Touring

L. V. BEETHOVEN: MISSA SOLEMNIS IN D-MAJOR, OP. 123

Le Concert Olympique / Arnold Schoenberg Choir Vienna / Malin Hartelius, Soprano / Dame Sarah Connolly, Mezzosoprano / Steve Davislim, Tenor / Hanno Müller-Brachmann, Bass / Jan Caeyers, Conductor

Concerts at DeSingel Antwerp (21/11/18), Philharmonie Berlin (23/11/18) and Festspielhaus Baden-Baden (01/12/18)

Even more than his Ninth Symphony, the Missa solemnis can be considered Beethoven’s largest monumental work from his last creative period. It is a spiritual message to humanity that exceeds the liturgical context by far. Intimate lyricism and tender musicality alternate with moments of highly strained complexity – a duality that is intended to express the relationship between the "earthly" and the "heavenly" which remains mysterious to the human mind.

For the Missa solemnis, Jan Caeyers and Le Concert Olymique again use their extensive expertise in the interpretation of Beethoven's instrumental and vocal music. At the same time, the production is a culmination of the successful cooperation with the Arnold Schoenberg Choir, which on its own part can look back on a long tradition of performing this music.

Jan Caeyers, Le Concert Olypique and the Arnold Schoenberg Choir are joined by an outstanding quartet of soloists: Malin Hartelis, Dame Sarah Connolly, Steve Davislim as well as Hanno Müller-Brachmann.

L. V. BEETHOVEN:  EROICA AND EROICA-VARIATIONS
Le Concert Olympique / Francois Frederic Guy, Piano / Jan Caeyers, Conductor

L. v. Beethoven:  Excerpts from the "The Creatures of Prometheus" op. 43
L. v. Beethoven: 15 Variations with Finale alla Fuga op. 35 (Eroica Variations)
L. v. Beethoven: Symphony No.3, op. 55

Concerts at Philharmonie Essen, Flagey Brüssel, DeSingel Antwerpen, Philharmonie Berlin (17-25.04.2018)

Although less well-known, the Prometheus music is of great importance for understanding Beethoven’s oeuvre and forms a key work in many respects. The key theme of the finale (Prometheus theme) not only forms the connection to the series of ideas in the third symphony but also to the “Eroica Variations” (or: “The Prometheus Variations”) for piano in E-flat major, op. 35. The Prometheus theme is indeed the only theme that appears in three – and if we include number 7 of the Contredanses, WoO 14 – in four of Beethoven’s works.    

Beethoven worked intensively on this theme between 1801 and 1803, for in 1801/1802 he experienced the great existential crisis that is hauntingly documented in the so-called “Heiligenstadt Testament”. And it cannot be ruled out that he related to the figure of Prometheus to a certain extent in order to deal with his fate. But Beethoven’s interest in the Prometheus theme may also have stemmed from purely musical origins. It is ultimately a relatively abstract motif, but for Beethoven the interest did not lie in its natural identity but in the possibilities of using and developing it. Beethoven treated the theme like a prism that continually breaks and imaginatively disperses light that enters it. 

By uniting the three „Prometheus compositions“ in one programme (in three different forms), the listener is able to understand and appreciate Beethoven’s new and wonderful relationship to the thematic material.

It may be slightly unusual for audiences to hear the Eroica Variations for solo piano in an orchestral concert but Jan Caeyers would like to break with tradition and away from the somewhat “dusty” classical symphony concert with this choice of programme.

L. V. BEETHOVEN:  TRIPLE CONCERTO AND PIANO CONCERTO NO. 5

Le Concert Olympique / Antje Weithaas, Violine / Maximilian Hornung, Violoncello / Till Fellner, Piano / Jan Caeyers, Conductor
J. Haydn: Symphony No. 104 in D-Major
L. van Beethoven: Piano Concerto no. 5 in E-flat Major, op. 73
L. van Beethoven: Triple Concert in C-Major, op. 56

Concerts at DeSingel Antwerpen, Flagey Brüssel, Philharmonie Berlin, Wiener Konzerthaus (13-20.11.2017)
 

L. V. BEETHOVEN:  THE ACADEMY ON 5 APRIL 1803
Le Concert Olympique / Arnold Schoenberg Choir Vienna / Susanne Bernhard , Soprano / Steve Davislim, Tenor / Dietrich Henschel, Bass / Kristian Bezuidenhout, Fortpiano  / Jan Caeyers, Conductor
L. van Beethoven: Symphony No. 2 in D-Major, op. 36 L. van Beethoven: Concerto for piano No. 3 in C-minor, op. 37
L. van Beethoven: Christ on the Mount of Olives, op. 85
Concert at Beethovenfest Bonn, DeSingel Antwerpen sowie am Concertgebouw Amsterdam (26.09.-02.10.2017)

The Akademie at the “Theater an der Wien” on 5 April 1803 is of great significance in Beethoven’s biography because it was the first symphonic concert that only included orchestral and choral works by Beethoven on its programme. Thus the 1803 Akademie, unlike that of 2 April 1800, was Beethoven’s first official presentation as a composer of representative music. But more importantly, this concert only showcased large-scale works composed by Beethoven during and shortly after the so-called “Heiligenstadt crisis” – a dark period in his life that lasted a month, after which he was confronted with his incurable loss of hearing. 

This existential crisis led to a turnaround in Beethoven’s career: he decided to no longer appear primarily as a pianist in future but to make composing new pieces his life’s work. This decision had immediate consequences for his music which became genre-crossing on all levels, something that could be clearly heard at the 1803 Akademie.  

One can regard the three pieces – the Symphony No. 2, Piano Concerto No. 3 and the oratorio Christ on the Mount of Olives – as key works because Beethoven resolutely broke away from the classical tradition and in these found his typical style and sound. A grasp of them is therefore a prerequisite for a better understanding of the “heroic” masterworks that came later such as the Symphony No. 3, the Piano Concertos Nos. 4 and 5 and both versions of Leonore.   

In this way, Le Concert Olympique’s Akademie Project is not only a reconstruction of an important historical concert, but above all a good opportunity to gain a better insight into Beethoven’s radical and modern nature.