Christian Thielemann’s brilliant interpretation of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 2 is superbly performed by the Staatskapelle Dresden and concludes its critically acclaimed Bruckner Cycle with a concert at the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg. The orchestra makes skilled use of the new hall’s clear acoustics, filling the space with its warm sound: simply phenomenal! A concert that “will go down in the annals of the Elbphilharmonie” (Die Welt).
Grafenegg: Midsummer Night’s Gala 2019
Stars by starlight in the traditional Midsummer Night’s Gala! The 2019 season at Grafenegg opens with voices and violin: Bulgarian soprano Sonya Yoncheva, French baritone Ludovic Tézier and Austrian violinist Emmanuel Tjeknavorian are accompanied by the Tonkunstler Orchestra in the romantic setting of the castle grounds. Yutaka Sado conducts a programme of arias and duets, with a firework display set to «Pomp and Circumstance».
Idomeneo
Idomeneo is considered as the first of the seven uncontested masterworks of Mozart’s dramatic œuvre and it is perhaps even the most revolutionary and forward-looking of his work. In “Kasper Holten’s coherent production” (Die Presse) Bernard Richter was “a cultivated bright tenor with beautiful expressive moments” (Kronen Zeitung). “Valentina
Nafornita performed the role of Ilia with passion and reached every height with ease and Irina Lungu portrayed Elettra as a great tragic figure and unfolded her soprano with verve in the final aria” (Kurier). Conductor Tomáš Netopil provided with the orchestra “gripping moments from the virtuoso overture onwards” (Kronen Zeitung).
Bregenz Festival 2019: Don Quichotte
French director Mariame Clément takes a clever and exhilarating look at modern heroism in Jules Massenet’s operatic rarity Don Quichotte: “a striking interpretation” (Neue Musikzeitung). But this opera is also a musical discovery, not least because of the outstanding cast starring Gábor Bretz as Don Quichotte, David Stout as Sancho and Anna Goryachova as Dulcinée. In the pit, Daniel Cohen leads the Wiener Symphoniker to a dynamic- differentiated performance. A musically as visually absolutely rewarding evening!
Salzburg Festival 2019: Simon Boccanegra
Giuseppe Verdi’s emotional political thriller, brilliantly captured in Andreas Kriegenburg’s puristic staging, becomes a musical feast in Salzburg with a high-class ensemble including René Pape, Luca Salsi, Marina Rebeka and Charles Castronovo. Conductor Valery Gergiev gives a “musically differentiated and overall convincing interpretation of Verdi’s sonically immensely subtle score” (Die Zeit). The Wiener Philharmoniker and the choir of the Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor perform superbly.
Salzburg Festival 2019: Idomeneo
After their successfull collaboration for La clemenza di Tito the drm team Peter Sellars and Teodor Currentzis again joined forces to transpose Mozart’s extraordinary opera Idomeneo into the present world. The fabulous Freiburger Barockorchester shines with elegance and precision, and MusicAeterna Choir can rightfully be called “the best choir in the world” (Süddeutsche Zeitung). Chinese lyric soprano and rising star Ying Fang gives her highly acclaimed Festival debut in the role of Ilya, Nicole Chevalier is brilliant as furious Elettra.
Salzburg Festival 2019: Alcina
At Salzburg Festival, Handel‘s Alcina is a true celebration of singing: Cecilia Bartoli shines in the title role of the sorceress Alcina as does Philippe Jaroussky in the role of Ruggiero.
At their side, Sandrine Piau as Morgana and Kristina Hammerström as Bradamante are “ravishing“ (Süddeutsche Zeitung). Director Damiano Michielietto stages his first baroque opera and creates a convincing mixture of psychological interpretation and associative imagery. Unlike the libretto, which is based on Ludovico Ariosto‘s epic “Orlando furioso”, the Venetian Michieletto moves the setting of Alcina’s magic island to a mysterious hotel with a mirror wall. The look in the mirror of an aging woman, who has an oppressive fear of no longer being desired, is the obvious core of the production. Gianluca Capuano conducts the Musiciens du Prince – Monaco prudently and with a slim orchestral sound, the Bachchor Salzburg is excellently rehearsed. Capuano “perfectly combines drama with precision and poetry“ raves Süddeutsche Zeitung. “An extraordinary show“ (The New York Times)
Thielemann conducts Bruckner No. 8
For the very first time in its history, the Wiener Philharmoniker are performing a complete Bruckner cycle with worlwide renowned Bruckner expert Christian Thielemann at the podium. The eighth symphony are part of this large-scale Bruckner Cycle, which extends to the composer‘s 200th birthday in 2024, performed at Vienna’s beautiful Musikverein. The orchestra, which premiered four of the nine Bruckner symphonies, is more familiar with this music than any other ensemble. Bruckner’s powerful and sonically grandiose symphonies never cease to amaze. The reactions to the concert of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8 were no less enthusiastic:”It couldn’t be better and more ravishing” (Kurier).
Halka
At Theater an der Wien Stanislaw Moniuszko’s Polish national opera Halka is performed by a superb cast including Corinne Winters (“devotedly”), Piotr Beczala (“vocally outstanding”) and Tomasz Konieczny (“his acting is piercing”) (Der Standard). The Polish leading team, above all director Mariusz Trelinski, puts the plot into a supercooled crime aesthetic. The ORF Radio Symphonie-Orchester Wien under the baton of Lukasz Borowicz plays with perceptible delight. “A gripping opera evening” (Wiener Zeitung).
T.H.A.M.O.S.
Wherever they are, that’s where the action is. The Catalan theatre group La Fura dels Baus is staging T.H.A.M.O.S at the Felsenreitschule Salzburg. The performance is based on Thamos, King in Egypt, with interlude music by Mozart for the heroic drama written by Tobias Philipp Freiherr von Gebler, supplemented by other compositions by Mozart and texts by Nikolaus Tesla, Antonin Artaud and Alicia Aza. Mexican conductor Alondra della Parra conducts the Camerata Salzburg and a singer ensemble starring René Pape and Fatma Said.