The art of interpreting Brahms' Symphony No. 1. Mexican conductor Alondra de la Parra is rehearsing Brahms Symphony No. 1 in C minor, Op. 68 with the Münchner Symphoniker (Munich Symphony Orchestra). She discusses the famous work with musicians and experts, and they perform it at the 2022 Tutzing Brahmstage music festival.
DW Classical Music presents the eight-part series: Alondra de la Parra at the Brahmstage in Tutzing. The music documentaries will feature the 4 symphonies by Johannes Brahms and 4 symphonies by Antonín Dvořák.
Episode 2 / Dvořák, Symphony No. 8: • Dvořák: Symphony No. 8...
Episode 3 / Brahms, Symphony No. 2: • Brahms: Symphony No. 2...
Episode 4 / Dvořák, Symphony No. 9: • Dvořák: Symphony No. 9...
Episode 5 / Brahms, Symphony No. 3: • Brahms: Symphony No. 3...
Episode 6 / Dvořák, Symphony No. 7: • Dvořák: Symphony No. 7...
Episode 7 / Brahms, Symphony No. 4: • Brahms: Symphony No. 4...
Episode 8 / Dvořák, Symphony No. 6: • Dvořák: Symphony No. 6...
Episode 1 at a glance:
(00:00) Opening
(00:36) Introduction by Musica Maestra Alondra de la Parra
(01:31) Working on Brahms' Symphony No. 1, I. Un poco sostenuto - Allegro - Meno allegro
(04:08) Working on Brahms’ Symphony No. 1, II. Andante sostenuto
(10:33) Working on Brahms’ Symphony No. 1, III. Un poco allegretto e grazioso
(11:42) Working on Brahms’ Symphony No. 1, IV. Adagio - Più andante - Allegro non troppo, ma con brio - Più allegro
Johannes Brahms (1833 - 1897) did not complete his first symphony until he was 43, and it took him a full 14 years to do so. "I will never compose a symphony! You have no idea how it makes people like us feel to hear such a giant marching behind us all the time.” Brahms wrote this to his conductor friend Hermann Levi in 1870. At that time, however, he had already been working on his first symphony for eight years and did not complete it until 1876.
The giant refers to Beethoven, whose symphonic works cast a powerful shadow over the entire 19th century. Brahms felt inhibited by the ambition Beethoven had created through his symphonies, while Wagner, his antipode, postulated that the symphonic genre was finished and turned to music drama. Franz Liszt, in turn, programmatically refined the symphony into a symphonic poem. Thus Brahms was seen as Beethoven's true heir, and conductor Hans von Bülow influenced the reception of the first symphony by calling it "Beethoven's Tenth." Brahms once dismissed supposed or actual echoes of Beethoven with the venomous remark that "every donkey hears it the same way".
The Tutzing Brahmstage is a small but elegant classical music festival. In 2022, it celebrated a double anniversary. The concert series was held for the 25th time and at the same time, it was the 125th anniversary of the death of the famous German composer. The Brahmstage festival takes place every year in Tutzing on Lake Starnberg in Upper Bavaria - the place where Brahms spent a summer composing important works in 1873. On four Sundays in October 2022, Brahms' four great symphonies were performed together with one symphony each by Antonin Dvořák - the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth - in the Church of St. Joseph.
As one of Munich's great symphony orchestras, the Münchner Symphoniker (Munich Symphony Orchestra) has been an integral part of the German musical landscape for over 75 years. They perform around 100 concerts a year in concert series in Munich, Garmisch-Partenkirchen and Kempten, with guest appearances and tours in Germany and abroad. The renowned and experimental orchestra with musicians from 17 different nations presents varied programs on large concert and open-air stages, in clubs, at unusual locations as well as in its own venerable rehearsal hall at the well-known Bavaria Studios. The repertoire ranges from baroque music to classical and romantic works to film music, from modern classics to 21st century hip-hop and crossover.
Alondra de la Parra's interview partners are Orieta Dado, co-principal second violin, Jamie White, principal bassoon, and musicologist Stephan Beck.
Report & Direction:
Dorothee Binding
Camera:
Matthias Boch
Amadeus Hiller
Simon Hermann
Christian Berges
Daniel Stupat
Jan Klein
Sound:
Sara Misztela
Make-up:
Nilgün Konya
Editing:
Jan von Stebut
Production:
Benedict Mirow - Nightfrog GmbH
Commissioning Editor:
Reiner Schild
© Deutsche Welle 2023
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