Tour: Mozart, Beethoven

The Budapest Festival Orchestra will arrive in Passau with an opera overture teeming with symbols, a violin concerto epitomizing the genre and a symphony that became world-famous for its funeral march. And, of course, also with a brilliant soloist. Mozart’s last violin concerto will be performed by Diana Tishchenko on her Stradivarius violin. According to the Strad, “spontaneity and eloquence are hallmarks of her playing” and her performance is breathtaking. The Gramophone particularly praises Tishchenko’s unique sound, which she will truly need to convey the freshness and colorfulness written in Mozart's score. The musical enchantment will begin with the mysterious Overture to Mozart’s final opera, setting the stage for the concerto that follows. From there, the concert will ascend to Beethovenian heights with the composer’s symphony hailed by Wagner as “the apotheosis of the dance”, a work that expands the previously known boundaries of the genre.

In 1784, Mozart became a Freemason, first joining the Lodge of Charity and then the Lodge of Crowned Hope. Librettist Emanuel Schikaneder was also a member of this society dedicated to the ideas of the Enlightenment, so it is not surprising that when he and Mozart set out to create an opera, or more precisely, a Singspiel, they wove numerous Masonic symbols into the work. Beneath the surface of the fairy tale of The Magic Flute, which premiered just over two months before Mozart’s death, lie profound philosophical thoughts: the battle between light and darkness, the trials of humans, and the journey to adulthood are all timeless themes. The three chords opening the Overture with a key signature of three flats -- E-flat major -- evoke the three knocks beginning the rituals in the Viennese lodge. This is followed by a slow introduction foreshadowing Sarastro’s realm before Mozartian joy bursts in.

As a concertmaster in Salzburg, Mozart often performed on the violin before turning his focus entirely to the piano. His Violin Concerto in A minor was written in 1775 as a summary of what he had learned about the genre as a composer and performer. The piece gradually explores and pushes the limits of the violin concerto in terms of both scope and technique, and Mozart bid farewell to the genre with this composition at the age of just under twenty. Here the solo instrument behaves like a little diva: after the orchestral overture of the first movement, it reluctantly starts the main theme, but only following a lyrical aria. The melody, made up of triads, emerges in all three movements. The exceptionally accomplished, luscious second movement is followed in conclusion by a rondo with Turkish-sounding phrases (though some people will tell you they are Hungarian-sounding).

The piece has no nickname but it is still known by everyone. It is built on the traditions of Viennese Classicism but leads the way for Romantic composers. Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony has a special place in his oeuvre even without a program or the use of human voice. The symphony was composed, with some exaggeration, thanks to Johann Maelzel, the inventor of the metronome, who commissioned a piece from Beethoven for his “mechanical orchestra.” That piece was premiered on December 8, 1813 at a charity concert organized for soldiers wounded in war, where Symphony No. 7 was also performed for the first time. This work, written as the companion piece to Symphony No. 8, is grand in its form and bold in its harmonies. This last characteristic is shown immediately in the slow introduction of the fast-paced opening movement. The not-too-slow second movement in dark A-minor evolves through the continuous development of a single motif. In the whirlwind, stormy scherzo, only the more restrained trios offer some moments of calm, and then the finale further accelerates the tempo, intensifying the wildness, and the obsessive joy.