Peter Gregson has called the string quartet a “deliciously expressive medium” and his four own Quartets – a “quartet of quartets” – push the boundaries of both the medium and its expressiveness by introducing a wealth of contemporary techniques into this most traditional of forms. This filmed performance, captured in Berlin’s Meistersaal in 2022, presents selected movements from all four quartets together in a format that brings the listener closer to both the works and the music. Gregson joins a quartet of superb string players on electronics for the quartets and on his cello for a brand-new and previously unreleased version of the 3.1 Allemande from his recomposition of Bach’s Cello Suites.
Inaugural concert of Tarmo Peltokoski in Latvia
With the start of the 2022/2023 concert season, 22-year-old Finnish conductor, Tarmo Peltokoski, becomes the musical and artistic director of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra (LNSO). The French music magazine Diapason writes about him: “ATTENTION, A GENIUS!” Peltokoski has a strong musical vision and a clear idea of what he wants to achieve in the next three years. His inaugural concert took place in the Cesis Concert Hall, which is characterised by exceptional acoustics. PROGRAM Williams: Symphony No. 5; Auznieks: Grace; Sibelius: Symphony No. 5
Hélène Grimaud & Konstantin Krimmel
The turbine hall on Lake Stienitz, a striking industrial monument near Berlin, is the site of an extraordinary musical collaboration. Celebrated pianist Hélène Grimaud and rising star baritone Konstantin Krimmel come together in a unique space where nature and industry converge. The once-noisy hall now resonates with the sounds of the most direct and intimate of musical genres – the song. The duo presents a program that includes Brahms‘ Lieder und Gesänge op. 32, as well as a selection of the contemplative Stille Lieder by Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov. Grimaud has been a champion of Silvestrov‘s music for more than two decades, and the selection of his songs adds a deeply meditative dimension to the program. The setting for this recording is a testament to the power of artistic collaboration to transform spaces and bring new life to old structures. Against the backdrop of unspoilt nature and a historic industrial site, Grimaud and Krimmel create a musical experience that is both timeless and deeply rooted in its surroundings. PROGRAM Brahms: Lieder und Gesänge op. 32; Silvestrov: Silent Songs (selection)
Herbert Blomstedt – When Music Resounds, the Soul Is Spoken
The feature-length film portrait When Music Resounds, the Soul Is Spoken To was created between his 90th and 95th birthdays. It accompanies Herbert Blomstedt in his work with selected orchestras, which are representative of the many international ensembles he has either led or with which he still works regularly, and observes the gifted communicator during rehearsals and concerts. Blomstedt vividly conveys his clear interpretive ideas, turning every orchestra rehearsal into an experience. As an exciting discourse on life philosophies, musical life and experiences as a musician, the film is a portrait of an unpretentious artist who has decisively shaped the classical music world for decades and continues to do so to this day.
Mitten Wir Im Leben Sind/Bach6Cellosuiten
J.S. Bach’s Cello Suites are considered a milestone in the history of Western music. The title, Mitten Wir Im Leben Sind/Bach6Cellosuiten, (In the Midst of Life/Bach’s Cello Suites), comes from the opening words of a Martin Luther chorale: “In the midst of life, we are in death.” Placing the acclaimed cellist Jean-Guihen Queyras at the center of the piece, contemporary dance luminary Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker builds on her choreographic language, developed in tune with Bach’s musical one, to capture an affinity between the music and five dancers, of which De Keersmaeker herself is one. In a feat of physical endurance, the suites are played in their entirety, making this a rare chance to hear all six together.
Leif Ove Andsnes plays Mozart
Norwegian pianist Leif Ove Andsnes and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra continue their collaborative exploration of Mozart’s great piano concertos and their surroundings. This large-scale project is receiving acclaim in the most prestigious concert halls as well as award-winning results in the recording studio. In the Great Hall of the Mozarteum, attention is now focused on works composed in 1785/86 that are characterized by ambiguous twilight and expressive instability: It begins with the great Piano Concerto KV 482 with its heartbreaking Andante in C minor, a set of variations that had to be repeated at the premiere; carries over to the “Prague Symphony,” and concludes with the singularly plaintive chromaticism of the C minor Piano Concerto, KV 491 – all testaments to Mozart as arguably the first Romantic composer. PROGRAM Mozart: Piano Concertos KV 482 & 491, KV 504 “Prague Symphony”
Christmas Oratorio
Bach’s timeless, irresistible Christmas Oratorio returns to Leipzig – and to St. Thomas’s Church, where several of its six gorgeous cantatas were heard for the very first time in 1734-35! Adding to the historical import of this unmissable event are the Gewandhausorchester, one of the world’s oldest and most venerated orchestras founded in 1781, and the Thomanerchor (St. Thomas Choir of Leipzig), a legendary ensemble formed over eight hundred years ago in 1212 and directed by Bach himself between 1723 and 1750. The eighteenth person to hold the post of Thomaskantor since Bach, Andreas Reize leads the impeccable orchestra and choir – joined by soloists Christina Landshamer, Benedikt Kristjánsson, and Konstantin Krimmel – in a festive and delightful performance of one of those cherished works from which the holiday spirit flows unfettered and ebullient.
Lucerne Festival 2022: Riccardo Chailly & Mao Fujita
Sergei Rachmaninov is perhaps most remembered—and beloved—for his piano concertos, which still stand as pillars of Romanticism, though mostly written in the 20th century. At the 2022 Lucerne Festival, virtuoso pianist Mao Fujita performs the composer’s celebrated Piano Concerto No. 2—absolutely brimming with memorable melody and poignant harmony—alongside maestro Riccardo Chailly at the head of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra!
Lucerne Festival 2022: Chailly conducts Rachmaninov
For Riccardo Chailly, celebrating Rachmaninov in Lucerne is something dear to his heart. This summer, he is devoting himself to the Symphony No. 2 in E Minor – the composer’s richest and densest contribution to the genre, evoking Tchaikovsky in form, as well as Borodin and Sibelius in the epic, almost Nordic spirit of its music.
Masaaki Suzuki plays Arp Schnitger Organs – Bach and Buxtehude
Arp Schnitger (1648-1719) was one of the most influential among the Northern European organ builders. Of his more than 150 organs built or rebuilt especially in the Netherlands and Northern Germany, a number of these instruments still survive and are being played to the day. Conductor, cembalist and organist Masaaki Suzuki, internationally known as a profound expert of J.S. Bach’s works as well as for his historical performance practice, travels to three churches in Northern Germany and the Netherlands to play on their historical Arp Schnitger-organs: The Martinikerk in Groningen, the Ludgeri Church in the German city of Norden as well as to the St. Jacobi Church in Hamburg, to perform organ master pieces of J. S. Bach and Dieterich Buxtehude.