64th season of Brno Philharmonic: World and Czech premieres, L. van Beethoven's anniversary celebrations and more

24 April 2019, 1:00
64th season of Brno Philharmonic: World and Czech premieres, L. van Beethoven's anniversary celebrations and more

Two world and three Czech premieres, 250 years since the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven, a combination of older and contemporary works such as Schumann - Vasks, Brahms - Nejtek or Mendelssohn - Rautavaara.This is the upcoming 64th Philharmonic season, which will also welcome the fresh Grammy winner Laurie Anderson to Brno.

The 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven is one of the key topics of the new season.“The world-famous pianist Elizabeth Leonskaja will play all five Beethoven's  piano concerts in two weeks. Another unique achievement is the performance  of all his cello sonatas and variations by our cellists with  piano  accompaniment by the Chief Conductor - in two concerts during one February Sunday, " points out Brno Philharmonic's Director Marie Kučerová.

Chief  Conductor Dennis Russell Davies will also conduct  the Ninth with the Ode to Joy. With that piece, the Philharmonic steps out to the Beethoven's year of 2020 and returns to the Janáček Theatre after almost three years. The orchestra returns to the Janáček Theatre with five concerts – on New Year's Eve and then two evenings both in March and April. In the middle of March, Mussorgsky's Kartinky (Pictures at  an Exhibition) in the orchestration of Maurice Ravel will be featured, as well as Frescoes of Piero della Francesca by Bohuslav Martinů and Hindemith's symphony  Matthias the Painter. “We will present Martinů's Frescoes with a visualisation prepared in cooperation with the famous Ars Electronica festival; it will actually be a world premiere. We will use the latest technology in art, ”added the dramaturge of the Brno Philharmonic Vítězslav Mikeš. At the third concert in the theatre, one of the most intimate symphonies in the history of music will be heard – the Ninth of Mahler.

Also on the programme of the season is the monumental oratorio Lenora by Antonín Rejcha, who, just like Beethoven, with whom they were friends, was born in 1770, so in his case, too,  the Philharmonic will commemorate a significant jubilee.“Lenora is a great musical image for soloists, choir and orchestra to the lyrics of a ballad by Gottfried August Burger. It is a fascinating great work of the same theme  as Erben's Wedding Shirt. Because of the daring subject, the Viennese censorship banned it at the time of its writing, despite Beethoven's  intervention. The solo parts will be performed by sopranos Martina Janková and Pavla Vykopalová, and baritone Jiří Brückler, “Davies informed.

Two concerts of a fresh Grammy holder also promise an extraordinary experience Laurie Anderson, who in Besední dům will present in Czech premiere  her orchestral work Amelia, consisting of meditative music with recited texts by Amelia Earhart, an American flier and the first woman to cross the Atlantic Ocean, to eventually  disappear  without a trace on her flight over the Pacific Ocean in 1937.“I would also like to draw your attention to the world premiere of Michal Nejtek's work, which is being created on our contract, and Schnittke's very suggestive first cello concert with Matt Haimovitz as a soloist, Tüür's homage to Beethoven in  the form of a song named Phantasma, which will sound in Czech premiere, or Rautavaara's Cantus Arcticus, a concerto for birds and orchestra, " Mikeš highlighted in the programme.

In addition to Brno, the Philharmonic will perform at domestic festivals as well as stages abroad: Traditionally at St. Wenceslas Music Festival in Ostrava or at Smetana's Litomyšl; along with Plastic People of the Universe in the Wallenstein Garden or the Hradec Králové Music Forum. With the Chief Conductor, the orchestra  will travel to Linz  Brucknerhaus, Vienna Konzerthaus or the Rheingau Musik Festival Germany,  inAugust it is in for a big open-air concert in Berlin.

Sales of tickets to existing subscribers begin on 20 May. Their seats in all subscription cycles will be reserved until 14 June. Starting on 10 June, the sale of the "Tailored Season" and individual tickets begins. This year for the first time, new subscribers can also buy subscriptions online, already  from 20May going forward; they can choose from those places that are not reserved for existing subscribers. Newly, the on-line s sale of the "Tailored Season" will also be launched. Subscribers from the Janáček Theatre will have their seats from the 61st season also reserved until 14 June.

Laurie Anderson/ photo by Noah Greenberg

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