Beethoven | Deutsche Welle
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Beethoven and more podcast #18: A lullabye for the sun
The Shchedryk Children's Choir from Kiev has existed for nearly ...
The Shchedryk Children's Choir from Kiev has existed for nearly 40 years. The ensemble has developed an impressive repertoire that draws from various epochs and styles.Giya Kancheli (1935-) Lulling the Sun for choir and percussion Shchedryk Children's Choir Conductor: Marianna Sablina MP3 recorded at the St. Evergislus Kirche in Bonn-Brenig on September 26, 2010 by Deutschlandfunk (DLF) Marianna Sabrina heads the second generation of the Shchedryk Children's Choir, founded by her mother. Through professional voice training and industrious practice, the Shchedryk girls' choir has developed a mature sound. The ensemble's success stems both from their mastery of the repertoire of Ukrainian folk songs and their incorporation of classical choral music in the original language. One high point for the children's choir was being honored with the Golden Diploma at the Musica Sacra Choral Competition in Rome. Pope Benedict XVI was in the audience. In this selection from the Beethovenfest, the choir performs "Lulling the Sun," in which Georgian composer Giya Kancheli sets the word "sun" to music in 27 different European, Asian and Middle Eastern languages. Author: Tomas Gilgenmann Lorza (sc, gsw)Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #17: A Brazilian-Russian display of fireworks
The Brazilian orchestra Sinfonica Heliopolis enchants listeners in this recording ...
The Brazilian orchestra Sinfonica Heliopolis enchants listeners in this recording with a work by Russian composer Mikhail Glinka.Mikhail Glinka (1804-1857) Overture to the opera "Ruslan und Ludmila" Sinfonica Heliopolis Conductor: Roberto Tibirica MP3 recorded in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn, on October 4, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW) The young musicians from Brazil's favelas not only communicate through Brazilian rhythms and melodies, but also through this fast-paced, whirling overture for the Russian opera "Ruslan and Ludmila." The Sinfonica Heliopolis orchestra considers music a world language, evident through their rendition of this piece. It's a true musical spectacle - mixing Brazilian fire with light feeling, played at a dizzying tempo. Author: Marita Berg (als) Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #16: Brazilian watercolors
In Brazil, the samba "Aquarela do Brasil," composed in 1939 ...
In Brazil, the samba "Aquarela do Brasil," composed in 1939 by Ary Barroso, enjoys cult status. Sinfonica Heliopolis performs an adaptation of the all-time-favorite.Chiquinho de Moraes (arr.) Aquarela do Brasil (potpourri) Sinfonica Heliopolis Conductor: Roberto Tibirica MP3 recorded in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn, on October 4, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW) In this recording, the Brazilian youth orchestra Sinfonica Heliopolis plays music from its own country - Chiquinho de Moraes' adaptation of "Aquarela do Brasil." The young musicians from Sao Paulo's favelas tickle listeners' fancy with lively samba and bossa nova rhythms and wind instrument sounds in big band style. Author: Marita Berg (als) Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #15: Beethoven's Eighth in Brazilian Portuguese
The Brazilian youth orchestra Sinfonica Heliopolis recruits its members from ...
The Brazilian youth orchestra Sinfonica Heliopolis recruits its members from one of Sao Paulo's favelas and offers young people the chance for a better life - through music.Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Symphony No. 8 in F Major, op. 93 Sinfonica Heliopolis Conductor: Roberto Tibirica MP3 recorded in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn, on October 4, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW) It all started 14 years ago, when the Brazilian conductor Silvio Baccarelli gave 36 extremely talented children from Sao Paulo's slums the chance to receive a music education and to thus create better prospects for their future. Nowadays, some 1,000 children and young people are trained at the Instituto Baccarelli. Eighty members of this Brazilian youth orchestra called Sinfonica Heliopolis between the ages of 13 and 24 played at the Beethovenfest in Bonn. The orchestra is named after the Heliopolis favela, with some 130,000 residents the largest slum in the metropolis of Sao Paulo. In this concert recording, the Brazilians interpret Beethoven's Eighth Symphony with passion and feeling for dynamic nuance. "Being able to play Beethoven in the city where he was born is very exciting," said bassoonist Felipe dos Santos Arruda. "I have never felt so close to a composer before." Author: Marita Berg (als) Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #14: Viennese charm
Israeli violinist Shlomo Mintz pays homage to the unforgettable Austrian ...
