“A merry medley of student songs à la Suppé” is how Johannes Brahms characterized his Academic Festival Overture, which he wrote in 1880 as a musical “thank-you note” for the honorary degree conferred upon him by the University of Breslau in 1879. The overture focuses on four traditional German student songs, which are integrated with subtly related themes of Brahms’ own invention. The first student tune, “Wir hatten gebauet ein stattliches Haus”, is a nostalgic lament for the glorious days of the student associations or “Burschenschaften”. The next two songs are the “Hochfeierlicher Landesvater” and the initiation song “Fuchsenritt”. After a brief development, the principal themes are reprised and merge into an exhilarating coda built on the joyous “Gaudeamus igitur”. Between 1981 and 1984, Leonard Bernstein recorded nearly all of Brahms’s orchestral works with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra to honor the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth in 1983. Today, the cycle is considered as a landmark in the interpretation of Brahms’ music. Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic have underscored both the classicism and romanticism, the dramatic intensity and the sober restraint of Brahms’s music. The venue was Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal, where two of Brahms’s symphonies were premiered and where Brahms himself conducted. In his introductions, Bernstein speaks with an eloquence and conviction that go far beyond the opening words to a traditional concert performance. With his stimulating theories on Brahms and his music, Bernstein prompts viewers to listen to the music with an open mind.
Weber, Overture to “Euryanthe”
Among the operas composed by Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826), only “Der Freischütz” still enjoys unbroken popularity on the world’s stages today. Other operas, such as “Euryanthe,” which he worked on for about two years in the early 1820s, were popular in their day but did not establish themselves in the repertoires of major opera houses. Although the opera “Euryanthe” contains many musical gems, it is its overture that is most often played today, a rousing work with gallant tunes, lyrical melodies and even some early-Romantic ghost music. Leonard Bernstein conducts the Vienna Philharmonic in this recording produced at the Grosser Musikvereinssaal in Vienna in 1983.
Song Recital: Volkslieder
Song Recital: Volkskinderlieder
The Romantic Brahms is well observed in his many lieder, with their typically fluent melodies and rippling accompaniments. The pieces performed in these three programmes bear witness to the tremendous care Brahms took over the composition of these charming and simple settings: Volkskinderlieder.
Introduction to Brahms, Symphony No.1 in C minor, op.68
“I shall never write a symphony! You have no idea how it makes one feel to hear the thunderous step of a giant like him always behind you!”, wrote Johannes Brahms to a friend in the early 1870s. He had long felt overwhelmed and creatively blocked by Beethoven’s symphonic legacy. Though he had been working on a symphony since the 1850s, he completed the score of the First Symphony only in 1876. The work cannot deny the influence of Brahms’s great predecessor, and particularly the final theme shows an obvious similarity to the “Ode to Joy” theme of Beethoven’s Ninth. While the outer movements frequently unfurl impressively concentrated masses of sound, the two middle movements are more succinct and transparently orchestrated. The four movements are also linked by motivic and harmonic relationships which, however, are more subliminal than blatantly obvious. Between 1981 and 1984, Leonard Bernstein recorded nearly all of Brahms’s orchestral works with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra to honor the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth in 1983. Today, the cycle is considered as a landmark in the interpretation of Brahms’ music. Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic have underscored both the classicism and romanticism, the dramatic intensity and the sober restraint of Brahms’s music. The venue was Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal, where two of Brahms’s symphonies were premiered and where Brahms himself conducted. In his introductions, Bernstein speaks with an eloquence and conviction that go far beyond the opening words to a traditional concert performance. With his stimulating theories on Brahms and his music, Bernstein prompts viewers to listen to the music with an open mind.
Introduction to Brahms, Concerto for Violin, Cello and Orchestra in A minor, op.102
This dignified work, Brahms’s last orchestral score, seems to have been composed in part with the intention of bringing about a reconciliation between Brahms himself and his old friend, the violinist Joseph Joachim. The two had had a falling out at the time of Joachim’s divorce. Brahms wrote various musical reminiscences of their friendship into the music but also looked to the past by referring to a tradition of ensemble composition that had reached its apex back in the 18th century: that of the concerto grosso, which had climaxed in Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, and the sinfonia concertante tradition, whose landmarks include Mozart’s works in this genre. The Double Concerto has taken longer to achieve popularity and is still more rarely played the other Brahms concertos. This is perhaps partly because two soloists must share the limelight – and because there is little limelight to share, Brahms having written difficult yet not outwardly dazzling virtuoso parts. Between 1981 and 1984, Leonard Bernstein recorded nearly all of Brahms’s orchestral works with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra to honor the 150th anniversary of the composer’s birth in 1983. Today, the cycle is considered as a landmark in the interpretation of Brahms’ music. Bernstein and the Vienna Philharmonic have underscored both the classicism and romanticism, the dramatic intensity and the sober restraint of Brahms’s music. The venue was Vienna’s Musikvereinssaal, where two of Brahms’s symphonies were premiered and where Brahms himself conducted. In his introductions, Bernstein speaks with an eloquence and conviction that go far beyond the opening words to a traditional concert performance. With his stimulating theories on Brahms and his music, Bernstein prompts viewers to listen to the music with an open mind. The soloists in this recording are violinist Gidon Kremer and cellist Mischa Maisky.
