In cooperation with Eesti Kontsert
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Piano Concerto No. 2
Antonín Dvořák
Symphony No. 9
Olga Kern is an internationally celebrated pianist, renowned for her captivating performances and extraordinary technique. She gained global acclaim after winning the Gold Medal at the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition in 2001, becoming the first woman to do so in over 30 years. Olga’s extensive repertoire and dynamic interpretations have made her a sought-after performer in major concert halls around the world.
OLGA KERN piano
ERSO
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
The series is sponsored by Liviko
Olivier Messiaen
Les Offrandes Oubliées
Henri Dutilleux
Cello concerto Tout un monde lointain…
Kaija Saariaho
Vista
Maurice Ravel
Choreographic poem La Valse
In November, Theodor Sink, the principal cello of ERSO, will take the stage as the soloist for the orchestra. As a multifaceted interpreter, Sink is a soloist, a chamber musician, and an orchestra member. He started to work at ERSO in 2017, and since then, he has soloed regularly with the orchestra. This time, Olari Elts will conduct Henri Dutilleux’s Cello Concerto. The five parts of the piece are inspired by the poetry of Charles Baudelaire. The composition is considered one of the finest examples of its genre created in the twentieth century.
The programme of the concert also includes Les Offrandes Oubliées, created by one of the most influential composers of the twentieth century, Oliver Messiaen, when he was still young. The orchestral piece Vista by Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho (who sadly passed away last year) is going to be performed for the first time in Estonia. The concert also includes a beloved orchestral piece by Maurice Ravel – the choreographic poem La Valse. This is a twentieth-century tribute to the Viennese waltz, a sore memory of its glory days.
THEODOR SINK cello
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Catherine Milliken
Ediacaran Fields (Estonian premiere)
Elis Hallik
Symphony Phos (world premiere)
Monika Mattiesen
Ariadne aus Neanderthal (world premiere)
This year, AFEKT Festival focuses on small and large compositions
containing elements of transmedial musical theatre. Australian composer Catherine Milliken
involves the audience in an interactive performance process of her
piece, while the classical symphony tradition is represented by Elis Hallik and her new composition Phos.
The word originates from Greek and refers to the physical and
metaphorical nature of light. The symphony carries a deeper message and
interprets the All Hallows season through light and sounds. The original
text for the new piece by Monika Mattiesen, Ariadne aus Neanderthal,
was written by Hasso Krull. The installation-based hybrid instrument
required for performing the work was created in collaboration with
artist Raul Keller, Sten Saarits and instrument maker and designer
Leopold Inkapööl. Hannah Weirich, Carl Rosman, Marco Blaauw, and Benjamin Kobler, members of the Musikfabrik group, and actor Mait Malmsten, are performing the solos.
MAIT MALMSTEN narrator
Ensemble Musikfabrik
TAMMO SUMERA electronics
ERSO
Conductor CLEMENT POWER
at 6 p.m.
Pre-concert conversation panel with Joonas Hellerma and Mihhail Gerts
at 7 p.m.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 1
Eduard Tubin
Violin Concerto No. 1
Eduard Tubin
Symphony No. 1
Conductor MIHHAIL GERTS
The series is sponsored by Nordic Catering
Heino Eller
Homeland Tune
Peeter Vähi
Blue Collage (premiere)
Artur Lemba
Piano Concerto No. 2 in E minor
Sergei Bortkiewicz
Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat major, Op. 16
The first concert in the ‘Romance’ series brings conductor Neeme Järvi together with his long-time musical partners on the stage of the Estonia Concert Hall: Triin Ruubel on violin, Indrek Leivategija on cello, and Anna Shelest on piano. Ruubel and Leivategija will perform the solos of Peeter Vähi’s Blue Collage. The concert programme includes Piano Concerto No. 2 by Artur Lemba, one of the brightest pianists in Estonian music history. Lemba’s works are characterised by a combination of classical and romantic styles and a lyrical sound.
The programme also includes Piano Concerto No. 1 by Sergei Bortkiewicz, a Romantic composer of Ukrainian descent. His compositions are heavily influenced by the music of Liszt, Chopin, Tchaikovsky, and other nineteenth-century greats. Anna Shelest, the soloist for the piano concerti, is an artist with numerous international accolades, who has enchanted audiences across the world. The New York Times has described her as a pianist of ‘a fiery sensibility and warm touch.’
TRIIN RUUBEL violin
INDREK LEIVATEGIJA cello
ANNA SHELEST klaver
ERSO, conductor NEEME JÄRVI
The series is sponsored by Nordaid
Toivo Tulev
Fireflies vanish, there is nothing more (premiere)
Johannes Brahms
Piano Concerto No. 1 in D minor, Op. 15
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67
The second concert of the ‘Pure Gold’ series takes place in October and is conducted by Olari Elts. The central piece of the evening is Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5, undoubtedly one of the most well-known pieces of classical music and one of the most popular symphonies on the world stages. A new composition by Estonian composer Toivo Tulev will open the concert.
Pianist Alexander Melnikov will perform Piano Concerto No. 1 by Johannes Brahms. Melnikov, who is known for his frequent unusual decisions regarding musical choices and playlists, is characterised by his fascination with historically informed performance practices. He performs often with well-known orchestras and is also an active chamber musician. His long-term stage partner is violinist Isabelle Faust, who is also going to solo with ERSO this season. Piano Concerto No. 1 by Brahms is one of the most emotionally charged concertos after Beethoven. It seemed too serious for the contemporary audience of the composer, but today, it is highly valued in concert repertoires.
ALEXANDER MELNIKOV piano
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Artur Kapp
Hiiob
In Estonian sacred music, three oratorial works stand as mountain peaks among the others: “Des Jona Sendung” by Rudolf Tobias, “Estonian Requiem” by Cyrillus Kreek and oratorio “Hiiob” (1929) by Artur Kapp, the premiere of which in 1931 became a major event in Estonian musical life. After the break of 27 years, this impressively large composition will be brought back to the audience by maestro Neeme Järvi.
TUURI DEDE mezzo-soprano
TAMAR NUGIS baritone
RAIKO RAALIK bass
AIN ANGER bass
girls' choir Ellerhein
State Choir LATVIJA
Estonian National Male Choir
ERSO
conductor NEEME JÄRVI
The series is sponsored by Liviko
Elis Hallik
Aegis
Edward Elgar
Cello Concerto in E minor, Op. 85
Jean Sibelius
Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43
‘Cello Concerto’, the new concert series of ERSO, begins in September with Edward Elgar’s Cello Concerto, where the orchestra is conducted by Kristiina Poska and German cellist Alban Gerhardt is performing the solos. Gerhardt’s career launched in 1991, when he soloed with the Berlin Philharmonic. Since then, he has been considered one of the most versatile cellists in the world, characterised by technical mastery, deep musicality, and never-ending artistic curiosity. Gerhardt plays a cello made by Matteo Gofriller in 1710.
The concert opens with Elis Hallik’s Aegis, which is dedicated to the centenary of the Republic of Estonia and carries the idea of a protective shield. The second half of the evening is devoted to Symphony No. 2 by Jean Sibelius. The symphony composed in Italy is a synthesis of classical lightness and romantic sensibilities and constitutes a crossroad in the musical development of Sibelius.
ALBAN GERHARDT cello
ERSO
conductor KRISTIINA POSKA
The series is sponsored by Nordaid
Erkki-Sven Tüür
Melting Bells
Ester Mägi
Church Bell (arranged by Rasmus Puur)
Erich Wolfgang Korngold
Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 35
Hector Berlioz
Symphonie Fantastique, Op. 14
The opening concert of the 98th season of ERSO is dedicated to a recurring theme of the sound of bells in its various forms and meanings. ERSO’s chief conductor Olari Elts is directing the concert. Composer Erkki-Sven Tüür will create a new piece especially for this evening. Rasmus Puur’s arrangement of Ester Mägi’s Church Bell, a song written for a male choir, is also going to represent Estonian music. The concert is named after Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique. The symphony, which was considered revolutionary in the 1830s due to its novel sound, has become a true classic for modern symphony orchestras.
Bomsori Kim, a South Korean violinist with a high-flying career, will be the soloist of the concert. She has won numerous reputable violin competitions and is an artist of Deutsche Grammophon as well as a frequent guest performer on the most prestigious stages of the world. She will be the soloist for the Violin Concerto by musical prodigy Erich Wolfgang Korngold, which has been performed by ERSO only twice before.
BOMSORI KIM violin
ERSO
conductor OLARI ELTS
Kenn-Eerik Kannike (from the album ‘Computations’) / arranger Karl Tipp
Computations
Vamos
Jurop
Simulation
Steam
Decay
In August, ERSO will visit the HALL club for the third time. This time, it is a joint event organised by ERSO, HALL, and the unda festival. The concert programme is created in close cooperation with the resident artists of the club.
unda festival takes place in September in the European Capital of Culture Tartu. The festival explores the links between club culture, music, dance, and anthropology. unda also explores the broader intertwining of club culture with other fields, thus being a fruitful ground for cooperation with ERSO.
Kenn-Eerik Kannike
Nina Kawaguchi (violin)
Helena Altmanis (viola)
Theodor Sink (cello)
Linda Vood (flute)
Meelis Vind (clarinet)
Johannes Kiik (trombone)
Lauri Metsvahi (percussion)
The concert series Maestro is supported by EPIIM
Carl Maria von Weber
Turandot Overture and March
Paul Hindemith
Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber
Wilhelm Furtwängler
Symphony No. 2 in E minor
Neeme Järvi, Honorary Artistic Director for Life of ERSO, will be joining the orchestra in May. Järvi’s collaboration with ERSO began in 1956. Four years later, Järvi was named the conductor in residence of the orchestra, and in 1963, its chief conductor. His second term as chief conductor ended in 2020, but both the orchestra and the public happily look forward to his return to the podium every year. This time, the programme will feature works by Wilhelm Furtwängler and Paul Hindemith.
