Swan Lake Reloaded – Tchaikovsky meets Streetdance

There are no sorcery or supernatural events in Fredrik Rydman´s interpretation of this Tchaikovsky classic. It is set in the present and Rothbart uses drugs to gain and keep control over his surroundings. The swans in Rydman’s production are prostitutes in white furs and high-heeled shiny hooker boot´s, all completely dependent on Rothbart’s protection and the heroine he supplies them with. In the struggle between good and evil the desire for drugs and love plays a central role. Can true love break the “spell” just like in the original? How does the story end this time? In this production Rydman not only uses the music of Tchaikovsky but also special composed work of a host of Swedish and international pop and rock writers. The show opened in Stockholm dec 2011 and has been on tour since February 2013. So far sold out seasons in Stockholm, Essen, Berlin, Vienna, Frankfurt, Munich, Zurich, Gothenburg, Hamburg, Paris, Geneva, Linz, Milano, Moscow and London.

Joan Baez – Live in New York

In a career spanning nearly six decades, legendary folk singer Joan Baez has been a pioneering figure in both music and social justice. Emerging from the ranks of groundbreaking male contemporaries like Pete Seeger and Bob Dylan, Baez brought a much needed feminist presence and perspective to the protest music of the 1960s, demonstrating a lifelong commitment to political and social activism in civil rights, human rights and the environment. On the occasion of Baez’s 75th birthday in January 2016, GREAT PERFORMANCES presents a star-studded concert from New York City’s Beacon Theater to celebrate Baez’s wide-ranging influence and impact, featuring performances by Paul Simon, David Crosby, Jackson Browne, Emmylou Harris, Indigo Girls, Mavis Staples, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Judy Collins, Damien Rice, David Bromberg, Nano Stern and Richard Thompson

Blomstedt conducts Reger and Beethoven

Max Reger’s Piano Concerto was created in the summer of 1910 in Leipzig and was there brought into the world by pianist Frieda Kwast-Hodapp and the Gewandhausorchester under Arthur Nikisch. To date, few other artists have dared to undertake this pianistic challenge: The American Peter Serkin, however, is one of those few whose repertoire includes this rare piece. In the second part of the concert, Herbert Blomstedt approached Beethoven’s evocative impressions of nature in the Symphony No 6, the “Pastoral”. PROGRAM: Reger: Piano Concerto in F minor; Beethoven: Symphony No. 6

Nelsons conducts Gewandhausorchester Leipzig: Webern, Wagner and Stravinsky

When Andris Nelsons made his debut with the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig in 2011, the conductor and the orchestra are said to have felt a magical connection, which only a few years later resulted in his appointment as the 21st principal conductor of the world-renowned orchestra, beginning in 2018. In 2016, one of his concerts with the Gewandhausorchester featured three works by three composers, each of whom revolutionized the musical traditions of their times. Anton Webern, Richard Wagner and Igor Stravinsky. PROGRAM: Webern: Six Pieces for Orchestra; Wagner: Wesendonck Lieder; Stravinsky: Le Sacre du Printemps

Zhu Xiao-Mei: How Bach Defeated Mao

Music, especially Bach’s music, gave this artist the strength to survive unimaginable challenges. Zhu Xiao-Mei belongs to the “Lost Generation” that endured the worst excesses of Mao’s regime: several years of “re-education”, five years in a work camp, her family destroyed, endless deprivation and political intrigue… “Zhu Xiao-Mei: How Bach defeated Mao” is a portrait of an artist whose life is inextricably tied to Mao’s disastrous Cultural Revolution. In 1980 Zhu Xia-Mei emigrated to the United States, then decided to settle in Paris in 1984. In this film for the first time after 35 years she returns as a celebrated concert pianist to her roots with a triumphal tour to modern China.

Midori plays Bach in Köthen: The Partitas and Sonatas for Solo Violin

Midori’s recent interpretation of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Sonatas and Partitas for violin solo has earned her many accolades by audiences and the media worldwide. In August 2016, Midori performed these pieces, known as one of the most challenging for any violinist, for an audio-visual recording at the Castle of Köthen (Schloss Köthen), where Bach served as Court Chapel Master between 1717 an 1723. There, the precise, light but nevertheless emphatic playing by Midori unfurled a unique world of sound that maybe Bach himself had imagined while composing these polyphonic masterpieces. PROGRAM: J.S. Bach: Partitas and Sonatas for Solo Violin BWV 1001 – 1006

International Jerusalem Chamber Music Festival

Every year in summer some of the best musicians worldwide meet in Israel for The Jerusalem International Chamber Music Festival founded by Elena Bashkirova. In 2016, the 19th Festival is dedicated to interrelated composers like Brahms/Schumann, Bartók/Kodály or Schubert/Beethoven and many more – played by artists like Sir András Schiff, Baiba Skride or Emmanuel Pahud.

Maestras – The long journey of women to the podium

Being a female conductor means being an exception. Even today. When a woman stands on the podium she is, in most cases, somehow “the first”: the first to lead a world-class orchestra, the first to conduct the “Last Night of the Proms” in London, the first to win the German Conductor Prize. For decades, this sensational character has been tradition. At the same time it seems that the world of the maestro is now in a state of upheaval. The young Lithuanian conductor Mirga Gražinyte-Tyla, who took over the post of Andris Nelsons in Birmingham this September, said with conviction: “I really believe that something is changing now.” But why is it that there have been so few female conductors in the international music scene? To take a closer look at this phenomenon, the 53-minute film MAESTRAS follows several female conductors. This historical retrospective is supplemented by the memories of Hedy Graber. She is the daughter of Hedy Salquin, the first Swiss female conductor, who in 1955 received a letter from the Hessian Radio with the words: “Dear Mr. Salquin, although you are a woman we are addressing you with “Mr.” Moreover, we don’t have any use for you.”

PopScandals

PopScandals is a two part journey in time through the juiciest, dirtiest and hottest pop scandals of the last 60 years! Whether naked truths, jarring stage performances or accidental slip ups, PopScandals shows what shocked respectable citizens and the conservative establishment and left the youth rejoicing. From the stuffiness of the 50s when a pelvic thrust or flash of a breast was enough to stir up a storm, to the age of social media, where staged scandals have become an integral part of pop culture. Using the big stars as an example, PopScandals tells of what was needed at which point in time to create a legendary scandal, or to avoid one. PopScandals makes it noticeable and possible to experience the technological development and commercialization of the “scandal machine” the media have created, having become a scandal in itself.