Introduction to Brahms, Violin Concerto, op.77
Mozart, Sinfonia Concertante for Violin, Viola and Orchestra in E flat major, K. 364
A musician’s musician, an occasional firebrand and a constant paradox – Nikolaus Harnoncourt (born in 1929) is one of the most profound and intriguing conductors of our time. Considered one of the world’s leading specialists of Baroque music, he has long since turned his attention to Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, and even to Jacques Offenbach and Johann Strauss. He spent many years as a cellist with the Wiener Symphoniker before founding the “Concentus Musicus Wien” with his wife Alice in 1953. It soon became one of the world’s most respected ensembles specializing in the performance of early music on original instruments. In the 1970s, Harnoncourt joined forces with Jean-Pierre Ponnelle to stage a series of Monteverdi operas at the Zurich Opera House. This universally acclaimed cycle contributed to a renaissance of Monteverdi’s music and set standards for early Baroque performance practice. Harnoncourt later began to turn his attention more and more to the music of Mozart, whom he considers “the most romantic of all composers”. His concept of Mozart’s music ran counter to the prevailing 20th-century views, however. He sees Mozart’s music as “dramatic, dynamic, often directly and highly emotional.” The Vienna Philharmonic, known for its suave and gracious Mozartian interpretations, initially rebelled against Harnoncourt’s unconventional approach. Yet the compellingness of his vision soon came to be accepted and shared by all members of the orchestra.
Mozart, Violin Concerto No. 1 in B flat major, K. 207
Mozart was never taught to play the violin; he just seemed to know how. On his concerto tours throughout Europe, little Wolfgang would play not only the harpsichord, but also the violin, and developed quite a brilliant style in France. He lost interest in the instrument, however, perhaps because he was forced to play it in the orchestra of the Archbishop of Salzburg. Mozart composed his only five violin concertos all in Salzburg in 1775, most probably for his own use. They are a highly personal amalgam of all the styles he had absorbed during his travels. They are a musical reflection of early Classical and Rococo Europe: aristocratic, graceful, humorous and marvelously melodious. The last two concertos, K. 218 and 219, are characterized by finales in a variety of tempos and meters. Particularly notable is K. 219, in which a poetic Adagio episode introduces the soloist in the first movement and a Turkish episode infuses the minuet finale with a rousing spirit. After having devoted himself to Baroque music for many years, Nikolaus Harnoncourt began turning increasingly to the orchestral works of Mozart in the 1980s. Here, too, Harnoncourt’s views differed radically from those of traditional Mozart reception. For him, Mozart is “the most romantic composer of all”, his music “dramatic, dynamic, often strikingly and exceedingly emotional”. In Gidon Kremer, Harnoncourt found a partner who shared his views. The German-Russian violin virtuoso has also sought his own path in his Mozart interpretations. In 1970 the then 23-year-old virtuoso attained the first peak of his career by winning the first prize at the International Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow. He has since become one of the most sought-after violinists in the world. It should also be noted that the Vienna Philharmonic, celebrated for its natural and graceful Mozart style, initially opposed Harnoncourt’s unconventional concepts. However, the orchestra was soon won over by the unusual stylistic approach often concertizes with Harnoncourt today.
Haydn, Symphony No.88 in G major
Haydn is generally seen as one of the main originators of the “Viennese sound”, the inimitable style of playing which is still very much alive today and is particularly cultivated by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra. This orchestra has Haydn’s music in its blood, and its interpretation of his symphonies demonstrates a supreme confidence, musical sophistication and lightness of touch. As a noted American music critic remarked following a performance of the Oxford Symphony conducted by Leonard Bernstein: “Let’s have no further argument: the Vienna Philharmonic is the world’s greatest orchestra.” Leonard Bernstein began conducting Haydn’s orchestral works when he was still Music Director of the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. Since then, his interpretations of the symphonies have consistently met with unreserved critical acclaim. He, of all conductors, possesses precisely the qualities which Haydn’s music requires: grace, charm and a generous measure of wit.