
Herbert Blomstedt
Cinematic classical clips and energizing concert pieces featuring up-and-coming artists.

Cinematic classical clips and energizing concert pieces featuring up-and-coming artists.

Les Dissonances is a collective of artists founded by violinist David Grimal in 2004. The conductorless ensemble consists of musicians from the most prestigious European orchestras, international soloists, and young talents. In this performance, Les Dissonances play Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Violin Concerto No. 4 in D major, K. 218. Leading violinist Grimal features as the soloist. With the exception of the first violin concerto, Mozart composed his other four violin concertos in 1775 at a time when he was concertmaster at the Salzburg court. Among his five concertos, Violin Concerto No. 4 is one of the best-known. This performance was recorded at Cité de la Musique, France, in 2014.

Sir Simon Rattle conducts the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) in a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven's well-known Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67. With Sir Simon Rattle's mischievous enthusiasm, this famous heavyweight symphony sounds new again. This performance was recorded at LSO St. Luke's in London, UK, on September 23, 2020.

Sir Simon Rattle conducts the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) in a concert program consisting of Antonín Dvořák's Scherzo Capriccioso in D-flat major, Op. 66, and selections from Act II of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's famous ballet The Nutcracker (1892). Dvořák's Scherzo Capriccioso (1883) reflects a period of personal crisis for the composer. The work betrays ever-changing moods and a constant sense of inner restlessness. In the music of The Nutcracker, Tchaikovsky combined memorable melodies with colorful orchestration, which has enchanted listeners for decades. This performance was recorded at LSO St Luke's in London, UK, on March 18, 2021.

On August 19, 2000, the Teatro Colón was filled to the brim with spectators longing to hear Daniel Barenboim play the piano. Barenboim, who is currently best known as a conductor, started his career half a century ago as a child prodigy, playing his first piano recital at age 7. This concert celebrates the maestro's on-stage career. Only after the maestro had performed for a full three hours, including no less than 13 encores, the audience was willing to let him leave the stage: a special evening if ever there was one! The concert included Ludwig van Beethoven's Sonata No. 23 ‘Apassionata', Frederic Chopin's Waltz in e minor, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Sonata in C major.

Cinematic classical clips and energizing concert pieces featuring up-and-coming artists.

Venezuelan pianist Gabriela Montero is accompanied by the Youth Orchestra of the Americas conducted by Carlos Miguel Prieto. On the program are Maurice Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major, as well as two of Montero's own works: the “Latin Concerto” and Improvisations. The performance took place in one of the world's most beautiful concert halls, the Teatro del Lago in Frutillar, located in the middle of the Patagonian plains. The concert hall, which opened its doors in 2010, stands on the banks of Chile's second-largest lake overlooking a volcano that is capped with snow the entire year. In an accompanying interview, Montero speaks about composing, improvising, and performing works of her own alongside those of others. She discusses her home country of Venezuela, where she no longer performs for political reasons.

At the age of seven, Argentine pianist Martha Argerich made her debut with Ludwig van Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major, Op. 15, a piece that would accompany her throughout her career. The celebrated pianist performs this signature piece at the Lucerne Festival with the Lucerne Festival Orchestra under the baton of Swedish conductor Herbert Blomstedt, who makes his festival debut with the orchestra. Beethoven's Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36, is also on the program. This performance was recorded at the Lucerne Culture and Congress Center (KKL), Switzerland, in August 2020.

Cinematic classical clips and energizing concert pieces featuring up-and-coming artists.

Swiss conductor Philippe Jordan and the Orchestre de l'Opéra national de Paris recorded all of Ludwig van Beethoven's symphonies in 2014-2015. In this program, Jordan conducts Beethoven's Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 36. Completed in 1802, the work saw its first performance at the Theater an der Wien on April 5, 1803. That same concert also included the premieres of the composer's Piano Concerto No. 3 and his only oratorio, Christ on the Mount of Olives, as well as a reprise performance of his Symphony No. 1. Instead of the traditional minuet, Beethoven wrote a lively scherzo as the third movement of his Symphony No 2. The overall mood of the work is optimistic. Jordan's performance was recorded at Palais Garnier in Paris, France, in 2014.

Swiss conductor Ludwig Wicki leads the Danish National Symphony Orchestra and the DR Junior Choir in a sparkling concert program of film music. The program features a selection of music from great and Oscar-winning Hollywood films, including Titanic, The Bodyguard, Pirates of the Caribbean, Braveheart, and Moulin Rouge, written by major composers such as John Williams, Hans Zimmer, James Horner, and Klaus Badelt. Highlights include ‘He's a pirate/Davy Jones' from Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest ‘Now We Are Free' from Gladiator ‘My Heart Will Go On' from Titanic and ‘Shallow' from A Star Is Born. Featured soloists in this concert are the young talented singers Andrea Lykke Oehlenschlæger and Diluckshan Jeyaratnam. This performance was recorded at the DR Koncerthuset in Copenhagen, Denmark, in May 2022.

