Emmanuel Pahud, the Berliner Philharmoniker’s principal flautist, celebrates the 300th anniversary of Frederick the Great’s birth with a concert recorded in the Royal Theatre of Potsdam’s Neues Palais, one of the architectural gems erected by the Prussian king within the World Heritage palace ensemble of Sanssouci. Not only was Frederick an eminent ruler and philosopher, he was also a passionate flautist, a talented composer and patron of music, who appointed to his court such renowned musicians of his day as J. J. Quantz, C. P. E. Bach and Franz Benda. Accompanied by the Kammerakademie Potsdam directed by Trevor Pinnock Emmanuel Pahud performs works by these three composers together with a composition written by Frederick the Great himself.
Leonard Bernstein conducts Beethoven and Haydn
Beethoven’s String Quartet op. 135 was the last work he would complete before his death. Especially in the poignant slow movement, this otherworldy masterpiece can be read as the farewell music of a genius. In 1989, less than a year before his own death, Bernstein delivered a powerful and now legendary live performance of this work – transcribed for string orchestra and played by the Vienna Philharmonic. For the first time ever, this famous concert is now being released on DVD and Blu-ray. Another definitive Bernstein performance debuting now on both mediums is the enigmatic maestro’s reading of Haydn’s Missa in tempore belli, filmed live in concert at Ottobeuren in 1984, using to maximum effect the deeply impressive setting of the monastery’s magnificent Baroque basilica.