Furtwängler, who is considered one of the best conductors of the 20th century, is considerably less well-known as a composer. He has written three symphonies, of which his Symphony in E minor with ERSO is an extensive four-movement work in the late Romantic style. In 1930, Furtwängler expressed support for Hindemith, performing the works of the latter even after they had been banned in Germany by the Nazis. Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamorphoses ties a third German composer, Carl Maria von Weber, on whose Turandot themes the work is based, with the programme. The composition was originally conceived as a ballet, although it was completed in the United States in 1943 as a four-part orchestral work.
ERSO
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
The concert series Romance is supported by Nordic Catering
Rasmus Puur
Symphony (premiere)
Robert Schumann
Concertpiece for Four Horns and Orchestra, Op. 86
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Op. 98
The Romance series will end in May and the orchestra will be led again by Chief Conductor Olari Elts. The concert will feature an exceptional line-up of soloists, four young Estonian horn players Paula Ernesaks, Kairi Sosi, Eliise Kannukene and Kreete Jacob, all with prominent careers ahead of them in Estonia and abroad. Paula Ernesaks joined the Berliner Philharmoniker as a member of its horn section in the spring of 2022.
Robert Schumann’s Concertpiece for Four Horns and Orchestra, featuring horn solos, will be performed. The second half of the concert will feature a performance of Johannes Brahms’s Symphony No. 4, which is the longest of his symphonies and a good summary of his entire symphonic output. The evening will begin with the premiere of Rasmus Puur’s Symphony No. 1.
PAULA ERNESAKS horn
KAIRI SOSI horn
ELIISE KANNUKENE horn
KREETE JACOB horn
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Margo Kõlar
…Only One Word…
Liisa Hõbepappel
And now it is still now
Age Veeroos
New piece for cello and orchestra
Linda Leimane
Enantiomorphic Chambers
Justina Repečkaitė
Vellum
Marius Baranauskas
Supernova
One of the highlights of the Estonian Music Days is the concert of the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra (ERSO).
This season, Estonian Music Days and ERSO will introduce new
compositions from Estonia and other Baltic countries. The concert will
be conducted by the British conductor Clement Power, who is well known
as an interpreter of new music. The “LHV New Composition Award 2024”
will be presented at the concert.
VALLE-RASMUS ROOTS cello
ERSO
Conductor CLEMENT POWER
The concert series Amadeus is supported by RADISSON COLLECTION HOTEL, TALLINN
Felix Mendelssohn
Overture The Hebrides, Op. 26
Robert Schumann
Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 36 in C major, K. 425
In 2021, Misora Ozaki was awarded the third prize and the ERSO Special Prize at the 2021 Tallinn International Piano Competition. This season, we are welcoming the young pianist back to Tallinn. Our own young conductor, Henri Christofer Aavik, will be conducting one of the most romantic piano concertos, Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor.
Aavik has recently earned attention in Europe by winning the first prize in the Jorma Panula Conducting Competition and the second prize in the Yevgeny Svetlanov International Conducting Competition. In fact, the young conductor has called Neeme Järvi, a long-time ERSO Chief Conductor, one of the most important role models in his conducting career. ERSO will also be performing Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Symphony No. 36 and the overture The Hebrides by another musical child prodigy Felix Mendelssohn.
MISORA OZAKI piano
ERSO
Conductor HENRI CHRISTOFER AAVIK
The concert series Romance is supported by Nordic Catering
Richard Strauss
Symphonic poem Don Juan
Paul Hindemith
Three Songs, Op. 9
Richard Wagner
‘Dawn and Siegfried’s Rhein Journey’ from the opera Twilight of the Gods
Richard Wagner
‘Funeral March’ from the opera Twilight of the Gods
Richard Wagner
‘Build me a sturdy funeral pyre’ from the opera Twilight of the Gods
In March, ERSO, Olari Elts, and soprano Aile Asszonyi will meet on the stage of the Estonia Concert Hall to perform an operatic concert programme. The programme will feature excerpts from Richard Wagner’s last opera Twilight of the Gods part of the tetralogy The Ring of the Nibelung. The works of Richard Strauss and Paul Hindemith will also be played.
This year, soloist Aile Asszonyi made her historic debut at the Frankfurt Opera, taking the stage in the title role in Elektra by Richard Strauss. This is one of the most compelling roles ever performed by an Estonian singer in a top European opera house. Asszonyi’s dramatic soprano is particularly well-suited to major roles in the operas of Wagner and Strauss. This evening, however, we will be hearing a performance of Strauss’s symphonic poem Don Juan.
AILE ASSZONYI soprano
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Manuel de Falla
Suite No. 2 from the ballet El Sombrero des Tres Picos
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 20 in D minor, K.466
Maurice Ravel
Rapsodie espagnole
Claude Debussy
Three symphonic sketches La Mer
In 2022, Canadian pianist Angela Hewitt gave a very successful solo concert in the Estonia Concert Hall, which included the works of Johann Sebastian Bach. Hewitt is dedicated in particular to the interpretation of the music of Bach and in this respect, she is considered the heir to her famous compatriot, Glenn Gould. In March 2024, Hewitt will be back in Estonia and she will perform Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 20 with ERSO.
As with the previous concert in the Piano Concerto series, this evening we will also be hearing a work by Manuel de Falla, more specifically, a suite from his ballet El Sombrero des Tres Picos. The second half of the concert will continue with the theme of Spain, with a performance of Maurice Ravel’s Rapsodie espagnole. The concert will be directed by French conductor Pierre Bleuse, who is the chief conductor of the Odense Symphony Orchestra and, from the 2023/24 season, the music director of the renowned contemporary music ensemble intercontemporain.
ANGELA HEWITT piano
ERSO
Conductor PIERRE BLEUSE
6 p.m. – pre-concert event
Carl Reinecke
Trio for oboe, horn and piano, Op. 188 I and II movement
Performers Guido Gualandi, Jürnas Rähni and Kärt Ruubel
Musicologist Anu Veenre speaks about the concert programme
7 p.m. – symphony concert
Ludwig van Beethoven
Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72b
Carl Reinecke
Flute Concerto in D major Op. 283
Robert Schumann
Symphony No. 4 in D minor, Op. 120
Jasmine Choi, the soloist of the third concert of the Pure Gold series, is one of the most acclaimed flutists of her generation, performing a repertoire ranging from classical to pop music. In addition to her orchestral work with the Vienna Symphony and the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, she has performed as a soloist with countless other orchestras. Together with ERSO, she will be performing Carl Reinecke’s Flute Concerto.
The concert will be conducted by Holly Hyun Choe, who has assisted Paavo Järvi in the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich in the recent seasons. She will conduct the third overture to Ludwig van Beethoven’s opera Leonore and Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 4. The work is the last in order, but the first symphony composed by Schumann.
JASMINE CHOI flute
ERSO
Conductor HOLLY HYUN CHOE
Kaija Saariaho
Six Japanese Gardens
Florent Ghys
Petits Artéfacts
Missy Mazzoli
Vespers for Violin
Tōru Takemitsu
Rain Tree
In February, ERSO ensembles are once again inviting the audience to the international photography museum Fotografiska. In the museum filled with photography, music and visual arts will meet for the evening. The length of the concert is one hour.
VAMBOLA KRIGUL percussion
THEODOR SINK cello
NINA KAWAGUCHI violin
Arvo Pärt
Swansong
Benjamin Britten
Violin Concerto, Op. 15
Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 6 in A minor
In February, long-time chief conductor of the orchestra, Arvo Volmer will once again perform with ERSO. Volmer, concert soloist violinist Benjamin Beilman, and ERSO have met on stage before when they performed together on a concert tour in the United States in 2018. Beilman will be visiting Estonia for the first time and the concert will feature an excerpt of Benjamin Britten’s Violin Concerto. Beilman has earned international acclaim for his passionate performances and deep, rich tone.
One of the keywords for ERSO’s 2023/24 season is Gustav Mahler’s symphonies, and one of them, No. 6, will also be presented during this concert. The symphony, also known as Tragic, is a large-scale work composed for a large orchestral ensemble. However, the first movement of the symphony contains one of Mahler’s most romantic themes, named after his wife Alma. The opening work of the concert is Arvo Pärt’s Swansong, which is an orchestral version of his work Littlemore Tractus, composed in 2000 for choir and organ.
BENJAMIN BEILMAN violin
ERSO
Conductor ARVO VOLMER
The concert series Amadeus is supported by RADISSON COLLECTION HOTEL TALLINN
Fanny Mendelssohn
Overture in C major
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Violin Concerto No. 5 in A major, K. 219
Franz Schubert
Symphony No. 4 in C major, D 417
Acclaimed chamber musician, soloist, and concertmaster Florian Donderer will be performing with ERSO at the third concert of the Amadeus series. He is well known to local audiences as the concertmaster of the Estonian Festival Orchestra and first violin of the outstanding Signum Quartet. The Signum Quartet is one of the most adventurous and outstanding string quartets in the music world today.
For the ERSO concert, Florian Donderer has selected for the programme Violin Concerto No. 5 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. All of Mozart’s violin concertos were written over a short period of time in Salzburg, with the fifth, the Concerto in A major, a youthfully fresh and sincere work, being the last one. Alongside Mozart, Donderer has selected works by Fanny Mendelssohn and Franz Schubert. Fanny was a talented pianist and composer who was overshadowed as a musician by her brother, Felix Mendelssohn. From Schubert’s repertoire, we will be hearing the Symphony No. 4, subtitled Tragic, the most serious of his first six symphonies, reminiscent of the musical compositions of the Sturm und Drang period.
The concert series Piano Concerto is supported by LIVIKO
6 p.m. – pre-concert
Liina Sumera
Conatus
A conversation between Guido Gualandi, Bas Wiegers and Liina Sumera.
