Author: Andrea Kerner

With the oratorio Theodora, first performed in 1750, George Frideric Handel created a contemplative work about religious tolerance, Christian virtues and humanistic values. The world-renowned countertenor and Handel interpreter Bejun Mehta makes his conducting debut at the Theater an der Wien with the La Folia Baroque Orchestra.

Premiere: 19 October 2023, Museumsquartier (Theater an der Wien) Further performances: 21, 23, 25, 27, 29 Oktober 2023 THEODORA Jacquelyn Wagner, Theodora / Christopher Lowrey, Didymus / David Portillo, Septimus / Evan Hughes, Valens / Julie Boulianne, Irene / Stefan Herheim, director / La Folia Barockorchester / Bejun Metha, conductor G. F. Handel: Theodora – Oratorio in three parts Preview: In December 2023, the La Folia Baroque Orchestra will once again be a guest at the Theater an der Wien with Mozart’s “La Finta Giardiniera”!

Ten years ago, the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century brought Mozart’s iconic opera Così fan tutte to international concert halls for the first time. The press cheered at the time: “Absolutely spectacular” (De Volkskrant) and Dagblad Trouw characterised the orchestra as “sublimely playing”. In this production, the opera about the trials and tribulations of the heart is conducted by Manoj Kamps, directed by Lisenka Heijboer Castañón and sung by wonderful soloists: Katharine Dain as Fiordiligi, Josy Santos as Dorabella, Claron McFadden as Despina, Linard Vrielink as Ferrando, Drew Santini as Guglielmo and Henk Neven as Don Alfonso.

06 October 2023, Concertgebouw Brugge (Premiere)
07 October 2023, Oosterpoort Groningen
12 October 2023, Stadsschouwburg Nijmegen – Concertgebouw de Vereeniging
13 October 2023, Amare – Den Haag
14 October 2023, De Doelen Rotterdam
17 October 2023, Het Concertgebouw Amsterdam
18 October 2023, Tivoli Vredenburg

The Between Worlds Ensemble, founded by Avi Avital, combines different genres, cultures and musical worlds. At the beginning of October, they will be on tour together again to Antwerp, Ludwigshafen and Essen.The programme combines classical compositions with traditional music to form a coherent overall concept, as if it were quite natural that baroque fantasies, Yiddish melodies or Romanian folk dances should sound side by side.

03 October 2023, De Singel Antwerpen
05 October 2023, BASF-Feierabendhaus Ludwigshafen
06 October 2023, Philharmonie Essen
MIXED INSTRUMENT

The Beethovenfest Bonn 2023 is a festival with “music about life”. With its extraordinarily multifaceted programme, with much joy in experimentation and versatile accompanying events of all kinds, the Beethovenfest Bonn traces the pulse of time and places music in ever new and current contexts. The Chamber Orchestra of Europe will be in Bonn this year with two programmes. First, under the direction of Robin Ticciati, two works will be juxtaposed, both of which have nature as their central theme, but which look at it from completely different perspectives: While Gustav Mahler translated the search for a universal world song into a symphonic song cycle, Brett Dean sets to music in his “Pastoral Symphony” almost a hundred years later the threatening end of familiar and cherished natural phenomena, which threatens to bring about human destructiveness. With works by John Luther Evans and Hector Berlioz, with Schumann’s Violin Concerto and Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony, the COE, Christian Tetzlaff and Robin Ticciati will celebrate the conclusion of the Beethovenfest 2023 two days later.

22 September 2023, Festivalzentrale Kreuzkirche
LIED VON DER ERDE
Alice Coote, mezzo-soprano / Allan Clayton, tenor / Chamber Orchestra of Europe / Robin Ticciati, conductor
B. Dean: “Pastoral Symphony” / G. Mahler: “Das Lied von der Erde”, symphonic song cycle

24 September 2023, Oper Bonn
CLOSING CONCERT
Christian Tetzlaff, violine / Chamber Orchestra of Europe / Robin Ticciati, conductor
Works by J. L. Adams, H. Berlioz, R. Schumann, L. v. Beethoven

Sounds of sustainability – what does change sound like, what does change sound like? Stegreif – The Impfovising Symphony Orchestra addresses these questions in “symphony of change”, the third and final part of its project #bechange – 17 sounds of sustainability. The musical arc will span from Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179), Wilhelmine von Bayreuth (1709- 1785), Emilie Mayer (1812-1883) to Clara Schumann (1819-1896). “symphony of change” will be premiered on 8 September 2023 at the Beethovenfest Bonn.

Artistic directors: Juri de Marco & Lorenz Blaumer / project management: Immanuel de Gilde / recomposition & arrangement: Tabea Schrenk, Nina Kazourian, Julia Biłat, Helena Montag, Franziska Aller / co-artistic director composition: Alistair Duncan / director, choreograph: David Fernández / choreographic cooperation: Lea Hladka / lightdesign: Vito Walter & Arnaud Poumarat / stage & costumes: Anja Kreher / dramaturgical collaboration: Catriona Fadke

08 September 2023, Beethovenfest Bonn
18 September 2023, Musikfest Berlin
05 Oktober 2023, Herbstliche Musiktage Bad Urach
SYMPHONY OF CHANGE
Featuring works by Wilhelmine von Bayreuth, Hildegard von Bingen, Clara Schumann and Emilie Mayer as well as recompositions and improvisation

Since 2014, Il Giardino Armonico and Giovanni Antonini have been diving deep into the extensive oeuvre of Josef Haydn as part of their Haydn2032 project, and with the recordings they have presented to date, the cleverly conceived programmes and their sensational interpretations, they have contributed to changing the general reception of Haydn in a lasting way. In 2019, they set standards with a series of performances and the recording of the “Creation” – now the “Seasons” will follow.

