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Munich Philharmonic: Schreker / Šerkšnytė / Strauss / MendelssohnGiedrė Šlekytė (conductor), Chen Reiss (soprano)

Portrait of the conductor Giedrė Šlekytė. She is wearing a pink blouse and smiling at the camera.
Giedrė Šlekytė Copyright: Theresa Pewal

Lithuania’s vibrant musical culture has gifted classical music with outstanding and, above all, female artists. Attracting international attention, Giedrė Šlekytė and Raminta Šerkšnytė are both considered musical ambassadors of Lithuania. The country’s eventful history and archaic nature are impressively reflected in Šerkšnytė’s music.

Lithuania’s vibrant musical culture has gifted classical music with outstanding and, above all, female artists. Attracting international attention, Giedrė Šlekytė and Raminta Šerkšnytė are both considered musical ambassadors of Lithuania. The country’s eventful history and archaic nature are impressively reflected in Šerkšnytė’s music.

Inspired by the “rich and sweet soprano” of his wife Pauline, Richard Strauss developed a preference for the lied, both in its intimate form, accompanied by a solitary piano, and with the extended instrumentation of a full orchestra.

 

Franz Schreker dispensed with such distinctions of genre, calling his last two lieder simply “Vom ewigen Leben” (On Eternal Life). The two lieder mark a high point in Schreker’s rich vocal oeuvre: Based on texts by Walt Whitman, they ingeniously interweave voice and accompaniment. The Israeli soprano Chen Reiss, as well as being a much admired interpreter of Strauss, is a committed pioneer in returning Schreker’s works to the stage. This can be witnessed to good effect in this concert with the Munich Philharmonic.

 

Its landscape and history steeped in legend, Scotland was a favourite among Romantic artists. Felix Mendelssohn found inspiration there for his Symphony No 3, in which “Scottish moods” are clearly discernible – from fog, storms and rain to the sound of a bagpipe, imitated here by a clarinet.

Programme

  • Franz Schreker: Vom ewigen Leben for soprano and orchestra
  • Raminta Šerkšnytė: Midsummer Song
  • Richard Strauss: Selected orchestral songs
  • Felix Mendelssohn: Symphony No 3 in A minor, Op 56, the Scottish

Further dates

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