7 p.m. – symphony concert
Liina Sumera
Chimera
Manuel de Falla
Nights in the Gardens of Spain
Igor Stravinsky
The Rite of Spring
Dutch conductor Bas Wiegers performs often with ERSO and their collaboration began in 2016, at the Eight Bridges Festival, in Cologne. Since the 2022/23 season, the charismatic conductor works with the Munich Chamber Orchestra and appears regularly as a guest conductor for various orchestras around the world. The last time when Wiegers performed with ERSO was in April 2022 when Triin Ruubel gave a solo performance of Tôru Takemitsu’s work Nostalghia.
This time, the person to share the stage with Wiegers and ERSO is the pianist Age Juurikas, who will be performing Manuel de Falla’s work Nights in the Gardens of Spain. De Falla is deemed one of Spain’s most important composers and he has influenced musicians across Europe. Before his time, Spanish music and folk traditions were virtually unknown outside the Iberian Peninsula. The concert will also feature Igor Stravinsky’s legendary work The Rite of Spring and Liina Sumera’s new piece, written especially for this concert.
Conductor Giordano Bellincampi will be returning to Estonia in January. The music director of the Auckland Philharmonic Orchestra will perform with ERSO for the fourth time This time, the programme features works by German composers. The concert will begin with the overture from Carl Maria von Weber’s opera Euryanthe, which, despite the failure of the opera itself, has remained a popular work in the concert repertoire. The second half will feature a performance of Richard Strauss’s musical autobiography Ein Heldenleben (A Hero’s Life).
Last time, in 2022, the young Italian pianist Leonardo Colafelice was set to perform with ERSO together with Bellincampi, but circumstances forced him to find a new soloist. This season, we look forward to the return of the talented artist and the programme includes a performance of Ludwig van Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3.
Carl Maria von Weber
Overture to the opera Euryanthe
Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37
Richard Strauss
Symphonic poem Ein Heldenleben (A Hero’s Life) Op. 40
LEONARDO COLAFELICE piano
ERSO
Conductor GIORDANO BELLINCAMPI
For the second year in a row, we will open Christmas celebrations with an ERSO concert. This year’s Christmas concert will once again be inspired by the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart with a focus on vocal music. ERSO will be joined by two bright young singers: soprano Mirjam Mesak, who is pursuing a career as a soloist with the Bavarian State Opera, and mezzo-soprano Sandra Laagus, who is at the beginning of her career as a singer, but has already distinguished herself as a mature artist.
The concert will feature excerpts from Mozart’s operas, as well as two of his symphonies – No. 31 and No. 32. In keeping with the festive season, we will also hear Suite de Noels by French composer François-Joseph Gossec. The programme also includes the work of Louise Farrenc, the first and only woman in the 19th century to become a professor at the Paris Conservatory.
François-Joseph Gossec
Suite de Noels
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
‘Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben’ from the opera Zaide, K. 344
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 32 in G major, K. 318
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Exsultate, jubilate, K. 165
Louise Farrenc
Overture No. 2, Op. 24
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
‘L’amerò, sarò costante’ from the opera Il re pastore, KV 208
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 31, Paris Symphony, in D major, K. 297/300a
MIRJAM MESAK soprano
SANDRA LAAGUS mezzo-soprano
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
British Conductor Jonathan Bloxham will be performing with ERSO for the third time and has invited the trumpet player from the Berliner Philharmoniker to perform as a soloist. Having begun his career as a cellist, Bloxham has already conducted prestigious orchestras in Europe and Asia. The ERSO concert will feature an excerpt from Henry Purcell’s Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary, which the composer wrote for the funeral of Queen Mary II. We will also hear the Coriolan Overture, written by Ludwig van Beethoven for Heinrich Joseph von Collin’s tragedy, and Franz Schubert’s final, expansive Symphony No. 9.
Joseph Haydn’s popular trumpet concerto will be performed by Andre Schoch, who has been a member of the trumpet group in the Berliner Philharmoniker. In addition to his work in the orchestra, he instructs young musicians at the University of Mannheim and the Karajan Academy, plays chamber music, and performs as a soloist.
Henry Purcell
March from the work Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary
Ludwig van Beethoven
Overture Coriolanus, Op. 62
Joseph Haydn
Trumpet Concerto in E flat Major, Hob. VIIe/1
Franz Schubert
Symphony No. 9 in C major, D 944
ANDRE SCHOCH trumpet
ERSO
Conductor JONATHAN BLOXHAM
The Pure Gold series, which debuted last year, is back again to bring us works from the treasures of classical music. The series will open with the concert Scottish Fantasy featuring the exciting soloist, bagpiper Robert Jordan. He will also perform An Orkney Wedding, with Sunrise by Peter Maxwell Davies. Jordan is one of the most sought-after bagpipers in the UK, having performed with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra, and many other ensembles.
We will hear Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 3, known as the Scottish symphony. Malcolm Arnold’s Tam O’Shanter overture, a piece of programme music, is based on a poem of the same name by the Scottish writer Robert Burns and tells the story of an alcoholic farmer. In Max Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy for violin and orchestra, we hear Scottish folk tunes featuring a solo by Canadian violinist Lara St. John.
Malcolm Arnold
Overture Tam O’Shanter, Op. 51
Max Bruch
Scottish Fantasy, Op. 46
Felix Mendelssohn
Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 56
Peter Maxwell Davies
An Orkney Wedding, with Sunrise
LARA ST. JOHN violin
ROBERT JORDAN bagpipes
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
In November, two British musicians will be performing with ERSO – conductor Martyn Brabbins and soprano Elizabeth Llewellyn. Brabbins is the music director of the English National Opera and a lecturer of conducting at the Royal College of Music and the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He has had a long career as an opera conductor and has also conducted hundreds of new works by British composers around the world.
The highlights of Elizabeth Llewellyin’s 2022/23 concert season included the title role in Richard Strauss’s opera Ariadne Naxosel at the Leeds Grand Theatre & Opera House and Strauss’s cycle Four Last Songs as performed by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. The latter will also be performed during the autumn concert with ERSO. Brabbins will also direct Jean Sibelius’s Kalevala-based symphonic poem Tapiola and Symphony No. 5 by British composer Ralph Vaughan Williams.
Jean Sibelius
Symphonic poem Tapiola, Op. 112
Richard Strauss
Four Last Songs
Ralph Vaughan Williams
Symphony No. 5 in D major
ELIZABETH LLEWELLYN soprano
ERSO
Conductor MARTYN BRABBINS
The Piano Concerto series will begin in November, under the direction of Olari Elts, combining the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Japanese composers Tōru Takemitsu and Toshio Hosokawa. The concert begins with Takemitsu’s work Tree Line and ends with Mozart’s Symphony No. 39, which is one of the composers last three works in this genre.
The soloist for Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 will be Kalle Randalu. Randsalu recently performed all of Beethoven’s piano concertos with ERSO, but it is in fact Mozart whose music he has recorded and released on albums the most. ‘I have loved Mozart my whole life and when possible, I play his works again and again. He is the greatest gift, and not just for pianists, but for music lovers in general,’ Randalu told the Postimees in an interview. Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 is tied with another work to be performed by Randalu, Toshio Hosokawa’s Lotus Under the Moonlight, which is a homage to the beloved composer.
Tōru Takemitsu
Tree Line
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K. 488
Toshio Hosokawa
Lotus Under the Moonlight (Hommage à Mozart)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 39 in E flat, K. 543
KALLE RANDALU piano
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
In November, Scottish composer and conductor James MacMillan will come to Estonia. Last year, he ranked 10th on the list of most performed living composers on Bachtrack. The concert programme was put together with the season of All Souls in mind. In addition to his own fifth symphony, MacMillan has selected works by Arvo Pärt and Benjamin Britten for the ERSO concert programme.
MacMillan’s sound is influenced by his Scottish heritage, his Catholicism, his social sensitivity, and his close connection with Celtic folk music. Similar to Pärt, religion plays an important role in MacMillan’s work. In his fifth symphony, subtitled Le grand Inconnu, his music attempts to explore the mystery of the Holy Spirit. In the choral part of the work, Macmillan has used sacral texts in English, Latin, Ancient Greek, and Hebrew, which will be presented at this concert by Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir and Vox Clamantis.
6 p.m. – pre-concert event
James MacMillan
Two motets from the collection Strathclyde Motets
O Radiant Dawn
Factus Est Repente
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, conductor James MacMillan
Märt-Matis Lill speaks with James Macmillan
7 p.m. – symphony concertArvo Pärt
La Sindone
Benjamin Britten
Sinfonia da Requiem, Op 20
James MacMillan
Symphony No. 5 Le grand Inconnu
ANDREA LAUREN BROWN
soprano
KIM PORTER alto
DANILA FRANTOU tenor
ALVAR TIISLER bass
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
Vox Clamantis
ERSO
Conductor
JAMES MACMILLAN
In October, ERSO’s ensembles will perform at Paavli Cultural Factory, which opened its doors this spring. In a concert venue located in the territory of a former fishing industry in Northern Tallinn, we immerse ourselves in the industrial soundscapes.
Elis Hallik
Tuning the Iron
Steve Reich
New York Counterpoint
TAAVI ORRO clarinet
Jacob TV
String Quartet No. 2 Postnuclear Winterscenario
KRISTEL KIIK violin, MAAREN VIHERMÄE violin, MAIRIT MITT-BRONIKOWSKA viola, VILLU VIHERMÄE cello
Missy Mazzoli
A Thousand Tongues
THEODOR SINK cello
Mokale Koapeng
Komeng
KRISTEL KIIK violin, MAAREN VIHERMÄE violin, MAIRIT MITT-BRONIKOWSKA viola, VILLU VIHERMÄE cello
Njabulo Phungula
Abyss
September will see concert audiences being treated to two masterpieces by Gustav Mahler. A few weeks after the performance of Symphony no 8, almost the same ensemble will take to the stage with the colossal “Resurrection Symphony” which will be conducted by Neeme Järvi. Mahler has shaped an ecstatic vision of the eternity of human life into one of the most powerful pieces in the history of music to be experienced in a concert hall.
