DEUTSCHES SYMPHONIE‑ORCHESTER BERLIN

DAVID ROBERTSON, Conductor

GIL SHAHAM, Violin

 

Lili Boulanger: Of a Spring Morning for Orchestra

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D major, Op. 35

Sergei Rachmaninoff: Symphonic Dances, Op. 45

 

The appearance of the Deutsches Symphonie‑Orchester Berlin (German Symphony Orchestra from Berlin), an orchestra of exceptional energy, recognizable and sumptuous sound, is one of the highlights of the music season. Built on a strong music tradition and rich history, during its almost eighty years of existence, the Orchestra has developed a reputation, style and sound, through which it significantly influences not only the musical landscape of its truly culturally rich city, but also actively creates the classical music scene around the world.

 

The DSO Berlin appeared in Zagreb in 2013 under the leadership of the then chief conductor Tugan Sokhiev.  This time, the Orchestra is under the baton of David Robertson, an American musical visionary, as he is often called, a London‑educated conductor who creates interpretations with dedication and adventure with musicians on all continents.

 

The soloist Gil Shaham is one of the most sought‑after violinists today. While still a boy, he performed with the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and Zubin Mehta, and after studying at the Juilliard School of Music in New York, he built a great career. Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky's melodious, deeply emotional Violin Concerto is an inexhaustible source of inspiration for any violinist, and Gil Shaham has the privilege to demonstrate his skills on the 1699 Comtesse de Polignac Stradivarius violin.

 

Sergei Rachmaninoff's Symphonic Dances are the composer's late work created from early sketches, so symbolically, with many quotations and allusions, they summarize his entire oeuvre.

 

Lili Boulanger was one of the greatest composer hopefuls from the beginning of the 20th century and the first composer to receive the prestigious Prix de Rome award. She composed the piece Of a Spring Morning in the last months of her short life, defying her advanced illness with a strong, deeply personal expression of the piece that explores colour and harmony.