On August 19, 2000, the Teatro Colón was filled to the brim with spectators longing to hear Daniel Barenboim play the piano. Barenboim, who is currently best known as a conductor, started his career half a century ago as a child prodigy, playing his first piano recital at age 7. This concert celebrates the maestro's on-stage career. Only after the maestro had performed for a full three hours, including no less than 13 encores, the audience was willing to let him leave the stage: a special evening if ever there was one! The concert included Ludwig van Beethoven's Sonata No. 23 ‘Apassionata', Frederic Chopin's Waltz in e minor, and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Sonata in C major.

Cinematic classical clips and energizing concert pieces featuring up-and-coming artists.

The Lucerne Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Neeme Järvi presents the world premiere of Rodion Shchedrin's Double concerto for cello, piano and orchestra. Soloists are Martha Argerich (piano) and Mischa Maisky (cello). The concert program features Antonín Dvořák's Scherzo capriccioso Des-Dur Op. 66, B 131, Shchedrin's aforementioned Double concerto "Romantic Offering", César Franck's Sonata for piano and cello in A, and Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 9, Op. 70. This première performance was recorded at the Culture and Congress Centre of Lucerne, KKL, on February 9, 2011. The Lucerne Symphony Orchestra is orchestra-in-residence at KKL Luzern. The Lucerne Symphony Orchestra is Switzerland's oldest symphony orchestra and has won an international standing that extends far beyond its home base.

For this exceptional recital, recorded in 2019 at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, Camille (cello) and Julie Berthollet (violin) are accompanied by pianist Guillaume Vincent and the Ensemble Appassionato under the direction of Mathieu Herzog. The two musical sisters have chosen a repertoire which crosses genres and eras to explore the expressive palette of the violin and cello, from the baroque of Vivaldi to the jazzy notes of Django Reinhardt and Stéphane Grapelli. Among the works on the program are Brahms Hungarian Dances No. 5 and No. 6, Karl Jenkins' Palladio, 'Theme from Forrest Gump' by Alan Silvestri, Schumann's Piano Quintet, Op. 44, The Red Violin by Corigliano, Hungarian Rhapsody, op. 68 by Popper, Minor Swing by Reinhardt/Grappeli and Csárdás by Monti.

Cinematic classical clips and energizing concert pieces featuring up-and-coming artists.

English-French pianist David Levy performs Dmitri Shostakovich's 24 Preludes and Fugues, Op. 87. The work is a set of twenty-four pieces for piano, one in each of the major and minor keys of the chromatic scale. Each piece is in two parts: a prelude followed by a fugue. The composer was doubtlessly inspired by J. S. Bach's famous The Well-Tempered Clavier (BWV 846-893), a collection of forty-eight preludes and fugues published in two books. A panel member at Leipzig's Bach competition, Shostakovich was deeply inspired by Russian pianist Tatiana Nikolayeva's performance of Bach's 48 Preludes and Fugues. Shostakovich wrote these pieces between the autumn of 1950 and February 1951, dedicating them to Nikolayeva, who agreed to perform the Leningrad premiere in December 1952. David Levy's performance was recorded at the Budapest Music Center, Hungary, in September 2023.

Les Dissonances is a collective of artists founded by violinist David Grimal in 2004. The conductorless ensemble consists of musicians from the most prestigious European orchestras, international soloists, and young talents. In this performance, Les Dissonances play Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Serenade No. 10 for winds in B-flat major, K. 361, also known as the ‘Gran Partita'. The composition is written for twelve winds and double bass and consists of seven parts. The piece's duration is longer than the composer's other chamber music works. Remarkably, Mozart chose to use a larger instrumentation. To the eight instruments of the common wind octet, Mozart added two basset horns, two additional horns, and a double bass. This performance was recorded at Philharmonie de Paris, France, in 2015.

Russian violinist Pavel Milyukov and pianist Boris Berezovsky join forces in this concert recorded at Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow, Russia, on October 15, 2020. Milyukov has won prizes at various international competitions and has appeared at venues throughout Europe. He forms an excellent chamber music duo with acclaimed pianist Boris Berezovsky. On this concert's program are César Franck's Sonata for violin and piano Gabriel Fauré's Après un rêve Alfred Schnittke's Stille Nacht and Franz Schubert's Erlkönig. As an encore, the duo performs ‘Russian Song' from Igor Stravinsky's opera Mavra (arranged by S. Dushkin).

In recent years, a new generation of Chinese pianists has emerged on the international scene. But there are many more young Chinese artists, who the Académie France-Chine aims to enable to deepen their art by introducing them to and giving them a platform within French and European culture. Four of these artists are Chen Xue-Hong, Zhang Cheng, Chen Yunjie and Chen Sa, who made their joint debut in Paris in this unique concert at the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées that showcased their extraordinary talent. On the program are Chopin's Piano Sonata No. 2, Schumann's Piano Sonata No. 1, Scriabin's Piano Sonata No. 8 and Paysage (No. 3) and Mazeppa (No. 4) from Liszt's Études d'Exécution Transcendante. The concert closes with Messiaen's Regard de l'Esprit de la joie (No. 10) from Vingt regards sur l'Enfant-Jésus.