Symphony No. 2 in C minor (“Resurrection Symphony”)
MIRJAM MESAK soprano
TUURI DEDE mezzo-soprano
State Choir LATVIJA
ERSO
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
This year, the AFEKT festival focuses on the idea of a border state both geographically and as an expression of ideas refined to an extreme in music. Next to the works of Galina Ustvolskaya, who is testing the limits of avant-garde music, and György Ligeti, who is celebrating his 100th birthday, the works of Jānis Petraškevičs, the most internationally recognized Latvian of his generation, and Jüri Reinvere, the essayist and world composer, will be performed. Monika Mattiesen, the artistic director of the AFEKT festival, is the soloist of the premiere of Reinvere’s flute concerto.
Jüri Reinvere has written about his work: “Writing a large flute concerto for Monika Mattiesen is the fruit of our long collaboration and one of the biggest undertakings among my works written for flute. Although the flute is a very delicate instrument, I believe in the very dynamic power of expression of this instrument, and I wanted to express it in this concert as well, by contrasting a large orchestra and a solo instrument.” As a tribute to the recently departed great figure of modern music, the Finnish composer Kaija Saariaho, her work Ciel d’hiver will be performed. The concert will be conducted by renowned contemporary music conductor Michael Wendeberg, who has, among other things, been the pianist of the new music flagship Ensemble intercontemporain and collaborated with Pierre Boulez.
Jüri Reinvere
Flute Concerto (premiere)
György Ligeti
Lontano
Kaija Saariaho
Ciel d’hiver
Jānis Petraškevičs
Dead Wind
Galina Ustvolskaya
Symphony No. 3
MONIKA MATTIESEN flute
ERSO
Conductor MICHAEL WENDEBERG
The Maestro series will start in October, under the direction of Conductor Gilbert Varga, whose previous performance with ERSO achieved great success in February 2022. Varga’s strengths include his elegant conducting technique and a deep sense of dynamics and texture, which allows him to bring out the most subtle nuances in the orchestra. This time, the audience will have a rare opportunity to hear, under Varga’s direction, Arnold Schönberg’s Verklärte Nacht as originally composed for string sextet.
The soloist of the concert will be British viola player Lawrence Power, who will be performing Béla Bartók’s Viola Concerto. Power is one of the most admired violists in the world today, having performed with a formidable list of orchestras, conductors, and chamber musicians. He is admired for his rich tone and technical mastery. Power is also passionate about contemporary music, having performed many new compositions by contemporary composers, including Erkki-Sven Tüür.
Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 4 in D major, Hob. I/4
Esa-Pekka Salonen
Pentatonic Étude
Béla Bartók
Viola concerto, Sz. 120
Arnold Schönberg
Verklärte Nacht, Op. 4
LAWRENCE POWER viola
ERSO
Conductor GILBERT VARGA
The concert series Amadeus is supported by RADISSON COLLECTION HOTEL TALLINN
ERSO’s new concert series Amadeus will begin with the opening concert of ERSO’s 97th season. This brand-new concert series is a homage to the works of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The evening will be opened by Tõnu Kõrvits’s new work for brass orchestra and percussion instruments. The two movements of the work each open one half of the concert, serving as an introduction to the classical repertoire.
Mozart’s last and most complex symphony, Symphony No. 41, also known as Jupiter, will be performed at this concert. The soloist of the concert will be the young and outstanding Estonian violinist Hans Christian Aavik, who also worked with the ERSO last season. At the Christmas concert in 2022, he performed Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 2, and this time, he will be performing an excerpt from another Viennese classic, Ludwig van Beethoven’s Violin Concerto, the first monumental work in its genre and the forerunner for later Romantic violin concertos.
Tõnu Kõrvits
Tuultele (premiere)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Violin Concerto in D major, Op 61
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 41 in C major K. 551
HANS CHRISTIAN AAVIK violin
ERSO
Conductor OLARI ELTS
This year, the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra will close the Odessa Classics Tallinn festival. The main focus of the concert program is on the music of Estonian composers. Through the works of Tobias, Pärt and Sumera, three generations of Estonian music is represented this evening. However, in the performance of pianist Alexey Botvinov, we hear Sergei Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto, a piece that ERSO has recently performed on a concert tour in England.
In June 2015, the Odessa Classics music festival was held in Odessa, Ukraine for the first time. Its founder, pianist Alexey Botvinov’s mission was to create a festival that would help Ukraine move closer to Europe and resist Russian-initiated military aggression. Odessa Classics has been associated with Estonia since its first days, through our musicians, festival guests and supporters. In order not to break the tradition of the festival, Odessa Classics found a temporary home in Estonia and is called Odessa Classics Tallinn.
Arvo Pärt
Swansong
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor Op. 18
Rudolf Tobias
Crow’s War Message
Lepo Sumera
Symphony No. 1
ALEXEY BOTVINOV piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Maestro Neeme Järvi, ERSO’s Honorary Artistic Director for Life
contrasts piano works by Cécile Chaminade and Clara Schumann with Mihkel
Lüdig’s midsummer-inspired symphonic poem and Francis Poulenc’s
concerto for two pianos. Soloists of the concert are Ukrainian pianists
Anna and Dmitri Shelest, whose first collaboration with ERSO and
conductor Neeme Järvi dates back many years.
Cécile Chaminade
Konzertstück for piano and orchestra Op. 40
Clara Schumann
Piano Concerto in A minor Op. 7
Mihkel Lüdig
Symphonic scene Midsummer Night
Francis Poulenc
Concerto for Two Pianos in D minor FP 61
ANNA SHELEST piano
DMITRI SHELEST piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
Paavo Järvi is one of the most outstanding conductors of our time. Järvi is currently the chief conductor of the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich and the artistic director of the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen. He is also the artistic director of the Estonian Festival Orchestra, the honorary conductor of the NHK Symphony Orchestra, and the artistic adviser to ERSO. As a popular guest conductor, he works with orchestras such as the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and New York Philharmonic.
Acclaimed violinist, ensemble performer and concertmaster Triin Ruubel has performed as a soloist with orchestras in Estonia, Europe, and America. She has been the leader of ERSO since 2015 and has performed as a soloist with the orchestra several times. Ruubel also performs with many chamber ensembles with Estonian and foreign musicians and works as a lecturer at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre.
Edward Elgar
Violin Concerto
César Franck
Symphony in D minor
TRIIN RUUBEL violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor PAAVO JÄRVI
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
VAMBOLA KRIGUL percussion
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor NORMUNDS ŠNEE
In March, Tähe-Lee Liiv, a young pianist who has won numerous competitions, will perform Piano Concerto by Edvard Grieg with ERSO. The concert will be conducted by Brazilian conductor Simone Menezes, a musician with a creative and innovative approach who brilliantly combines classical and contemporary works. Her long-term mentor has been Paavo Järvi, at whose invitation she has participated in the Pärnu Music Festival and collaborated with the German Chamber Philharmonic in Bremen (Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen).
For the first time ever, ERSO will play Lili Boulanger – they will perform Of a Sad Evening, originally created for a piano trio. The suite Bachianas Brasileiras No. 7 by the Brazilian composer Heitor Villa-Lobos combines the complexity of Johann Sebastian Bach with the intonations of Brazilian music.
Maurice Ravel
La valse ~13′
Edvard Grieg
Piano Concerto in A minor ~30′
Lili Boulanger
Of a Sad Evening (arr. Camille Pépin) ~12′
Heitor Villa-Lobos
Bachianas Brasileiras No. 7 ~25′
TÄHE-LEE LIIV piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor SIMONE MENEZES
This week, ERSO will be joined by British conductor Matthew Halls who is known for the versatility of his repertoire and the expert performance of music from different eras. As an intelligent and dynamic musician, he is a welcome guest for many orchestras around the world. With ERSO, he will perform the overture to the opera The Lonely Island, written by Joseph Haydn for the Esterházy court, as well as Symphony No. 1 by Anton Bruckner and Haydn’s concerto for cello.
Joseph Haydn
Overture to the opera The Lonely Island ~8′
Joseph Haydn
Cello Concerto No. 1 ~24′
Anton Bruckner
Symphony No. 1 ~50′
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
MAXIMILIAN HORNUNG cello
Conductor MATTHEW HALLS
ERSO is once again performing a concert dedicated to baroque music. The programme includes works by the father and sons Johann Sebastian, Carl Philipp Emanuel, Johann Christian, and Wilhelm Friedemann Bach. Symphony No. 38 by Joseph Haydn from his early creative period and Symphony No. 4 by the lesser-known composer Henri-Joseph Rigel will also be performed.
The concert will be conducted by Rinaldo Alessandrini, an Italian conductor and keyboardist who is a highly regarded interpreter of baroque music. In 1984, he founded the early music ensemble Concerto Italiano, with whom he has performed in concert halls and festivals around the world for nearly 40 years. Alessandrini is also an acclaimed specialist in early Italian opera: he has performed the entire opera cycle by Monteverdi with his ensemble and director Robert Wilson at La Scala in Milan and at Opéra Garnier in Paris.
Johann Sebastian Bach
Sinfonia to cantata BWV 52 False world, I trust you not
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach
Symphony in F major Wq 183/3
Johann Christian Bach
Symphony in G minor op. 6 No. 6
Wilhelm Friedemann Bach
Sinfonia in D minor F 65
Joseph Haydn
Symphony No. 38 in C major
Henri-Joseph Rigel
Symphony No. 4 in C minor
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor RINALDO ALESSANDRINI
German conductor Jun Märkl has performed with ERSO several times and has won over the local audience. According to Märkli, who studied in Germany and the USA, it is not possible to teach conducting, but it is possible to learn it. He has always focused on German music: Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, and Wagner, but working as the principal conductor of the Orchestre National de Lyon introduced him to French composers, in particular Debussy and Saint-Saëns.
