Orchester der Hochschule für Musik und Theater / Ulrich Windfuhr
Tchaikovsky: Rococo Variations / Mozart: Oboe Concert in C major / Beethoven: Symphony No. 8
Beethoven in love
The title of Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s »Variations on a Rococo Theme for Violoncello and Orchestra«, first performed in 1877, is misleading. The word Rococo conjures up images of courtly, ornate opulence and powdered wigs. But it was Mozart whom the great Russian composer was primarily interested in emulating. The theme for this series of variations was not originally penned by the Salzburg composer, but its simple expressiveness could have been written by him. Difficult to play, but blessed with a tremendous expressiveness filled with yearning, the oboe, like the cello, has always been regarded as a particularly sensitive instrument. Mozart knew exactly how to make the most of these qualities with great skill – and Guilherme Filipe Costa e Sousa, principal oboist of the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra, transports this special sound into the present day.
Beethoven’s Eighth, which concludes the concert under the baton of Ulrich Windfuhr, is a masterpiece of musical humour and – by Beethoven’s standards – unusually soft tones. While composing the work, Beethoven wrote a beautiful love letter to a woman whose identity still remains a mystery: »Even when I am in bed my thoughts rush to you, my immortal beloved. Yes, I have determined to wander about for so long far away, until I can fly into your arms.« So this is what is sounds like: Beethoven in love.
Performers
Orchester der Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg
Olivia Jeremias violoncello
Guilherme Filipe Costa e Sousa oboe
conductor Ulrich Windfuhr
Programme
Piotr I. Tschaikowsky
Variations on a Rococo Theme for Violoncello and Orchestra in A major, Op. 33
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Konzert für Oboe und Kammerorchester C-Dur KV 314
– Interval –
Ludwig van Beethoven
Sinfonie Nr. 8 F-Dur op. 93