Classical music from the Romantic period – DW – 11/02/2022

This DW Competition Live performance options Antonín Dvorak’s hardly ever heard and really expressive symphonic poem “The Golden Spinning Wheel,” adopted by Felix Mendelssohn’s distinctive symphony-cantata “Tune of Reward.” The performances had been recorded dwell on the opening live performance of the Rheingau Music Festival and have the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. The ensemble’s new music director, Alain Altinoglu, carried out.

Schumann’s ‘Fantasies’

We’ll begin with music that evokes fantastical worlds. It was written on the finish of the 1800s, a time when industrialization was booming and other people longed to retreat to nature, to like and even to fantasy worlds. Composers had been no exception.

Among the many German Romantics, Robert Schumann stands out as an vital determine. He wrote many items that he known as “Fantasies.” In his Fantasy Items Op. 73, as a substitute of prescribing strict tempos, he marked the actions with feelings. We’ll be listening to two of them: “tenderly and expressively” and “fast and fiery.” The music brings tales to life contained in the listener’s head.

Cellist Raphaela Gromes and pianist Julian Riem carried out the Fantasy Items in a chamber live performance on the Rheingau Music Competition. The efficiency happened on June 29 at what known as the “Prince of Metternich Live performance Dice.” This royal-sounding identify refers to an acoustically fine-tuned cellular live performance corridor. It had been arrange adjoining a palace that itself is positioned within the wine hills close to Wiesbaden, in western Germany.

Cinderella’s story

As promised, this episode additionally options Antonin Dvorak’s “Golden Spinning Wheel.” Dvorak labored on a number of symphonic poems in 1896, and almost all of them are based mostly on the gathering of folks ballads entitled “Kytice,” which implies bouquet. The ballads had been written by Karel Jaromir Erben.

“The Golden Spinning Wheel” tells a kind of Cinderella story, however a bit of darker: A king needs to marry a younger lady. She is killed by her evil stepmother who then leaves the physique within the woods, the place a sorcerer brings it again to life. When the king returns from warfare, he condemns the stepmother to demise, and together with her out of the way in which, the couple is free to marry. 

The piece has Bohemian dances, dramatic sections with all of the musicians performing and, perfect in any fairy story, a cheerful ending. Alain Altinoglu carried out the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra.

A tribute to Johannes Gutenberg

This episode additionally options some praiseful music by Felix Mendelssohn. 2022 was an enormous 12 months for his music: It marked his one hundred and seventy fifth demise anniversary, and so, many concert events featured works by him, together with the opening live performance of the Rheingau Music Competition. The central piece of that live performance was his “Lobgesang,” or “Tune of Reward,” a large symphonic work for orchestra, choir and soloists that’s generally known as his second symphony.

Felix Mendelssohn was born in 1809 to a household of Jewish origin; his grandfather had even been a rabbi. In 1816, the household transformed to Christianity, and seven-year-old Felix was baptized.

Mendelssohn had been commissioned to compose a symphony with vocal components to have fun the four-hundredth anniversary of Johannes Gutenberg’s invention of his moveable sort printing press. Mendelssohn initially needed to jot down an oratorio however ended up composing what he known as a “symphony-cantata.”

The big choir within the closing motion instantly makes one consider Beethoven’s ninth Symphony, with its epic choral ending. However conductor Alain Altinoglu associates this Mendelssohn work extra with Bach than with Beethoven.

“We do not think about how genius was Mendelssohn. He was actually, what we are saying ‘Wunderkind.’ I imply, he was the brand new Mozart of that point. When he was so younger, he may play something on the piano. And he was the music director of Leipzig so younger – he was like 26 years outdated, I imply that is very, very younger. After which he rediscovered, reintroduced Johann Sebastian Bach, and you’ll actually really feel it within the piece,” the conductor mentioned.

From darkness to mild

Contemplating that the Bible is probably the most well-known e-book that Johannes Gutenberg ever printed, Mendelssohn needed to include this into his “Tune of Reward.” The texts are based mostly on the Bible and the Protestant church tune by Martin Rinckart entitled “Nun danket alle Gott” or “Now all of us thank God.”

It was conductor Alain Altinoglu’s aim to convey out the non secular facets for the viewers. Within the piece, Mendelssohn praises God, who leads man out of darkness into mild. Gentle will be seen right here as an emblem of an enlightened society that may proceed to coach itself, not least by the printing and dissemination of books.

The “Tune of Reward” was lauded at its premiere in 1840 in St. Thomas Church in Leipzig. The work is structured in 10 sections. It begins with an instrumental symphony in three actions, which is then adopted by 9 sections for soprano, mezzo-soprano, tenor and choir. These sections are woven seamlessly collectively and unified by repeated motifs.

A rising motif within the trombones, echoed by the MDR Leipzig Radio Choir, introduced Felix Mendelssohn’s symphony-cantata “Lobgesang,” or “Tune of Reward” to an uplifting shut.

The efficiency was recorded dwell on June 25 on the opening live performance of the Rheingau Music Competition in Eberbach Abbey, which sits atop the wine hills of Eltville am Rhein. Music director Alain Altinoglu carried out the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. The soloists had been soprano Katharina Konradi, mezzo-soprano Miriam Albano and tenor Matthew Swenson.

That is all on this version of DW Competition Live shows with our host, Cristina Burack, and I hope you loved the Romantic music we heard in at this time’s program. Due to producer Gaby Reucher and sound engineer Christian Stäter. We love listening to from you, so write to us at music@dw.com if there’s something you’d prefer to share. And be part of us for extra unbelievable classical music within the subsequent Deutsche Welle Competition Live performance.

Edited by: Manasi Gopalakrishnan