The concert programme includes The Blue Danube by Johann Strauss Jr and Symphony No. 3 by Johannes Brahms. Sten Heinoja, one of the most promising pianists of the younger generation in Estonia, will take the stage as the soloist for Piano Concerto No. 23 by Mozart.
Johann Strauss Jr
The Blue Danube
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 23 K. 488
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No. 3
STEN HEINOJA piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor JUN MÄRKL
On 23 December, ERSO and conductor Olari Elts will set the Christmas mood by performing the best hits of classical music. The programme includes the works by father and son, Leopold and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The overture to the singspiel The Impresario by W. A. Mozart will be performed, which premiered in 1786 with the Italian comic short opera by Antonio Salieri. Interestingly, the latter was more popular at the time. ERSO and Elts will also perform Symphony No. 35 by W. A. Mozart, which is considered the first truly mature symphony by the composer in which he achieved symphonic integrity. The programme also includes the divertimento Musical Sleigh Ride by Leopold Mozart.
Hans Christian Aavik, a young and prominent violinist who won the first prize at the prestigious Carl Nielsen Competition in Denmark this spring, will solo in Violin Concerto No. 2 by W. A. Mozart. Aavik has been studying in Frankfurt, Germany since 2017 (Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Frankfurt am Main) and has been studying in Vienna, Austria since 2021 (Musik und Kunst Privatuniversität der Stadt Wien). Hans Christian Aavik plays on a Giovanni Paolo Maggini violin (made in about 1610 in Brescia, Italy) and a bow made by Victor Fétique (made in about 1930 in France) with the permission of the Estonian Foundation of Musical Instruments and the Sapožnin family.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Overture to the opera The Impresario
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Violin Concerto No. 2
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 35 Haffner
Leopold Mozart
Musical Sleigh Ride
HANS CHRISTIAN AAVIK violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
In this November, pianist Yekwon Sunwoo will perform for the first time with ERSO. The audience will hear the well-known second piano concerto by Sergei Rachmaninoff. In 2017, Sunwoo won the Van Cliburn International Piano Competition as the first pianist from South Korea. He is a capable and virtuoso artist who in his own words, “strives to reach for the truth and pure beauty in music”. Since winning the Van Cliburn Competition, Yekwon Sunwoo has performed with prestigious orchestras around the world.
Joseph Bastian, a conductor with French–Swiss roots who won the Neeme Järvi Prize in 2016 will be conducting the performance. They will perform the symphonic poem Death and Transfiguration by Richard Strauss and Forgotten Offerings by Olivier Messiaen, one of the most influential composers of the twentieth century.
Olivier Messiaen
Forgotten Offerings
Sergei Rachmaninoff
Piano Concerto No. 2
Richard Strauss
Symphonic Poem Death and Transfiguration
YEKWON SUNWOO piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor JOSEPH BASTIAN
Description
Arvo Volmer, the former principal conductor of ERSO, will perform with ERSO Symphony No. 11, the last (unfinished) symphony by Tubin, and Symphony No. 2 by Brahms. Prominent violinist Isabelle Faust will solo in Violin Concerto No. 2 by Bartók. She has performed with some of the most prestigious orchestras in the world and won numerous awards for her recordings. This season, Faust is the artist in residence of the Musikverein Vienna, Tonhalle Düsseldorf and Münchner Konzertdirektion Hörtnagel.
Arvo Volmer has been working with ERSO for years. They first performed together at the end of 1987 when the young conductor was still studying at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. In 1993, Volmer became the principal conductor of ERSO, focusing on the performance and recording of the symphonic music by Eduard Tubin. The concert programme includes Symphony No. 11, which ERSO has only performed with Volmer in 1988, 1990, 1996, and most recently in 2002.
Eduard Tubin
Symphony No. 11
Béla Bartók
Violin Concerto No. 2
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No. 2
ISABELLE FAUST violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor ARVO VOLMER
Description
The Honorary Principal Conductor for Life of ERSO Neeme Järvi will perform the symphonies of two little-known composers on the stage of the Estonia Concert Hall in October. At the end of his life, Joachim Raff was one of the most famous German composers. His unfinished Symphony No. 11, The Winter, is the final part of a season-based cycle of symphonies. Järvi will also perform the 29th symphony by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, which the 18-year-old composer wrote while living in Salzburg.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Symphony No. 29 in A major
Hans Rott. Symphony in E major
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
Description
The soloist of the Järvi and Rubinstein concert will be the internationally renowned Ukrainian pianist Anna Shelest, who has been working with ERSO and conductor Neeme Järvi for many years now. Last time, she performed Piano Concerto No. 5 by Rubinstein to the Estonian audience. This time, she will perform Piano Concerto No. 2. Shelest has been praised for her ‘fiery sensitivity and warm sound’ and her excellent partnership with orchestras (New York Times).
Composer Anton Rubinstein was one of the most famous pianists of the nineteenth century whose virtuoso performance has been compared to that of Ferenc Liszt. It is said both Tchaikovsky and Rachmaninov used his piano concertos as inspiration. In addition to Rubinstein, the concert will feature the famous Symphony No. 40 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
Anton Rubinstein. Six Character Pieces op. 50, Part 5 Berceuse (arranged by Arkadi Leituš)
Anton Rubinstein. Piano Concerto No. 2
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Symphony No. 40 in G minor
ANNA SHELEST piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
The season of ERSO will kick off with principal conductor Olari Elts. They will perform Symphony No. 1 by Gustav Mahler and Symphony No. 10 Æris by Erkki-Sven Tüür for four horns and orchestra, commissioned by the Bochum Symphony Orchestra, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra, and ERSO. The joint order was supported by the Foundation Kultuuripartnerluse Sihtasutus. The idea for the work came from the German Hornsound horn quartet, who will take the stage as the soloist. The quartet also premiered the work in May 2022 with the Bochum Symphony Orchestra and Olari Elts.
According to composer Erkki-Sven Tüür, the copper group plays a key role in the work, ‘The horn quartet can be seen here as messengers, as speakers of parables, as predictors of the irreversible changes that lie ahead. Will listeners understand them? How will they react? What will the communication be like? Where did they come from? What did they want to tell us? Each listener will be able to try to find answers to these questions using their social skills and imagination.’
Edgard Varèse. „Tuning Up“
Erkki-Sven Tüür. Symphony No. 10 Æris
Gustav Mahler. Symphony No. 1
GERMAN HORNSOUND horn quartet
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
“It’s a dynamic triangle – the orchestra, the conductor and the audience – and it all begins with the conductor. The conductor should reveal the music as he perceives it and have the awareness that he’s making the music for somebody.” (Neeme Järvi).
On the 7th of June, it is the 85th birthday of ERSO’s Honorary Artistic Director for Life Neeme Järvi. On this occasion, Järvi will be conducting the Estonian Symphony Orchestra and Estonian National Male Choir in the Estonia Concert Hall.
Neeme Järvi’s cooperation with ENSO began in 1956; in 1960 he became a regular conductor and in 1963 the principal conductor of the Estonian Radio Symphony Orchestra (now Estonian National Symphony Orchestra). With Neeme Järvi, the orchestra has performed in many prestigious concert halls, such as Berlin Konzerthaus, Wiener Musikverein, Brucknerhaus in Linz, Rudolfinum in Prague and New York Avery Fisher Hall (now David Greffen Hall). Neeme Järvi has been the initiator for many of ERSO’s recordings, thanks to him, ERSO has been collaborating with British record company Chandos, Swedish company BIS and the series “Great Maestros” was launched with the Estonian company ERP. In 2017, on his 80th birthday, Järvi was named ERSO’s Honorary Artistic Director for Life. Järvi is the only conductor who has been the chief conductor of ERSO twice.
During his long and highly successful career, Neeme Järvi has held positions with prominent orchestras across the world, including Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Residentie Orkest The Hague, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Royal. Scottish National Orchestra etc. He has been honoured with many awards and accolades, including the Estonian State Cultural Award for long-term outstanding creative activity, the Order of the National Coat of Arms and the Gramophone Lifetime Achievement Award. He has also received the Commander of the North Star Order from King Karl XVI Gustaf of Sweden.
Villem Kapp
“Northern Coast” ~6′
Anton Bruckner
Festive cantata “Preiset den Herrn” ~12′
Madis Järvi
“Morbid symphony”
Richard Wagner
Overture to “Tannhäuser” ~15′
Charles Gounod
Ballet music from the opera “Faust” ~18′
Daniel-François-Esprit Auber
Overture to “Le domino noir” ~8′
Robert Planquette
Overture to “Les cloches de Corneville” ~6′
Estonian National Male Choir
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
On the last night of the festival, we invite the audience to the Tubin Hall of the Heino Eller Music School in Tartu. Together with Alexey Botvinov, Hans Christian Aavik, one of the most prominent violinists of the younger generation in Estonia, will take the stage. Hans won the prestigious Carl Nielsen competition this spring.
The programme includes one of the first tintinnabuli-style works by Arvo Pärt – Fratres. Numerous versions of this work have been completed for various instruments.The audience will also be able to enjoy Cadenza and Theme by Ester Mägi.The motet O Magnum Mysterium originally written for mixed choir by the American composer Morten Lauridsen will also be performed.The concert will end with the Violin Sonata by César Franck, still one of the most performed works in his repertoire.
