You are currently browsing the tag archive for the ‘Martin Helmchen’ tag.
Wishing the happiest of birthdays to the legendary Swedish conductor Herbert Blomstedt, today celebrating his ninety-fifth!
“A first-rate conductor was in charge,” wrote John von Rhein in the Chicago Tribune, following Blomstedt’s debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in January 1988. “Blomstedt gives the impression of being a serious seeker of musical truth, a kind of Diogenes of the baton. In the process of communicating what he perceives as the composer’s intentions, he has stripped his music making of frills and fustian, showing you the clean, shining surface beneath. Every orchestra should have such a musician on the premises.”
Over the past thirty-five years, Maestro Blomstedt has appeared with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in Orchestra Hall on several occasions, as follows.
January 7, 8, 9, and 12, 1988
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 25 in C Major, K. 503
Ivan Moravec, piano
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 6 in A Major
February 22, 23, 24, and 27, 1990
HADYN Symphony No. 86 in D Major
LADERMAN Cello Concerto (world premiere)
Yo-Yo Ma, cello
DVORÁK Symphony No. 7 in D Minor, Op. 70
January 24, 25, 26, and 29, 1991
SIBELIUS The Swan of Tuonela from Four Legends of the Kalevala, Op. 22
Grover Schiltz, english horn
SIBELIUS Violin Concerto in D Minor, Op. 47
Rubén González, violin
NIELSEN Symphony No. 3, Op. 27 (Sinfonia espansiva)
Jane Green, soprano
William Diana, baritone
March 5, 6, 7, and 11, 1998
MENDELSSOHN The Hebrides Overture, Op. 26
DUTILLEUX Tout un monde lointain . . .
Lynn Harrell, cello
DVORÁK Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88
June 21, 22, 23, and 24, 2007
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Annalena Persson, soprano
Ingeborg Danz, contralto
Robert Künzli, tenor
Matthias Goerne, baritone
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
March 1, 2, and 3, 2018
MOZART Symphony No. 39 in E-flat Major, K. 543
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major (Eroica)
March 5, 6, and 7, 2020
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major, K. 488
Bertrand Chamayou, piano
BRAHMS Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73
March 10, 11, and 12, 2022
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 17 in G Major, K. 453
Martin Helmchen, piano
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 4 in E-flat Major (Romantic)
Under the auspices of Allied Arts and Symphony Center Presents, Blomstedt has appeared as conductor with visiting orchestras, as follows.
March 12, 1986
WAGNER Prelude to Lohengrin
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58
Claudio Arrau, piano
NIELSEN Symphony No. 4, Op. 29 (The Inextinguishable)
San Francisco Symphony
November 30, 1988
MOZART Symphony No. 40 in G Minor, K. 550
LIDHOLM Kontakion for Orchestra
TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 4 in F Minor, Op. 36
San Francisco Symphony
October 22, 2001
NIELSEN Violin Concerto, Op. 33
Nikolaj Znaider, violin
BRAHMS Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra
Happy, happy birthday!
Herbert Blomstedt appears with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on March 9, 11, and 12, 2023, leading an all-Dvořák program: the Cello Concerto with Andrei Ioniţă and the Eighth Symphony.
This article also appears here.
Wishing a very happy ninetieth birthday on September 8, 2019, to legendary German conductor Christoph von Dohnányi! For nearly forty-five years, he has been a frequent guest conductor with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, both in Orchestra Hall and at the Ravinia Festival, as follows:
Christoph von Dohnányi (Terry O’Neill photo for Decca)
January 31, February 1, and 2, 1974, Orchestra Hall
BARTÓK Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin, Op. 19
SIBELIUS Violin Concerto D Minor, Op. 47
György Pauk, violin
DVOŘÁK Symphony No. 9 in E Minor, Op. 95 (From the New World)
February 7, 8, and 9, 1974, Orchestra Hall
SCHUMANN Overture, Scherzo, and Finale, Op. 52
MOZART Concerto for Two Pianos in E-flat Major, K. 365
Anthony and Joseph Paratore, pianos
LIGETI Lontano
STRAUSS Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, Op. 28
April 5, 6, and 7, 1979, Orchestra Hall
MOZART Adagio and Fugue in C Minor, K. 546
SCHUMANN Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 54
Maurizio Pollini, piano
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93
April 12, 13, and 14, 1979, Orchestra Hall
MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 11
HENZE Symphony No. 5
SCHOENBERG Erwartung, Op. 17
Anja Silja, soprano
May 22, 23, and 24, 1980, Orchestra Hall
BARTÓK Suite from The Miraculous Mandarin, Op. 19
SCHOENBERG Six Songs with Orchestra, Op. 8
Anja Silja, soprano
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 4 in D Minor, Op. 120
March 4, 5, and 6, 1982, Orchestra Hall
RIHM Tutuguri II, Music after Artaud
HANDEL/Schoenberg Concerto for String Orchestra and Orchestra
Chicago Symphony String Quartet
Victor Aitay, violin
Edgar Muenzer, violin
Milton Preves, viola
Frank Miller, cello
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 2 in C Major, Op. 61
Christoph von Dohnányi (Andreas Garrels photo)
November 7, 8, and 9, 2002, Orchestra Hall
IVES The Unanswered Question
Craig Morris, trumpet
LUTOSŁAWSKI Concerto for Orchestra
BRAHMS Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 68
May 6, 7, and 8, 2004, Orchestra Hall
PÄRT Fratres
Yuan-Qing Yu, violin
PROKOFIEV Symphony No. 1 in D Major, Op. 25 (Classical)
MAHLER Symphony No. 1 in D Major
July 2, 2004, Ravinia Festival
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat Major, K. 595
Emanuel Ax, piano
IVES Three Places in New England
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 2 in C Major, Op. 61
May 11, 12, and 13, 2006, Orchestra Hall
MOZART Symphony No. 25 in G Minor, K. 183
STRAUSS Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks, Op. 28
BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 15
Emanuel Ax, piano
November 1, 2, 3, and 4, 2007, Orchestra Hall
SIBELIUS Violin Concerto in D Minor, Op. 47
Arabella Steinbacher, violin
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 4 in E-flat Major (Romantic)
November 19, 20, 21, and 22, 2009, Orchestra Hall
BARTÓK Divertimento for String Orchestra
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 12 in A Major, K. 414
Paul Lewis, piano
SCHUMANN Symphony No. 2 in C Major, Op. 61
July 14, 2011, Ravinia Festival
BRAHMS Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73
BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 15
Emanuel Ax, piano
July 15, 2011, Ravinia Festival
BRAHMS Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90
BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 83
Emanuel Ax, piano
July 11, 2013, Ravinia Festival
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3 in E-flat Major, Op. 55 (Eroica)
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37
Emanuel Ax, piano
July 12, 2013, Ravinia Festival
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 4 in B-flat Major, Op. 60
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 73 (Emperor)
Emanuel Ax, piano
May 1, 2, and 3, 2014, Orchestra Hall
LUTOSŁAWSKI Funeral Music
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37
Paul Lewis, piano
TCHAIKOVSKY Symphony No. 6 in B Minor, Op. 74 (Pathétique)
June 9, 10, and 11, 2016, Orchestra Hall
MOZART Symphony No. 25 in G Minor, K. 183
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 19
Martin Helmchen, piano
MOZART Symphony No. 41 in C Major, K. 551 (Jupiter)
Happy, happy birthday!
from the archives 