About
Under the direction of Petr Popelka, we present moving transformations of two late-Romantic compositions: They are characterized by chromaticism and leitmotifs, and date from a time when the symphony genre, after Beethoven's groundbreaking works, was threatened by stagnation – and the influential critic Eduard Hanslick believed that not everyone should "venture onto this battlefield." Solutions were needed that each person could find individually: César Franck saw Beethoven as a great role model and was even a student of his friend Anton Reicha in Paris. However, he simply transferred the symphonic character to his favorite instrument and said: "My organ? It's an orchestra!" This led to the creation of the "Grande pièce symphonique" for solo organ in 1862. At the suggestion of Christian Schmitt, the composer Zsigmond Szathmáry created a new version, which was premiered in 2024: In this version, our organist not only shapes the musical flow, but we form a common sound body together. Richard Wagner wondered whether it would still be sensible to write symphonies after Beethoven – and ultimately chose the music drama, culminating in his masterpiece "Der Ring des Nibelungen" with four monumental parts. Lorin Maazel created a fascinating version in 1987 without stage sets or singers. An exciting performance only for the orchestra: It works like a multifaceted symphony, in which the catchy melodies and leitmotifs of the famous cycle sound out in chronological order – which Wagner described as "guides for the listener's feelings."
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