Hans Christian Aavik is one of the most outstanding violinists of the younger generation in Estonia, who has stood out both in Estonia and in many parts of Europe with his versatile style and distinctive sound. This spring, he won first place and special prizes at the Carl Nielsen Violin Competition in Denmark. In 2021, his debut album AETERNUS was released with pianist Karolina Zhukova. Hans Christian has completed many master classes. In 2013 and 2014, he was selected to participate in the Summer Academy of Young Musicians at the Verbier Festival in Switzerland, where he was the concertmaster under Daniel Harding, Dima Slobodeniouk, and other renowned conductors. As a soloist, he has performed with several orchestras both in Estonia and in Europe. Hans Christian Aavik currently plays on a Giovanni Paolo Maggini violin (made in about 1610 in Brescia, Italy) and a bow made by Victor Fétique (made in about 1930 in France) with the kind permission of the Estonian Foundation of Musical Instruments and the Sapožnin family. Hans Christian Aavik has been a scholarship holder of the Deutschlandstipendium since 2020, and has been supported by Yehudi Menuhin Live Music Now Frankfurt am Main since 2019.
Alexey Botvinov (Oleksi Botvinov in Ukrainian) is the most renowned pianist of Ukraine, an active musician, and a producer. He is considered the best performer of Rachmaninoff in the world, and he also holds the unofficial record for performing Goldberg Variations by Bach – he has performed this cornerstone of piano music more than 300 times. Alexey Botvinov has given solo concerts and performed with renowned symphony orchestras in many prestigious concert halls around the world, including long and successful tours. Botvinov is trying to discover new ways to introduce classical music. He has brought a number of innovative concert projects to the audience, where the traditional piano solo evening has been enriched with the possibilities of multimedia or drama. Since 2015, Botvinov has been organising the prestigious classical music festival Odessa Classics in Ukraine and Eastern Europe as the artistic director.
Arvo Pärt
Fratres
Morten Lauridsen
O Magnum Mysterium
Ester Mägi
Cadenza and Theme
César Franck
Violin Sonata
Description
On the third day of the festival, we will head to the Arvo Pärt Centre in Laulasmaa to enjoy great chamber music. Violinist Michael Guttman, cellist Jing Zhao, and pianist Alexey Botvinov will perform works by Beethoven, Boccherini, Silvestrov, Schumann, and Piazzolla.
Michael Guttman is a violinist, conductor, and musical director of several prestigious festivals, including Pietrasanta in Concerto in Italy, Crans Montana Classics in Switzerland, Le Printemps du Violon in Paris, and Made in Polin in Warsaw. He is the artistic director of the Symphony Napa Valley and the Belgian Chamber Orchestra. He has performed as a violinist with many famous artists such as Martha Argerich, Nestor Marcon, Nigel Kennedy, Boris Berezovsky, Vadim Repin, and others. Guttman began his conducting career in 2017, giving concerts in prestigious Spanish concert halls with the legendary pianist Ivo Pogorelich. His recordings have received numerous accolades, including being nominated for a Grammy Award. Michael Guttman plays on a 1735 Guarneri del Gesù violin.
Jing Zhao is a younger-generation Chinese cellist whose outstanding virtuosity and deep musicality have received a great deal of international attention. Jing Zhao has performed with renowned conductors and orchestras and shared the stage with musicians such as Emmanuel Pahud, Martha Argerich, Guy Braunstein, Daishin Kashimoto, Paul Meyer, Boris Berezovsky, Eric Le Sage, Antoine Tamestit, Konstantin Lifschitz, and Trevor Pinnock. She has performed regularly at various festivals, including the Jerusalem Festival, the Zagreb International Festival, the Zagreb Chamber Music Festival, the Argerich Festival in Beppu, La Folle Journée, and Pietrasanta in Concerto. Jing Zhao has also recorded several albums in collaboration with the Japanese company Victor Entertainment. Jing Zhao plays on a Montagnana cello (1738).
Alexey Botvinov (Oleksi Botvinov in Ukrainian) is the most renowned pianist of Ukraine, an active musician, and a producer. He is considered the best performer of Rachmaninoff in the world, and he also holds the unofficial record for performing Goldberg Variations by Bach – he has performed this cornerstone of piano music more than 300 times. Alexey Botvinov has given solo concerts and performed with renowned symphony orchestras in many prestigious concert halls around the world, including long and successful tours. Botvinov is trying to discover new ways to introduce classical music. He has brought a number of innovative concert projects to the audience, where the traditional piano solo evening has been enriched with the possibilities of multimedia or drama. Since 2015, Botvinov has been organising the prestigious classical music festival Odessa Classics in Ukraine and Eastern Europe as the artistic director.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Sonata for Violin and Piano No. 4 in A minor, Op. 23
Luigi Boccherini
Duo for violin and cello in D major
Allegro moderato
Vivace
Lento
Allegro assaî
Valentin Silvestrov
The Messenger
Robert Schumann
Fantasy Pieces, Op. 73
Astor Piazzolla
The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
Invierno (Winter)
Verano (Summer)
MICHAEL GUTTMAN violin
JING ZHAO cello
ALEXEY BOTVINOV piano
1 June is the International Day for Protection of Children. Two young and talented Ukrainian pianists – Roman and Oleksandr Fediurko – will perform at the Odessa Classics Tallinn Festival on that day at a charity concert. The Fediurko brothers will perform a selection of the best works of piano music, as well as lesser-known pieces from Ukrainian composers.
Oleksandr Fediurko began his studies at the age of 5 at the Children’s Music School No. 21 in Kyiv under the supervision of Professor Halyna Kotsiuba. At the age of 6, he started participating in various piano competitions in Ukraine and abroad, where he won numerous prizes. Most recently, in 2021, he won first place at the Virtuosi per musica di pianoforte and Amadeus competitions in the Czech Republic, the Euregio Piano Award in Germany, and second place at the Vladimir Horowitz Piano Competition in Kyiv. Oleksandr Fediurko has been awarded the City of Kyiv Art Scholarship for three years (2017, 2018, 2021). He is also a scholarship holder of the Leonid Kuchma Foundation.
Roman Fediurko began his studies at a music school in Kyiv in the class of Professor Halyna Kotsiuba at the age of 5. At the age of 6, he started participating in various competitions both in Ukraine and abroad, where he won numerous prizes. Most recently, in 2021, he won first place in the Franz Liszt Centre online piano competition, the Isidor Baji piano competition in Novi Sad, Serbia, and the Wiener Klassiker online competition, and second place in the Euregio Piano Award online competition and the Carl Filtsch piano competition in Sibiu, Romania. Roman Fediurko is a scholarship holder of the Leonid Kuchma Foundation, the Ukrainian Cultural Foundation, and the International Music Academy in the Principality of Liechtenstein. In 2021, he received a scholarship from the President of Ukraine for young artists. Currently, Fediurko is studying at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Graz, Austria.
Johann Sebastian Bach
Prelude and Fugue No. 6 in D Minor, BWV 875
Robert Schumann
Études after Paganini Caprices Op. 3
Viktor Kosenko
Poem Désir Op. 11, No. 1
Hennadiy Sasko
Feast on the Vsevolodiv Hill
Viktor Kosenko
Mazurka Op. 3, No. 1
Levko Revutsky
Two Preludes Op. 7
Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy
Variations sérieuses Op. 54
Camille Saint-Saëns
Étude en forme de valse Op. 52, No. 6
Myroslav Skoryk
Melody
Jazz paraphrase on a theme of Für Elise by Ludwig van Beethoven
OLEKSANDR FEDIURKO piano
ROMAN FEDIURKO piano
The children born in the Year of Music (2015) are now six or seven years old. To celebrate that, we are invinting our young friends to a journey of fairy tales. Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, Kärt Ruubel (piano) and Priit Strandberg (narrator) will be performing the beloved cycle "Children's Album" by Pyotr Tchaikovsky, which has been arranged for the piano, chamber orchestra and noise-making toys by Malle Maltis and Diana Liiv.
KÄRT RUUBEL piano
PRIIT STRANDBERG narrator
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
The stream will be available all over the world with the exception of Germany and France, where viewers can watch the concert on arte.tv
In June 2015, the Odessa Classics music festival was held in Odessa, Ukraine for the first time. Its founder, pianist Alexey Botvinov’s mission was to create a festival that would help Ukraine move closer to Europe and resist Russian-initiated military aggression. Odessa Classics has been associated with Estonia since its first days, through our musicians, festival guests and supporters.
The eighth Odessa Classics festival should have taken place from 2 – 15 June this year, with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra (ERSO) performing at the opening concert in the Odessa Opera House. Unfortunately, the event has been postponed indefinitely in the wake of the war against Ukraine.
In order not to break the tradition of the festival, Odessa Classics will have a temporary home in Estonia from May 31 to June 3 this year and will be called Odessa Classics Tallinn. Estonian musicians, hopefully a large audience and business supporters will host Ukraine’s largest classical music event for four days in four different venues in Tallinn, Tartu and Laulasmaa. We hope you will join us in supporting the festival in these turbulent and difficult times. Programme of Odessa Classics Tallinn can be found HERE.
Arvo Pärt
“Cantus in Memory of Benjamin Britten” ~6’
Benjamin Britten
Violin Concerto ~32’
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 20 D minor, KV 466 ~32’
Valentin Silvestrov
Symphony No. 7 ~20’
DANIEL HOPE violin (Daniel Hope is an exclusive artists of Deutsche Grammophon)
ALEXEY BOTVINOV piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Olari Elts focuses on the music of Johannes Brahms at the final concert of the ERSO season. The main works of the concert are Violin Concerto and Symphony No. 1 by Brahms, and both parts of the concert will be introduced by an opus from the twenty-first century inspired by Symphony No. 1 by Brahms.
“Brahms-Fantasy” by the German composer Detlev Glanert, completed ten years ago, which the composer himself calls a heliogravure for the orchestra, was inspired by the first notes of Symphony No. 1 by Brahms.
The orchestral work “Das innere Meer” by Jüri Reinvere will be premiered on 31 October by the Deutsche Radio Philharmonie Saarbrücken Kaiserslautern and the Chief Conductor of the orchestra Pietari Inkinen. ‘When I was commissioned to write the work, I had two important things in the initial concept: the connection with Symphony No. 1 by Brahms and conductor Pietari Inkinen,’ confirmed Jüri Reinvere and added that the Baltic Sea unites them all: Pietari is a Finn, he is an Estonian, and Brahms wrote his first symphony on the German island of Rügen in the Baltic Sea. ‘”Das innere Meer” deals with human internal struggles and dividedness, as well as the diversity of the Baltic countries, which in its density and high contrasts also creates dividedness.’
