12 March 1960 – 5 June 2019
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Christmas Oratorio with the Thomanerchor and Gewandhausorchester Leipzig on Arte Concert
On December 15/16, 2018, we recorded Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Oratorio at St. Thomas Church Leipzig. The complete concert with all six cantatas is now available on Arte Concert – just in time for the Christmas holidays – and accessible on our website!
– video link removed –
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Christmas Oratorio, BWV 248
Thomanerchor Leipzig
Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Thomaskantor Gotthold Schwarz
Dorothee Mields, soprano
Elvira Bill, alto
Patrick Grahl, tenor (evangelist)
Markus Schäfer, tenor (arias)
Klaus Häger (bass)
Accentus Music wishes you a wonderful holiday season and all the best for a happy and healthy New Year!
First broadcast: Music, War and Revolution-Trilogy on Arte
When the First World War broke out in 1914, the musical world did not remain unaffected. Artists inevitably became involved, either as soldiers at the front or as composers of patriotic music or of musical memorials to a lost world. The three-part documentary series Music, War and Revolution (Musik in Zeiten von Krieg und Revolution) explores known and unknown as well as obvious and hidden connections between music, revolution and war. Beginning with what led to this great human tragedy, each episode addresses different perspectives of the relationship between war and politics.
Part One:
Music in the Time of the Great War / Musik in Zeiten des Großen Krieges
Sunday, September 9th, 11:20 p.m., Arte
Part Two:
Silenced – Composers in Revolutionary Russia / Verstummte Klänge – Komponisten im revolutionären Russland
Monday, September 10th, 0:15 a.m., Arte
Part Three:
Music and Power / Musik und Macht
Sunday, September 16th, 10:25 p.m., Arte
Kirill Petrenko, Yuja Wang and Berliner Philharmoniker at the 2018 Lucerne Festival
Posted on August 22, 2018
The start of a new era: Although Kirill Petrenko will not officially take up the post of Chief Conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic until 2019, he will lead the orchestra in two concerts this summer when the orchestra celebrates its 60th year on stage at the Lucerne Festival. Accentus Music will be recording the concert on August 30th at KKL Lucerne. Kirill Petrenko and the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra will be performing Paul Dukas’ La Péri ou La Fleur d’immortalité, Franz Schmidt’s Symphony No. 4 in C major, and, together with the hyper-virtuoso Yuja Wang, Sergey Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 3.
Riccardo Chailly and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra perform Ravel – Livestream on Arte Concert
Posted on August 7, 2018
Accentus Music will be recording the Lucerne Festival Orchestra performing an all-Ravel program under the baton of its musical director Riccardo Chailly. Moreover, the concert on Friday, August 24th, 7:30 p.m., in KKL Lucerne will be streamed live on Arte Concert. The orchestra will be playing Valses Nobles et Sentimentales, La Valse, suites 1 and 2 from Daphnis et Chloé as well as the Boléro. 2018 marks the third year of Riccardo Chailly as the musical director of the Lucerne Festival and also the 30th anniversary of his debut at the Lucerne Festival.
The recording will be available online on Arte Concert until November 23rd, 2018.
New DVD/Blu-ray: Andris Nelsons’ inaugural concert in Leipzig
Posted on August 22, 2018
The DVD/Blu-ray of Andris Nelsons’ inaugural concert as the new Gewandhauskapellmeister in Leipzig will be available in Germany on August 31st and soon thereafter in other countries. At the beginning of the year they performed the Scottish Symphony by Nelsons’ most famous predecessor, Felix Mendelssohn, Alban Berg’s Violin Concerto together with violinist Baiba Skride, and Relief, a commissioned work by composer Steffen Schleiermacher. For more information, click here.
Premiere at Ruhrtriennale: “Universe, incomplete” celebrates Charles Ives
Posted on August 15, 2018
Accentus Music will be filming the new production “Universe, incomplete” of the Ruhrtriennale at the Jahrhunderthalle Bochum, which will be premiered on August 17th. The project is based on Charles Ives’ unfinished „Universe Symphony“ as well as other works of this extraordinary composer to complete what wasn’t finished. Director Christoph Marthaler, conductor Titus Engel and stage designer Anna Viebrock develop their own perspective on one of the great utopian works of the 20th century, consisting of notes, sketches and pages of musical score. The instrumental soloists, together with the Bochumer Symphoniker and an ensemble made up of actors, dancers and singers, will be performing this musical work in its entirety. For more information, click here.
Dudamel conducts the Boléro – More than 1,1 million views on YouTube
Posted on August 7, 2018
At the closing concert of the Lucerne Festival 2010, the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra performed Maurice Ravel’s probably most famous piece of music under the baton of Gustavo Dudamel: the Boléro. The video of this performance on Accentus Music’s YouTube page has been watched over 1,1 million times since it was made available online 11 months ago and has gained nearly 600 comments. For more information about the production, click here.
Two Accentus Music productions on Gramophone Magazine’s Top 10 Bruckner Recordings list
Posted on August 7, 2018
Gramophone Magazine has published a list of ‘Top 10 Bruckner Recordings‘. It includes the Bruckner 5 and the Bruckner 9 that were recorded live by Accentus Music with Claudio Abbado and the Lucerne Festival Orchestra. Accentus Music released the award-winning Bruckner 5 on DVD and Blu-ray, and the Bruckner 9 was released on CD by Deutsche Grammophon and Accentus Music in 2014. This performance of Bruckner’s Ninth was the last concert that Abbado conducted before passing away in January 2014. For more information about the Bruckner 5 on DVD/Blu-ray, click here, and watch the trailer here. For more information about the CD, click here.
Documentary in Production: A journey into the Music of the Baltic with the Kremerata Baltica
In our new documentary “When the evening and the morning meet” (WT) the directors Günter Atteln and Carmen Belaschk meet the musicians of the Kremerata Baltica as they tour through the Baltic countries. Gidon Kremer’s ensemble, founded in 1997, unites the most talented young musicians from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, and builds bridges between these countries. The musicians point out similarities and differences of their musical culture as they travel, conjure up spontaneous sessions, return home to their families, meet for example musicians like Arvo Pärt, Pēteris Vasks, as well as Iveta Apkalna and visit music and song festivals in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Here are some impressions:
Photo credit: Carmen Belaschk