A Four-Part Musical Whodunnit
2nd First Night Subscription Concert
Joseph Haydn: Die Jahreszeiten
Dismissive, patronising – oh horror! That’s no way to treat one of the greatest and most ingenious composers in Europe’s musical history. Yet Joseph Haydn can’t shake off his reputation as Papa Haydn, the kindly uncle, the benevolent father figure. Anyone looking for evidence to the contrary should listen to his oratio ›The Seasons‹. Superficially a jolly ride through spring, summer, autumn and winter – in truth a musical thriller: the way he translates the brutal heat into music, the way he describes the hunt from the dog’s perspective, sniffing, running – and suddenly there’s a deafening boom. Such breathtaking music demands feisty storytellers. As well as the three renowned solo recitalists Regula Mühlemann, Werner Güra and Arttu Kataja, these are the Gaechinger Cantorey and their director Hans-Christoph Rademann, who has a long history of collaboration with the Bremen orchestra – an ideal alliance to take us through Haydn’s sonorous theme park.