Detlev Glanert
“Brahms-Fantasie” ~12′
Johannes Brahms
Violin Concerto in D major ~40’
Jüri Reinvere
“Das innere Meer”
Johannes Brahms
Symphony No 1 in C minor ~45’
VIVIANE HAGNER violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
Neeme Järvi, the Honorary Artistic Director for Life, will perform with ERSO again.
Rudolf Tobias
Nocturn for string orchestra (orchestrated by Eduard Tubin) ~8′
Franz Schubert
Symphony in E major (orchestrated by Felix Weingartner) ~34′
Joachim Raff
Cavatina
Mykola Ovsianiko-Kulikovsky (Mikhail Goldstein)
Symphony No. 21 ~25′
TRIIN RUUBEL violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor NEEME JÄRVI
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
On Walpurgis Night, the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, and conductor Olari Elts will perform works inspired by the theme of Walpurgis Night by composers of different nationalities.
The concert depicting a stormy witches’ sabbath will be opened by the symphonic poem “Night on Bald Mountain” by Mussorgsky, which became famous primarily due to Walt Disney’s animated film “Fantasia”. The poem Noon Witch by the Czech poet Karel Jaromír Erben has inspired several of his compatriots.
While the Estonian audience has already heard the version of Dvořák, the work for choir and orchestra by the younger Czech composer Ondřej Adámek, completed in 2013, will be performed here for the first time. “Walpurg Burlesque”, originally written for piano by Rudolf Tobias, and “The First Walpurgis Night” by Felix Mendelssohn are based on the Walpurgis Night scene in Goethe’s Faust. “Walpurg Burlesque”, later orchestrated by Eduard Tubin, is one of the most unique works of Tobias. Vardo Rumessen has aptly described it as ‘rushing to fantastic heights, carried by a mad element, magical in its dreamy visions, dionysical in its primordial vigour’.
Modest Mussorgsky
“Night on the Bare Mountain” (“Ночь на Лысой горе”) ~10’
Ondřej Adámek
“The Noon Witch” (“Polednice”) ~20’
Rudolf Tobias
“Walpurg Burlesque” (arr. by Eduard Tubin) ~6’
Felix Mendelssohn
“The First Walpurgis Night” (“Die erste Walpurgisnacht”) ~30’
TUURI DEDE mezzo-soprano
JUHAN TRALLA tenor
TAMAR NUGIS baritone (Estonian National Opera)
HENRY TIISMA bass
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
The final concert of the series ‘The Song of the Earth’ will be organised in cooperation with the Estonian Music Days and bears the title ‘Different’, as it is always possible to think differently, act differently – and it is up to us what this difference entails.
The works of Estonian composers are conducted by Kaspar Mänd, Chief Conductor of the Pärnu City Orchestra. He has been the conductor of the Estonian National Opera for many years and has founded the Uue Tänava Orkester and the mixed choir HUIK! He has repeatedly collaborated with ERSO, been the Principal Conductor of the chamber choir Voces Musicales, and has also performed as a conductor at the Estonian Song Festival three times (2014, 2017, and 2019). Regarding his relationship with conducting, he says, ‘In the end, it is all about the music itself. I like music much more than I do conducting.’ (Pärnu Postimees, 8 January 2019)
Kaspar Mänd will be conducting both new and well-known works of Estonian composers.
Since 2017, he has been studying at the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts under Erik Schumann and Angelika Merkle, and since 2021 has also been studying at the Musik und Kunst Privatuniversität der Stadt Wien under Julian Rachlin and Evgeny Sinaiski.
The soloist of the concert is an outstanding young violinist Hans Christian Aavik, who on the 10th of April 2022 was awarded first prize of the Carl Nielsen International Competition in Denmark. Since 2017, he has been studying at the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts under Erik Schumann and Angelika Merkle, and since 2021 has also been studying at the Musik und Kunst Privatuniversität der Stadt Wien under Julian Rachlin and Evgeny Sinaiski. With the permission of the Estonian Foundation of Musical Instruments and the Sapožnin family, Aavik currently plays a Giovanni Paolo Maggini violin (made in Brescia, Italy in approximately 1610) with a Victor Fetique bow (made in approximately 1930 in France).
Read more:
www.eestimuusikapaevad.ee
Jüri Reinvere
“Maria Anna, wach, im Nebenzimmer” ~15′
Helena Tulve
“Being Mountain I Remain Silent” (“Mäena vaikin ma paljust”) ~15′
Tõnis Kaumann
“City of Angels” (“Inglite linn”, premiere) ~13′
Jonas Tarm
“Before Song” (“Laulu eel”, premiere) ~12′
Rasmus Puur
Violin Concerto ~35′
HANS CHRISTIAN AAVIK violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor KASPAR MÄND
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
At the concert ‘Nocturanus’, ERSO’s Chief Conductor and Artistic Director Olari Elts will focus on the galaxy, as well as the topic of night and day, the alternation of darkness and light. Elongation of Nights by the young Lithuanian composer Justė Janulytė, who is primarily focusing on monochromatic music, will be performed. The work, created in 2009, is dedicated to the arrival of autumn in Vilnius and has been performed on many stages around the world, including in Tartu and Tallinn in 2010 by the Lithuanian Chamber Orchestra and conductor Risto Joost.
Nocturanus by Tõnu Kõrvits for gongs, strings, and electronics is a combination of the words nocturne or a composition inspired by the night and Uranus, the second of which refers to the main instrument of the work, gongs, the different models of which are usually named after planets. After the premiere of Nocturanus by the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra and Risto Joost in 2019, Aare Tool wrote, ‘The melancholic and longing tones in the music of Tõnu Kõrvits allow him to easily find common ground with his equally sensitive audience. However, this longing or nostalgia is not directly aimed at something or someone, but is like tender-heartedness in an all-encompassing blues sense.’ (Sirp, 29 November 2019).
Concert is produced by ERSO.
Justė Janulytė
“Elongation of Nights” for 21 strings ~9′
Valentin Silvestrov
“The Messenger” for piano, strings and synthesizer ~9′
Tõnu Kõrvits
“Nocturanus” for gongs, strings, and electronics ~60′
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
ATTENTION! Due to the ongoing war in Ukraine, ERSO, in cooperation with the Red Cross, will donate all income from ERSO TV to the people in Ukraine. Select "SUPPORT US" in the main menu on the landing page of ERSO TV.
Instead of the concert “Alexeev and Prokofiev” announced for March 18, the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra will organize a concert in support of Ukraine and Ukrainians.
Both the soloist and conductor will be from Ukraine: pianist Alexey Botvinov and conductor Natalia Ponomarchuk.
Mykola Lysenko
Overture to “Taras Bulba” ~5’
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 21 in C Major, K 467 ~30’
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 3 (“Eroica”) in E flat Major, Op. 55 ~47’
ALEXEY BOTVINOV piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor NATALIA PONOMARCHUK
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
ATTENTION! Due to the ongoing war in Ukraine, ERSO, in cooperation with the Red Cross, will donate all income from ERSO TV to the people in Ukraine. Select "SUPPORT US" in the main menu on the landing page of ERSO TV.
HARMONY series is presented by Epiim
Josef Suk
Serenade for strings Op. 6 ~26’
Antonín Dvořák
“Waldesruhe” for cello ensemble ~6’
Leoš Janáček
Woodwind sextet “Youth” (“Mládí”) ~18’
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 38 in D major “Prague” ~29’
ERSO chamber ensembles
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Principal Violin TRIIN RUUBEL
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
Camille Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2 will be brought to the audience by the winner of the 73rd Geneva International Piano Competition and the latest silver medallist of the Tchaikovsky Competition, Dmitri Shishkin. The pianist was born in Chelyabinsk, resides in Switzerland, and is performing with the top Russian and European orchestras, giving concerts all over the world.
Gilbert Varga, son of celebrated Hungarian violinist Tibor Varga, conducts with distinctive presence and flair. A commanding and authoritative figure on the podium, Varga is repeatedly acclaimed for performances displaying exquisite textures, a broad range of colours, and subtle use of dynamics. Renowned for his elegant and exceptionally clear baton technique, Varga has held positions with and guest conducted many of the major orchestras across the globe.
In 1997 Varga was appointed Music Director of the Basque National Orchestra, leading them through ten seasons and on several international tours, and between 2013-2018 he was Principal Conductor of the Taipei Symphony Orchestra, conducting on them on tours to Europe, the US and Japan. As guest conductor, Varga has led many of the world’s top orchestras including the Philadelphia Orchestra, Radio Symphony Berlin, Orchestre de Paris, Oslo Philharmonic, Sydney Symphony orchestras. From 2019-2021 he was Chief Conductor of the Pannon Philharmonic Orchestra, resident in the world-class Kodály Centre in Pécs, Hungary.
Maurice Ravel
Ma mère l’Oye (Mother Goose) ~20’
Camille Saint-Saëns
Piano Concerto No. 2 in G minor ~25’
Modest Mussorgski
Tableaux d’une exposition (Pictures at an Exhibition; orchestrated by Maurice Ravel) ~40’
DMITRY SHISHKIN piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor GILBERT VARGA
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
Notice of Conductor change: ERSO welcomes Jonathan Bloxham instead of Leon Botstein for February 11 concert.
Jonathan Bloxham from the United Kingdom made his successful ERSO debut in autumn 2021. Bloxham, who started his career as a cellist, has already conducted prestigious European and Asian orchestras, and his first CD has just been released. In August, the prestigious Glyndebourne festival ended with Bloxham conducting Luisa Miller by Verdi. One week before the Tallinn concert, he will conduct the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra residing in London at the Newbury Festival, and in October, he will perform Don Pasquale by Donizetti with the Glyndebourne Touring Opera.
