PRESS RELEASE Brno, 17 May 2024
90, 200, 150. Three numbers marking important anniversaries have significantly shaped Filharmonie Brno’s upcoming 69th season. “The number 90 refers to the season’s most important project, Mahler’s Das klagende Lied/Song of Lamentation. We will be performing this in its original three-movement form on the day exactly ninety years since its world premiere. Its premiere took place in Brno under the direction of Mahler’s nephew, and was performed by the radio orchestra which would later become Filharmonie Brno. It is rare to hear this balladic story in its original form, because the composer later revised it, cutting out the large first movement,” explains Marie Kučerová, Director of Filharmonie Brno. The solo part will be taken on by one of the world’s most renowned sopranos, Chen Reiss. “This season, we have managed to invite several star soloists from around the world, of whom Chen Reiss is probably the greatest,” says Kučerová. She adds that the number 90 also refers to the anniversary of Alfred Schnittke’s birth, who is one of the ensemble’s emblematic composers, as he is regularly featured in every season.
Gustav Mahler’s piece is linked to another major strand of this season’s programme, specifically the ongoing celebrations of the Year of Czech Music and the question of what constitutes Czech music culture. Is it Mahler? Korngold? Reicha? All these composers were born in the Czech lands, but are associated with the countries where they later lived. Visitors will hear all three in the upcoming season. “200, of course, refers to Bedřich Smetana, whom we will be honouring in the opening concert alongside another composer who shares the same anniversary: Anton Bruckner,” explains Chief Conductor, Dennis Russell Davies, who is a world-renowned expert on Bruckner’s works. Czech composers will also be commemorated, for example, in a special concert featuring cellist Laura van der Heijden. “I’m looking forward to all the masterpieces we’ll be performing, of which there is no shortage this year. We’re putting together Handel’s Messiah, for example, in Mozart’s wonderful arrangement, which is a benchmark of a sophisticated and heartfelt interpretation of the piece, and furthermore it will feature tenor Christoph Prégardien, who enchanted Brno’s audience in January with the songs of Schubert. We will also be performing Joseph Haydn’s The Creation and Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 4,” says Davies.
One of the most internationally renowned pianists of his generation, Alexandre Tharaud, is returning to Brno. “We’re celebrating the 150th anniversary of Maurice Ravel’s birth with him. A spectacular and Ravel-filled evening awaits us, featuring both of his piano concertos and a suite from the ballet Daphnis et Chloé, alongside his choreographic poem, La valse. Ravel’s piano concertos have been in Tharaud’s repertoire since he was a youth, but he only recorded them last year at the age of fifty-five. His album is wonderful and highly acclaimed, so I’m really looking forward to hearing it performed live in Brno,” notes Filharmonie Brno Programme Director, Vítězslav Mikeš. He adds that the grand concert performed by the orchestra will follow a recital by Tharaud which will include Bach and Dukas as well as Ravel.
The audience in Brno can look forward to a large number of international star soloists: in addition to the afore-mentioned soprano Chen Reiss, tenor Christoph Prégardien and pianist Alexandre Tharaud, these include cellist Steven Isserlis, percussionist Adélaïde Ferrière and violinist and conductor Fabio Biondi. “I’m so looking forward to his pre-Christmas concert. He really is a legend in informed interpretation: he founded and leads the world-renowned ensemble, Europa Galante,“ says Kučerová.
In addition to established stars, the season will also feature young talents, such as Trio Bohémo, Petr Nekoranec and Lada Bočková. “We’ve now added a Concert with Laureates, where we will be introducing winners of major international competitions. We are pleased that one of these will be our own double bassist, Ondřej Sejkora,” says Mikeš.
The upcoming season continues the tradition of showcasing rediscovered Czech composers, this time Václav Hugo Voříšek, Jan Dismas Zelenka and the now traditional Antonín Reicha. Last year’s new In the Orchestra project is also continuing, in which the audience sits directly amongst the musicians during the concert. “Due to huge demand, we’ve expanded our children’s concerts. The Saturday Family Subscription, which for years has been consistently sold out, will now be performed twice: in the afternoon in addition to the morning. Similarly, we will be adding another time to the Chamber Family Afternoons subscription. We’ll now be playing at two times: at 2 o’clock and at 4 o’clock pm,” says Filharmonie Brno Head of Education, Kristýna Drášilová.
The orchestra will also be making guest appearances on prestigious international stages in Grafenegg, Linz and Vienna in Austria, Katowice in Poland and on an autumn tour in South Korea. “We are significantly boosting our role as a major player on the international concert scene, creating programmes that are rightly amongst the most interesting and most meaningful in all of Europe,” emphasises Davies.
Sales for the new season begin on Monday 27 May at 8.00 am. These are intended for all subscribers who wish to renew their subscription, something they can do online from home, or else in person at Filharmonie Brno presales. All special concerts and tickets to Špilberk Festival also go on sale on the same day. On Monday 17 June, all non-renewal subscription places and Season of your Choice tickets go on sale. “You can make use of this option from three concerts upwards, for which you get a discount of 30 %. The principle continues to apply that the more concerts you select, the greater the discount you receive. All subscriptions and individual tickets can be purchased online. Thanks to a clear purchase process, you needn’t fear losing out on the highest discount available,” says Kučerová. As in previous seasons, Filharmonie Brno offers ten subscription series: two larger ones at Janáček Theatre (Impozantní/Impressive, Hvězdná/Star Studded), one in Besední dům (Inspirativní/Inspirational) and series of chamber, extraordinary, family and jazz concerts. There is also a series of orchestral academics, Mladá krev (Young Blood) and concerts of the Kantiléna choir.
69th concert season catalogue available to download here.
Media contact Kateřina Konečná, Head of PR and Marketing, Filharmonie Brno
+420 775 426 040 katerina.konecna@filharmonie-brno.cz