander Malofeev, who performs the Piano Concerto No. 1. Alexander Malofeev, who attracted the attention of the classical music world at a young age, is, according to Riccardo Chailly, “more than just a child prodigy” and, despite his young age, possesses not only technical mastery but also a musical maturity that makes him the “ideal Rachmaninov interpreter”.
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.
Víkingur Ólafsson – My Favourite Melodies
Acclaimed pianist Víkingur Ólafsson shares his deep connection with music, from Icelandic songs to the works of Bach, Mozart, Rameau, and Philip Glass. He explores how these pieces shaped him and how his feelings differ when performing works like the Goldberg Variations or Bartok’s Folk Song. Ólafsson invites us into his world where musical knowledge, Nordic roots, and creativity merge in his interpretations.
SIMON! The Joy of Conducting
Sir Simon Rattle is one of the most famous conductors in the world. His enthusiasm, his inspiring charisma and his empathetic manner inspire audiences in the big cities and in the provinces. ,,I always have music in my head,“ says the 70-year-old Peter Pan of classical music – we are there when the spark jumps and understand why he can ignite a fire and inspire people to love music like no other. In January 2025, Sir Simon Rattle will be 70 years old – no age for a conductor, but reason enough to look back and see what made him what he is today: A constant innovator who always had to deal with resistance, but who never lost his passion for communicating music.
Tugan Sokhiev conducts Das Lied von der Erde
Mahler composed his “Lied von der Erde” in a phase of loneliness, but still: the seven Chinese poems that he set into very personal symphonic songs also spread a message of consolation. The Münchner Philharmoniker, one of the world’s leading Mahler orchestras, Tugan Sokhiev, Ekaterina Gubanova and Andreas Schager deliver a gripping performance.