Israeli violinist Shlomo Mintz pays homage to the unforgettable Austrian violinist Fritz Kreisler at Bonn's Beethovenfest.Fritz Kreisler (1875-1962) Recitativo and Scherzo-Caprice, op. 6 Shlomo Mintz (violin) MP3 recorded in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn, on October 4, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW) Viennese violinist Fritz Kreisler wrote his "Recitativo and Scherzo-Caprice" in 1911 for his friend and teacher Eugene Ysaye. Shlomo Mintz launches a firework of violin virtuosity, passion and emotion in this charming, colorful composition by the erstwhile "king of the violin." Mintz was born in Moscow in 1957 and emigrated to Israel with his parents two years later. He debuted at age 11 with the Israel Philharmonica Orchestra under Zubin Metha. At age 16 came his first dazzling performance at New York's Carnegie Hall. Mintz has conducted many notable orchestras. His recordings on the Deutsche Grammophon label have garnered prizes such as the Grand Prix du Disque and the Edison Award. Shlomo Mintz received an honorary doctorate from Israel's Ben Gurion University in 2006. Author: Marita Berg (als) Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #13: A stormy poetic dialogue
With their passion and spirit, Brazilian youth orchestra Sinfonica Heliopolis ...
With their passion and spirit, Brazilian youth orchestra Sinfonica Heliopolis shows that listeners can discover new elements and nuances even in oft-played works.Pjotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky (1840-1893) Violin Concerto in D Major, op. 35 Shlomo Mintz (violin) Sinfonica Heliopolis Conductor: Roberto Tibirica MP3 recorded in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn, on October 4, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW) The 80 members of Sinfonica Heliopolis come from the favelas, Brazil's poorest neighborhoods. The 13 to 24-year-olds receive their musical training at Sao Paulo's Instituto Baccarelli, located in the Heliopolis slum, which offers them not only social and professional prospects, but also helps them enjoy life. The rather depressive Pjotr Tchaikovsky was often able to find hope and energy in music, and composing his Violin Concerto in particular helped him out of an extreme bout of depression. Writing to a friend at the time, he enthusiastically said: "The canzonetta is downright exquisite! What poetry and what yearning in these sons voiles, these mysterious notes!" This violin concerto is full of emotion - stormy, exuberant, melancholy and filled with longing. Shlomo Mintz and the Sinfonica Heliopolis maintain a stormy, poetic dialogue with Tchaikovsky's work. Author: Marita Berg (als) Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #12: City of the Sun, City of Dreams
Andre Mehmari's "Cidade do Sol" is intended to bridge cultures ...
Andre Mehmari's "Cidade do Sol" is intended to bridge cultures and offer hope. To that end, the Brazilian visionary cooperates closely with the Sinfonica Heliopolis, based in Sao Paulo's poorest neighborhood.Andre Mehmari (1977-) Cidade do Sol (world premiere, commissioned by Deutsche Welle) Sinfonica Heliopolis Conductor: Roberto Tibirica MP3 recorded in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn, on October 4, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW) Deutsche Welle commissioned 33-year-old Andre Mehmari with the work "Cidade do Sol," which premiered on Oct. 4. The composer's intention is to bridge Brazilian and European cultures - by employing Brazilian rhythms on the one hand and echoes of Franz Schubert's Lieder "Heliopolis 1" and "Heliopolis 2" on the other. "Cidade do Sol" is a colorful composition that plays with opposites - a kind of Brazilian version of Leonard Bernstein's "West Side Story," with some spirited samba and bossa nova rhythms thrown in. The musicians in the Sinfonica Heliopolis all come from Sao Paulo's largest favela, or shanty town. Playing music offers them the chance to escape life in the slums. The title "City of the Sun" thus points to the dream of a better life becoming reality through music. Author: Marita Berg (als) Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #9: An ode to the 'master of masters'
In this symphony, Bruckner honors Richard Wagner, the "master of ...
