Martin Fröst – Skandinavische Nacht

Performers

MartinFröst. Clarinet and conductor
Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra

Program

EdvardGrieg. From Holberg’s Time. Suite in the Old Style for String Orchestra, Op. 40
JacobMühlrad. “Helix” for clarinet and string orchestra
GöranFröst& MartinFröst. Nomadic Dance No. 1
JohannesBrahms. Hungarian Dance No. 1 in G minor, arr. for clarinet and string orchestra
ArnoldSchoenberg. Transfigured Night, Op. 4, for string orchestra, based on the sextet for 2 violins, 2 violas, and 2 cellos

“Shadows are something very exciting. They appeal to your imagination. Everyone sees something different in them—in their outlines and movements.”
Martin Fröst

Martin Fröst loves the creative thrill. The Swedish musician is an award-winning clarinetist and conductor with close ties to the world’s leading orchestras, and the creator of sensational large-scale projects featuring choreography and lighting design—for example, with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, where he has also performed as an actor, dancer, and mime artist. The NZZ headlines: “Martin Fröst knows what the future sounds like.” Naturally, the SKO takes particular pleasure in making music with such exceptional artists and has entrusted Fröst with curating the program for a “Scandinavian Night” featuring rediscoveries and new discoveries full of zest for life and introspection, light and shadow. Alongside works by Grieg and Brahms, the program features the Fröst brothers’ first “Nomadic Dance,” Schoenberg’s late-Romantic tone poem “Verklärte Nacht,” and a concert piece by Jacob Mühlrad. Mühlrad’s musical language hypnotizes with its subtle harmonic nuances and is always in flux. “Helix” for clarinet and string orchestra, a recent commission for the BBC Proms, travels along a temporal spiral through klezmer, raga, and ritual dances back to the origins of music. According to Radio France, the Swedish-Jewish rising star Jacob Mühlrad is “the synthesis of his era.”