Concert information
Biennale of the Berliner Philharmoniker
Info
Beethoven’s “Pastoral” exuberantly celebrates the beauty of country life – with birdsong, babbling brooks and dancing peasants. But the idyll turns out to be deceptive ... A perfect prelude to our biennial Paradise lost? On the threat to nature. The rest of the programme also picks up on the Biennale theme: Varèse’s Arcana recalls the alchemist Paracelsus and his search for the healing powers of nature, while Srnka’s Superorganisms explores life forms that can only exist in community. Stepping in for the unwell Kirill Petrenko is American conductor David Robertson, who previously led the European premiere of Srnka’s work.
Artists
Berliner Philharmoniker
David Robertson conductor (replacing Kirill Petrenko)
Programme
Edgard Varèse
Arcana for large Orchestra (revised version from 1960)
Miroslav Srnka
Superorganisms, commissioned by Berliner Philharmoniker Foundation, NHK Symphony Orchestra, Los Angeles Philharmonic, Czech Philharmonic and Orchestre de Paris (German premiere)
Interval
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 6 in F major, op. 68 “Pastoral”
Main Auditorium
37 to 106 €
Introduction
19:15
Series E: Concerts with the Berliner Philharmoniker
Also available as Biennale package
Main Auditorium
37 to 106 €
Introduction
19:15
Series F: Concerts with the Berliner Philharmoniker
Also available as Biennale package
Main Auditorium
37 to 106 €
Introduction
18:15
Series N: Concerts with the Berliner Philharmoniker
Also available as Biennale package
5 questions for … Miroslav Srnka
Video
5 questions for ... Mirsoslav Srnka
What do an orchestra and ants have in common? What helps with composer’s block? And what makes composing so special? Miroslav Srnka answered these and other questions – as his work Superorganisms has its German premiere at our Biennale.
The idyll embodies the longing for a simple, peaceful life far removed from the tensions of modernity. In music and art it symbolizes a better world, idealistic and yet fragile. Beethoven’s “Pastoral” Symphony is a striking example of this.
Biography
David Robertson
Born in Santa Monica, California, David Robertson not only conducts at the world’s most prestigious opera houses – including the Metropolitan Opera in New York, La Scala in Milan, the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris and the Bavarian State Opera – but also works with the world’s leading orchestras, including the Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, the New York Philharmonic and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra. He made his debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker in 2002. His repertoire ranges from classical to contemporary music; The New York Times has hailed the “impressive freshness” of his interpretations, while The Wall Street Journal has praised his “flair and precision”.
Robertson was chief conductor of the Sydney Symphony Orchestra (2013-2019) and the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra (2005-2018), and has also held leading positions with the Orchestre National de Lyon (2000-2004), the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Ensemble intercontemporain (1992-1999). He currently leads the conducting class at the Juilliard School in New York. In June 2024, David Robertson conducted the European premiere of Miroslav Srnka’s Superorganisms in Prague. He will return to the Philharmonie on 2 March with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and Gil Shaham on violin.
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