- Please note that concerts will now start at 7:30 p.m.
Pure rhythm
4th First Night subscription concert
Works by Bartók, Rihm and Beethoven
One guest who is always eagerly awaited is the English conductor Duncan Ward, who this time has a very special programme for rhythm enthusiasts. In his ›Hungarian Sketches‹, ’Béla Bartók composed snappy dances and humorous depictions of rural life, ranging from tipsy peasants to dancing pigherds, alternating them with elegiac melodies. The young Alinde Quartet not only has the music of Schubert – a particular focus – in its repertoire; Wolfgang Rihm’s ›Dithyrambe‹ composed in 2000 is a concerto for string quartet and orchestra but not in the classical sense. Named after the ecstatic choral song from the ancient Greek Dionysus cult, the composer describes it as a »monologue conducted by a creature with four mouths«, featuring »fast, dense music« that draws on material from previous string quartets, full of energy and constantly driving rhythms. After the interval, Beethoven’s Second Symphony demonstrates how differently a virtuoso of the symphony treated the subject of rhythm around 1800: exuberantly, yet balanced – classical in the best sense!
