7. Philharmonisches Konzert

In the organizer's words:

Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy From the Midsummer Night's Dream Music op. 61
Jörg Widmann ad absurdum. Concert piece for trumpet and small orchestra
Ludwig van Beethoven 4th Symphony in B flat major op. 60

In the summer of 1826, Felix Mendelssohn, just 17 years old, wrote one of his most cherished works to this day: the overture to Shakespeare's comedy A Midsummer Night's Dream. The atmospheric wind chords at the beginning immediately transport us to the spirit realm of Romanticism. The whirring of the strings, a highly virtuoso performance, makes fairies and other light folk dance before our inner eye. It is nothing short of a miracle that the young Mendelssohn was able to create such an epoch-defining work of art so early in his career.

Jörg Widmann calls his concert piece for trumpet and small orchestraad absurdum . Here we reach the limits of what is technically possible. A trumpet player stands before us, continuously producing rapid notes without us being able to catch our breath. We are obviously witnessing extreme virtuosity. Permanent or circular breathing is the name given to this special technique of wind players, which leaves us mere mortals breathless. But that's not all: Widmann saves the use of a barrel organ for the end of the concert piece, a mechanical instrument with which the virtuosity drifts completely into the absurd.

In Ludwig van Beethoven, we encounter one of the greatest masters of his art. Before his deafness became his undoing, he beat all his rivals with his pianistic skills. The image we have of him today is shaped by his heroic works, in which we reach the light through the night. Beethoven's 4th Symphony stands out. It was composed in 1806, during one of the happiest phases of his life, and this bright mood seems to have permeated the incredibly joyful symphony. Only the introduction to the first movement, a model for Mahler's Symphony No. 1, begins darkly and mysteriously before the music breaks through to sunny cheerfulness.

• Please note In the Konzerthaus, only bags and rucksacks up to the size of DIN A4 are permitted on the levels. Larger bags must be handed in at the checkroom. For safety reasons, it is also forbidden to bring booster seats for children. Instead, seat cushions are gladly issued to provide a better view for children