Repertoire

Jörg Widmann: Con brio (2008; rev. 2013) 12′
Jörg Widmann: Violin Concerto No. 2 (2018) 36′
Jörg Widmann: Variacions sobre El cant dels ocells. Fantasy for choir and organ (2022). Work commissioned by the Palau de la Música Catalana (world premiere)
L. V. Beethoven: Symphony No. 7 in A major, Op. 92 (1811) 40′

Artists

Barcelona Symphony Orchestra (OBC)
Juan de la Rubia, organ
Orfeó Català (Pablo Larraz, director)
Carolin Widmann, violin
Jörg Widmann, conductor

Program

The so-called “heroic” period of L. V. Beethoven’s music is reflected in Symphony No. 7–its most polished exponent–, and the bold pathway that he had embarked on years before crystallised in a work conspicuous for its rhythmic vigour. Richard Wagner upheld this symphony, worked on by Beethoven during the winter of 1811 to 1812, as representing “the apotheosis of dance”. Symphony No. 7 has been said to encapsulate everything that Nietzsche identified in Beethoven’s music: “an 18th century swan’s song, the century of exaltation, of broken ideals and of vanishing happiness”. 

Compared with the many projects today that turn out to be mere pipedreams, Jörg Widmann stands out for his solid musical career. A multifaceted musician familiar with musical tradition, he is deserving of the literature in the field of musicology that has already been published on his work. Con brio (With Spirit), one of his most celebrated works commissioned by Bavaria Radio Symphony Orchestra, is an overture in hermeneutic dialogue with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7. His Violin Concerto, with a lyricism that has been compared with the well-known concerto by Alban Berg, represents a landmark in current musical creation.