In this symphony, Bruckner honors Richard Wagner, the "master of all masters," and at this concert the Beethovenfest honored a conductor for his "standard-setting interpretations."Anton Bruckner (1824-1896) Symphony No. 7 in E Major, 2nd movement: Adagio sehr feierlich und sehr langsam Bavarian State Orchestra Conductor: Kent Nagano MP3 recorded in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn on September 12, 2010 by West German Radio, Cologne (WDR) It wasn't until the premiere of his Seventh Symphony that Bruckner achieved wide-reaching recognition. The first performances in 1884 and 1885 were the breakthrough for the composer, who was painfully shy and often suffered from a lack of self-esteem. We've chosen the Adagio movement for you. Connections to a composer's biography are relatively rare in symphonies, but this one is an exception: after Bruckner heard of the death of Richard Wagner in early 1883, he set the conclusion of the Adagio as a funeral ode for Wagner, whom he called his personal "master of all masters." At this concert in the Beethoven Hall, American conductor Kent Nagano was honored with the Wilhelm Furtwaengler Prize. Furtwaengler is considered one of the 20th century's foremost conductors. Since 2008, the prize has been awarded at the Beethovenfest. With this, writes Ermano Sens-Grosholz, patron of the award, Nagano is recognized as an "exemplary artist with standard-setting musical achievements and for his engagement for social causes and projects, in particular with regard to the education of musical youth." Author: Rick Fulker Editor: Greg Wiser
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Beethoven and more podcast #10: In memory of a great man
Ludwig van Beethoven's "Eroica" Symphony was, for its time, revolutionary ...
Ludwig van Beethoven's "Eroica" Symphony was, for its time, revolutionary in breadth and scope and marked a turning point in the composer's style. It came at a time when Europe, too, was undergoing political change.Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Symphony No. 3 in E-Flat Major, op. 55 (Eroica) Bamberg Symphony Orchestra Conductor: Jonathan Nott MP3 recorded by Deutschlandfunk on October 3, 2010 in the Beethoven Hall, Bonn. When Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself emperor in Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral in late 1804, Beethoven was in the process of composing his Third Symphony, in E-Flat Major. The composer had been a supporter of Napoleon and planned to dedicate the massive orchestral work to him. But, as the story goes, when Beethoven heard the news of the self-coronation, he was furious and scratched out the dedication. Though the composer's admiration for Napoleon never completely dwindled, his great E-Flat Symphony was published with the title it is known under today: "Sinfonia Eroica - composed to celebrate the memory of a great man." The symphony superseded all of Beethoven's previous orchestral works in length, complexity, form and virtuosity. As with most ground-breaking works, the Eroica Symphony was initially pelted with criticism upon its premiere in Vienna in 1805. It is performed here by the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra under the direction of their chief conductor, Jonathan Nott. Originally from the UK, Nott has directed the Bavarian orchestra since 2000, bringing it to both national and international acclaim. Author: Kate Bowen (gsw) Editor: Rick Fulker
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Beethoven and more podcast #11: The art of improvisation
Improvisation was long part of the classical tradition but largely ...
Improvisation was long part of the classical tradition but largely died out in the world of contemporary classical music. However, one Venezuelan pianist who excels at playing off the cuff is an exception to the rule.Gabriela Montero (1970-) Improvisation on the song "Guantanamera" Gabriela Montero (piano) MP3 recorded at the Petersberg near Bonn on September 25, 2010 by Deutsche Welle (DW) Improvisation has been called the well-spring of all music. In the baroque and classical periods, it was standard practice. The improvisational abilities of composers like Bach, Handel and Mozart were legendary. Beethoven also showed a prodigious improvisational talent at the piano. Many of his piano sonatas, although precisely crafted compositions, reflect the freewheeling spirit of improvisational fantasy with their tempestuous runs and cascading successions of chords. Today, the art of improvisation is widespread in jazz but rare within the realm of "classical" or "serious" music - with one exception being church organists who may improvise preludes or accompaniments to hymn tunes. However, a talent of the caliber of Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero is extremely rare. Montero, who says that she began improvising at age five, has been asked repeatedly "how she does it," for which she has no answer. To demonstrate her gift for spur-of-the-moment invention, Montero often begins a recital playing works from the repertory, but in the second half, improvises elaborate pieces based on melodies suggested by audience members. The styles and rhythms can vary from Romantic to rumba and from the toccata to the tango. We've chosen a brief excerpt from her all-improvised recital at the Petersberg Hotel near Bonn. She begins by plucking out the melody of the song "Guantanamera" and then builds an elaborate and cleverly crafted musical edifice from the song's motifs. Experiencing Gabriela Montero live in concert reminds one of the fact that without improvisation, there would be no music. Author: Rick FulkerEditor: Greg Wiser
