At 6 p.m. in the Festspielhaus :

MÄKELÄ, D. LOZAKOVICH, THE ROYAL CONCERTGEBOUW ORCHESTRA

Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

Klaus Mäkelä : Conductor

Daniel Lozakovich : Violin

Program :

– M. Bruch : Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor, Op. 26;

– G. Mahler : Symphony No. 5.

Max Bruch’s Violin Concerto is one of the most famous concertos in the repertoire. Like those of Mendelssohn and Beethoven, there are many reasons for its posterity: melodic seduction, formal clarity of movement and, above all, a graceful solo part. Following in the footsteps of such legendary violinists as Joseph Joachim (the creator) and Pablo de Sarasate, Sweden’s Daniel Lozakovich (child prodigy come of age) takes on this concertante masterpiece. After intermission, the legendary Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra performs one of its favorite composers: Gustav Mahler. The Austrian composer’s Symphony No. 5 is famous for its Adagietto, popularized by Visconti’s film Death in Venice. This sublime journey from darkness to light will be performed here by the Dutch ensemble’s new musical director, Klaus Mäkelä. The alliance between the Finnish conductor and the Concertgebouw promises to make musical history in the 21st century.

At 6 p.m. in the Festspielhaus :

SYMPHONY No. 8, by A. Bruckner

Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

Klaus Mäkelä : Conductor

Program :

– A. Bruckner : Symphony No. 8 in C minor.

Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8 is a colossal work. The fruit of three years’ hard work, the music surpasses in grandeur all the Austrian master’s other symphonies, and perhaps even all the symphonies that precede it. For Bruckner goes even further than Beethoven in this sprawling work: almost an hour and a half (only Mahler and Shostakovich would reach such heights after him), a formal arch leading us from darkness to transfiguration, and a half-hour Adagio opening the gates to eternity. Since the beginning of the 20th century, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra has been the ardent defender of this sublime music. With panache, the Dutch orchestra’s new director, Klaus Mäkelä, follows in the footsteps of his prestigious predecessors. An anthological moment.

At 6 p.m. in the Festspielhaus :

WAR REQUIEM, by B. Britten

Mahler Chamber Orchestra

Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno

Cantus Juvenum of Karlsruhe

Joana Mallwitz : Conductor

Program :

– B. Britten : War Requiem op. 66.

Premiered at the height of the Cold War, Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem (1963) is a powerful declaration of peace. To the Latin text, the British composer blends secular texts, in this case poems by Wilfred Owen (1893-1918), a young English poet killed in action during the First World War.  At the premiere of the work in Coventry’s rebuilt cathedral, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau sang alongside British artists as a gesture of reconciliation between peoples. This powerful oratorio, which requires a mixed choir, boys’ choir, symphony orchestra, chamber orchestra and soloists, will be conducted here by German Joana Mallwitz, current director of Berlin’s prestigious Konzerthaus. The final Libera Me is a particularly striking funeral march: a German and an English soldier fraternize in the tunnel of the dead. The two voices exhort us: “Let us sleep now”, soon joined by the choir and children’s voices.

At 6 p.m. in the Festspielhaus :

ASMIK GRIGORIAN RECITAL

Asmik Grigorian                 Soprano

Lukas Geniušas                  Piano

Program :

– Lieder recital from S. Rachmaninov and P. I. Tchaikovsky.

Asmik Grigorian is one of the most sought-after sopranos in the world. The Lithuanian soprano’s rich, velvety timbre has worked wonders in the role of Salome in Salzburg, and she has performed in some of the finest opera houses in the world, including the Met in New York, La Scala in Milan and the Staatsoper in Vienna. But it is perhaps in the intimate setting of the recital that Grigorian best imposes her sunny presence and her art of expressive nuance. her concert program will give her the chance to display her voice in all its splendor, with lieder by Rachmaninov and Tchaikovsky sung in Russian.

At 6 p.m. in the Festspielhaus :

LOHENGRIN, by R. Wagner

Mahler Chamber Orchestra

Joana Mallwitz                   Conductor

Johannes Erath                   Staging

Piotr Beczała                       Lohengrin

Rachel Willis-Sørensen    Elsa de Brabant

Tanja Ariane Baumgartner    Ortrud

Wolfgang Koch                   Telramund

Kwangchul Youn                King Henry

Samuel Hasselhorn            The King’s town crier

Lohengrin is a milestone in Wagner’s oeuvre. Written between 1845 and 1848, the opera is to some extent the matrix of the Ring to come. With its themes borrowed from Christian religion and folk tales, the composer set the stage for the great epics of the future. It was in this way that he seduced King Ludwig II of Vienna (the Bavarian monarch had a grotto rebuilt in his Linderhof castle to enjoy the music of his favorite composer!) It was also thanks to Ludwig II’s money that the Bayreuth Theatre was built… This opera, a blend of black and white magic, features a remarkable staging by Johannes Erath, former assistant to Willy Decker. In the orchestra pit, German Joana Mallwitz (recently appointed to Berlin’s prestigious Konzerthaus) has established herself as one of the great conductors of her generation. Poland’s Piotr Beczała, an immense Verdian singer, has the ideal voice for Lohengrin. In the very different roles of Elsa and Ortrud, the evening promises two superlatively talented singers: Rachel Willis-Sørensen and Tanja Ariane Baumgartner.