03. September 2023, LUCERNE FESTIVAL
05. September 2023, Beethovenfest Bonn
07. September 2023, Musikfest Bremen
19 September 2023, De Singel Antwerpen
THE SEASONS
Anett Fritsch, soprano / Maximilian Schmitt, tenor / Florian Boesch, bass / National Forum of Music Choir Wroclaw / Il Giardino Armonico / Giovanni Antonini, Conductor
J. Haydn: “The Seasons” Hob. XXI:3

Under the overall artistic direction of Kent Nagano and Jan Vogler, the “Ring” teatralogy will be reworked from 2023 to 2026 in the context of its period of origin and on the basis of current findings in Wagner and performance practice research. With Kent Nagano on the podium, Concerto Köln, the Dresden Festival Orchestra and renowned soloists will present the first part on the fantastically beautiful stage of Villa Rufolo.

20 August 2023, Belvedere di Villa Rufolo DRESDEN “RING” PROJECT IN HISTORICALLY INFORMED PERFORMANCE PRACTICE Simon Bailey, Wotan / Mauro Peter, Loge / Dominik Köninger, Donner / Tansel Akzeybek, Froh / Gerhild Romberger, Erda / Annika Schlicht, Fricka / Nadja Mchantaf, Freia / Daniel Schmutzhard, Alberich / Jürgen Sacher, Mime / Ania Vegry, Woglinde / Ida Aldrian, Wellgunde / Christian Immler, Fasolt / Eva Vogel, Flosshilde / Tilmann Rönnebeck, Fafner / Dresdner Festspielorchester & Concerto Köln / Kent Nagano, Conductor R. Wagner: Das Rheingold

A Project of the Dresdner Musikfestspiele under the artistic direction of Kent Nagano and Jan Vogler. Wagner Lesarten began 2018 with Concerto Köln and Kent Nagano. The entire Ring will now be developed and performed in Dresden until 2026 in an artistic collaboration between the Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln.

The 2023/24 season begins for us with the 34th Musikfest Bremen. From there we continue to the festivals in Ravello and Bonn and then to the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Lucerne Festival, the Wigmore Hall and other wonderful concert venues. We are looking forward to special concert programmes such as “The Seasons” with Il Giardino Armonico and Giovanni Antonini, the concert performance of “Pelléas et Mélisande” with the Budapest Festival Orchestra conducted by Iván Fischer, the Dresden “Ring” project with Kent Nagano, the Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln, and the premiere of the “Symphony of Change” with Stegreif – The Improvising Symphony Orchestra. Find out what else is on the programme in our newsletter:

This weekend, the 34th edition of the legendary Musikfest Bremen starts with the traditional “Great Night Music”. Joining us: the Budapest Festival Orchestra under the baton of its founder and chief conductor Iván Fischer, as well as the wonderful choir Vox Luminis. We are also looking forward to the Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century presenting music from Poland with pianist Yulianna Avdeeva on 24 August, as well as another Haydn highlight by Il Giardino Armonico and Giovanni Antonini, who. after the legendary “Creation” of 2019, now devote themselves to the “Seasons”.

19 August 2023, Opening “A Great Night Music” 7.00 p.m., 8.30 p.m. & 10.00 p.m., Die Glock EROICA
Budapest Festival Orchestra / Iván Fischer, Conductor
L. v. Beethoven: Symphony No. 3 in E flat major op. 55 “Eroica”

7.00 p.m. & 10.00 p.m., St. Peter’s Cathedral
COUR DE FRANCE
Vox Luminis / Lionel Meunier, bass & conductor
Works by J.-P. Rameau, F.-A. D. Philidor & M.-A. Charpentier

24 August 2023, Die Glocke
CHOPIN’S PIANO CONCERTOS
Yulianna Avdeeva, fortepiano (1837) / Jakob Lehmann conductor / Orchestra of the 18th Century
I. F. Dobrzynski: Overture in D major op. 1 / F. Chopin: Piano Concertos No. 1 in E minor op. 11 & No. 2 in F minor op. 21

06 September 2023, St. Mary’s Church, Friesoythe
MAGNIFICAT
Vox Luminis / Lionel Meunier, bass & conductor
G.F. Händel: Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day HWV 76 / J. S. Bach: Magnificat E flat major BWV 243a

07 September 2023, Vreden Cathedral
THE SEASONS
Anett Fritsch, soprano (Hanne) / Maximilian Schmitt, tenor (Lukas) / Florian Boesch, bass (Simon) / National Forum of Music Choir Wroclaw / Il Giardino Armonico / Giovanni Antonini, conductor
J. Haydn: “The Seasons” Hob. XXI:3