Verdi’s monumental Messa da Requiem, the most spectacularly operatic of sacred music works, shakes the walls of Barcelona’s stunning Palau de la Música Catalana with a world-class cast led by a quartet of star soloists: soprano Elenora Buratto, mezzo-soprano Elina Garanca, tenor Benjamin Bernheim, and bass Riccardo Zanellato. The considerable talents of the Orfeó Català, directed by Xavier Puig, round out the vocal ranks, while the forces of the legendary Staatskapelle Dresden unite under the baton of maestro Daniele Gatti. Though punctuated by moments of tranquility, Verdi’s Requiem maintains an extraordinary intensity over its entire duration, brought to a thrilling peak in the terrifying “Dies irae” theme that recurs to hair-raising effect throughout the work.
The Acropolis Open-Air with Lukas Sternath
Written during the tumult of the Napoleonic Wars, Beethoven’s fifth and final piano concerto is both epic and moving. Young Austrian pianist Lukas Sternath plays as soloist with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, conducted by Constantinos Carydis. The programme continues with a selection from Skalkottas’ 36 Greek Dances, composed between 1931 and 1936, to go back to Austrian classicism, with Mozart’s Symphony No. 35 and the elegant and graceful ballet from the opera Idomeneo. The concert took place in Athens, with a view of the ancient Acropolis.
Fidelio
Oppression and isolation, but also hope and the power of love, make Fidelio an opera for all times. In Nikolaus Habjan’s new Vienna State Opera production, Beethoven’s only opera becomes a timeless work beyond any specific era. Leonore and Florestan are each doubled by a puppet, revealing their inner lives and the struggle between emotion and concealment. Habjan’s staging focuses on Beethoven’s universal ideals and the enduring themes at the heart of the work. Malin Byström’s Leonore “has a beautiful timbre and sings expressively” (Orpheus Magazine) while David Butt Philip shows a “crystal-clear diction and a powerful, bright voice” (Orpheus Magazine). Conductor Franz Welser-Möst delivers “a Beethoven interpretation that was thoughtful and passionate, yet also sensitive and powerfully stirring” (Concerti.at).
Tonhalle Orchester – Paavo Järvi & Hélène Grimaud
Almost twenty years ago, Hélène Grimaud recorded Gershwin’s Piano Concerto on CD in Baltimore under the direction of our Honorary President David Zinman. Now she is bringing it to the Tonhalle Zurich – together with Paavo Järvi, who, as a jazz lover, also has a special relationship with this work. He will also conduct a suite from Janácek’s opera “The Cunning Little Vixen” and Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5: the latter is a work for connoisseurs, says Paavo Järvi, “but perhaps that is precisely why it is also one for everyone”. What is certain is that this music has found its way into pop in very different ways: the swan call motif in particular has been quoted by bands such as The Murmaids, The First Class and Play People.
Verdi 125 – Anna Netrebko and Ludovic Tézier in Recital
Along with baritone Ludovic Tézier and pianist Nelson Calzi, Anna Netrebko marked the 125th anniversary of the death of Giuseppe Verdi with a recital programme dedicated to the legendary composer, in a truly unique event. Showcasing characters from Gilda and Violetta to Lady Macbeth, Amelia, and Leonora, Netrebko demonstrates technical fluency in tackling the various pieces, performing certain passages with a unique finesse. “Her use of vocal agility is supple yet eloquent, not merely for the sake of spectacle” (OperaLibera). Ludovic Tézier perfectly matches her level: “His singing is elegant, his tone is polished, and his performance is characterised by refined good taste” (OperaLibera).
At the piano, Nelson Calzi “was outstanding” (OPERA DIARY). The event took place in the 300-seat Teatro Verdi in Busseto, whose construction Verdi partially financed.
Renaud Capuçon, Lahav Shani & Martha Argerich — A chamber music recital
Renaud Capuçon joins the Argerich-Shani duo for an evening of diverse chamber music that also includes a few musicians from the Munich Philharmonic. Capuçon will be joined by each pianist for two sonatas for violin and piano, Mozart’s Piano Sonata No. 18 with Lahav Shani followed by Debussy’s whimsical yet melancholic Sonata, written at the very end of his life, accompanied by Martha Argerich. This will be followed by a piece by Schumann, a composer who is a particular favourite of Capuçon and Argerich. They will perform the generous and magnificent Piano Quintet, op. 44, followed by Andante and variations for two pianos, op. 46, a rare and profoundly poetic piece.
Martha Argerich & Lahav Shani at Aix-en-Provence Spring Festival
Martha Argerich and Lahav Shani have shared the stage many times in recent years, as Shani often invites the Argentinian piano legend to play with the various ensembles he directs. Shani is indeed a multitalented artist as he began performing as a double bass player and soon became a piano soloist before eventually becoming a conductor with support from Daniel Barenboim, one of Martha Argerich’s closest friends. Shani leads his “new” orchestra, the Munich Philharmonic, this year’s resident orchestra. After performing Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 last year, Martha Argerich turns her attentions to his Piano Concerto No. 2, a piece she loves just as much.
Elim Chan, Augustin Hadelich & Münchner Philharmoniker
With acclaimed debuts at the Vienna Musikverein, the Salzburg Festival and with the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Elim Chan is one of the most sought-after artists of her generation. For her debut with the Munich Philharmonic, the young rising star is joined by Augustin Hadelich, an artist who has long been counted amongst the most successful in his field. Alongside Tchaikovsky’s famous Violin Concerto and the finely nuanced music of Noriko Koide, the programme features Edward Elgar’s ‘Enigma Variations’.
The Wiener Symphoniker’s Spring Concert in Trieste
Vissi d’arte – ‘I lived for art, I offered song to the stars and the heavens,’ sings Floria Tosca in the second act of Puccini’s opera, before she attempts to extract the release of her lover Cavaradossi from the despot Scarpia by any means necessary. The famous aria will be performed by soprano Krassimira Stoyanova as the highlight of a gala concert featuring arias, duets and orchestral works by Giacomo Puccini and Franz Lehár, also known as the ‘Puccini of operetta’. The audience in Trieste will also hear other earthly and heavenly songs from the opera stars – alongside Stoyanova, tenor Francesco Meli. These include the popular Vilja song from the operetta The Merry Widow, from which the symphony orchestra will also play the waltz Ball-Sirenen, along with other instrumental delicacies such as Puccini’s precocious, sumptuous Preludio Sinfonico.
Hélène Grimaud at Ruhr Piano Festival
With Hélène Grimaud at the piano, the audience is always in for more than just a concert. They get to experience an artist who never stands still, who never simply reproduces but always creates something new. Those who get to hear her will immediately sense they are in the presence of someone who does not regard music as mere decoration but rather as an existential adventure. She is a sound seeker, a cross-over artist, which is what makes every evening with her so thrilling. PROGRAM: BEETHOVEN (1770–1827) Sonata No. 30 in E major, op. 109 (1820); BRAHMS (1833–1897) Three Intermezzi, op. 117 (1892), Fantasies, op. 116 (1892); BACH (1685–1750) Chaconne from the Partita for Violin No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1004 (arr. Ferruccio Busoni)