The soloist in Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No. 1 will be Hyewon Chung, the winner of Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and Estonian National Symphony Orchestra Joint Award for a student of EAMT at Tallinn International Piano Competition 2021.
The soloist in Mendelssohn’s Piano Concerto No. 1 will be Hyewon Chung, the winner of Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre and Estonian National Symphony Orchestra Joint Award for a student of EAMT at Tallinn International Piano Competition 2021.
Edward Elgar
Overture “In the South” (“Alassio”) ~22′
Felix Mendelssohn
Piano Concerto No 1 in G major ~20′
Antonín Dvořák
Symphony No. 6 ~43′
HYEWON CHUNG piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Symphony Orchestra of the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre
Conductor JONATHAN BLOXHAM
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
Participants in the fourth Tallinn International Piano Competition will be judged by a jury of internationally renowned pianists. The six best selected for the final will perform together with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Arvo Volmer.
The previous winners of the Tallinn International Piano Competition are Mihkel Poll (2006), Kristi Kapten (2011), and Anna Szałucka (2016), who have all performed before the Estonian representative orchestra even after winning the competition.
The competition schedule and rules are available on the website of the competition: tipc.eamt.ee.
Sergei Rachmaninov
Piano Concerto No. 3 in D minor, Op. 30
Soloist Genki Takai
Johannes Brahms
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major, Op. 83
Soloist David Munk-Nielsen
Sergei Rachmaninov
Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op.18
Soloist Jiyoung Kim
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Arvo Volmer
Participants in the fourth Tallinn International Piano Competition will be judged by a jury of internationally renowned pianists. The six best selected for the final will perform together with the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Arvo Volmer.
The previous winners of the Tallinn International Piano Competition are Mihkel Poll (2006), Kristi Kapten (2011), and Anna Szałucka (2016), who have all performed before the Estonian representative orchestra even after winning the competition.
The competition schedule and rules are available on the website of the competition: tipc.eamt.ee.
Sergei Rachmaninov
Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op. 18
Soloist Tähe-Lee Liiv
Sergei Prokofiev
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C major, Op. 26
Soloist Théotime Gillot
Sergei Rachmaninov
Piano Concerto No. 2 in C minor, Op.18
Soloist Misora Ozaki
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor Arvo Volmer
The ‘Fountains of Rome’ concert will bring to the stage in front of ERSO the conductor Giordano Bellincampi who was born in Rome but has spent most of his life in Denmark, and is currently working as the Chief Conductor of the Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra. The Rome-themed concert, which was actually planned for last spring, will now be performed to the audience with a partly updated programme. ‘I am sure that each and every concert-goer in Tallinn will be able to travel back to Rome in their imagination at this concert or enjoy their first, scenic musical trip to the city,’ says the conductor.
Federico Colli from Italy, a Gold Medal winner at the 2012 Leeds International Piano Competition, will be playing Piano Concerto No. 24 by Mozart.
Franz Schubert
“Overture in the Italian Style” in C major ~8’
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No. 24 in C minor, K. 491 ~30’
Ottorino Respighi
Symphonic poem “Fountains of Rome” (“Le Fontane di Roma”) ~16′
Symphonic poem “Pines of Rome” (“Pini di Roma”) ~22′
FEDERICO COLLI piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor GIORDANO BELLINCAMPI
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
The concerts in November will be celebrating the 65th birthday of the beloved pianist Kalle Randalu – on two consecutive evenings, Randalu will be performing all five of Beethoven’s piano concertos, the first three of which in the ‘Maestro’ concert series and the last two in the ‘Piano Concerto’ series.
In the first half of the 1980s, the career of the Estonian pianist with one of the most unique interpretive styles gained momentum thanks to his achievements in prestigious international competitions: a laureate title at the Schumann Competition in Zwickau (1981), fourth place at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (1982), which is the greatest achievement of all time by an Estonian performer at this competition, and first place at the ARD Competition in Munich (1985). For more than thirty years, Germany has been Kalle Randalu’s second home. The conductor is Juha Kangas, the founder and long-time principal conductor of the Ostrobothnia Chamber Orchestra, who has close ties with the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra and who has repeatedly conducted ERSO.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Concerto No. 4 in G major ~33’
Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major ~40’
KALLE RANDALU piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor JUHA KANGAS
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
The concerts in November will be celebrating the 65th birthday of the beloved pianist Kalle Randalu – on two consecutive evenings, Randalu will be performing all five of Beethoven’s piano concertos, the first three of which in the ‘Maestro’ concert series and the last two in the ‘Piano Concerto’ series.
In the first half of the 1980s, the career of the Estonian pianist with one of the most unique interpretive styles gained momentum thanks to his achievements in prestigious international competitions: a laureate title at the Schumann Competition in Zwickau (1981), fourth place at the Tchaikovsky Competition in Moscow (1982), which is the greatest achievement of all time by an Estonian performer at this competition, and first place at the ARD Competition in Munich (1985). For more than thirty years, Germany has been Kalle Randalu’s second home.
The conductor is Juha Kangas, the founder and long-time principal conductor of the Ostrobothnia Chamber Orchestra, who has close ties with the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra and who has repeatedly conducted ERSO.
Ludwig van Beethoven
Piano Concerto No. 1 in C major ~34′
Piano Concerto No. 2 in B flat major ~28′
Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor ~35′
KALLE RANDALU piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor JUHA KANGAS
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
During the ERSO concert season, the representative orchestra of our southern neighbours with their brand new Principal Guest Conductor Kristiina Poska will be taking the Estonia Concert Hall stage as a guest. Poska will start her third season as the Chief Conductor of the Flanders Symphony Orchestra this autumn. The Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, the history of which has been quite similar to that of ERSO, has always been tightly connected to Estonian conductors: in the period from 1990 to 1994, Paul Mägi was their Chief Conductor and Artistic Director, in the period from 2001 to 2006, however, this post was held by Olari Elts, the current Chief Conductor of ERSO. The Latvian representative orchestra has been referred to as the National Orchestra since 1990 and their primary performance venue is in the historic building of the Great Guild Hall in Riga.
They will be serving the audience in Tallinn Tchaikovsky’s ‘Pathétique’ and Khachaturyan’s Violin Concerto with the incredible Principal Violin of the orchestra, Georg Sarkisjan, who has won numerous international competitions and is mainly dividing his time between German and Latvian orchestras, performing as the soloist.
Aram Khachaturyan
Violin Concerto in D minor ~37’
Pyotr Tchaikovsky
Symphony No. 6 “Pathétique” ~46’
GEORG SARKISJAN violin
Latvian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor KRISTIINA POSKA
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting & Helipilt Grupp OÜ.
Romanticism series is presented by Reval Café
"I have tried to express myself in my works in my mother tongue …"
Ester Mägi
We will show our respect and say thank you to the beloved composer Ester Mägi, who died at the age of 99.
The deeply national music of Ester Mägi is characterised by chamber music, balance and delicacy, a clear form, transparent sound, and an intimate style of expression. Chamber and choral music are central to her rich work. Her Symphony completed in 1968 and Bucolic (Bukoolika) from 1983 have earned a dignified place in Estonian symphonic music. Mägi’s chamber music has a firm and special place in the repertoire of both Estonian and foreign musicians; in addition to Estonian concert halls, ERSO’s performance of Bucolic has also been included in numerous tours. In January 2021, we celebrated Ester Mägi’s 99th birthday with an online concert, which the composer herself . Reflecting the concert in the columns of Sirp, Nele-Eva Steinfeld wrote, ‘Mägi’s work reaches the musician’s repertoire quietly, without causing big noise and an overflowing flood of emotions, but it stays in their thoughts for a long time, revealing its meaning gradually. Estonian musicians understand Mägi’s work and are able to let the values embedded in it come to the forefront, realising, as if without a word, that showing too much too quickly would destroy the moment and overshadow the inner brilliance. There is something very Estonian about Mägi’s style of expression: a smooth achievement of a goal instead of a broad line and pathos, detailed and concise chamber music instead of great dramatic development, introversion and a kind of stubborn delving into the smallest parts of a single sound and image, and self-critical hard work, which, in turn, has allowed for constant joy in the completed works.’
ESTER MÄGI
(10.01.1922 - 14.05.2021)
Vesper ~6'
ERSO strings
Principal Violin ARVO LEIBUR
Sonare ~7'
TAAVI ORRO clarinet, KADRI-ANN SUMERA piano
Duos in National Idiom (Duod rahvatoonis) ~8'
MIHKEL PEÄSKE flute, ARVO LEIBUR violin
The Ancient Kannel (Vana kannel) ~11'
KADRI-ANN SUMERA klaver
Choral Cycle Meditations (Mõtisklused) (lyrics by Anton Hansen Tammsaare) ~7'
I: Love Is a Pearl...
II: Joy and Happiness...
III: Possible Happiness...
IV: And Yet...
V: Martyrs of Poetry
Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir
Conductor TÕNU KALJUSTE
String Quartet No. 2 (Elegies) ~11'
I: Lento. Allegretto grazioso
II: Moderato con marcato. Allegro con brio
III: Allegretto con delicatezza
IV: Poco adagio. Allegro agitato
STRING QUARTET ARDOR:
ARVO LEIBUR violin, KADI VILU violin, RAIN VILU viola, TÕNU JÕESAAR cello
Bucolic (Bukoolika) ~10'
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor MIKK MURDVEE
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with
Estonian Public Broadcasting
Presenter Lisete Velt
Sound Engineer Kaspar
Karner
Technicians Ats Treimaa, Algis Pauljukaitis
& Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
For the third time in recent years, the orchestra will be conducted by Jun Märkl, who works closely with prestigious German and French theatres and orchestras and often conducts some of the world’s best orchestras, such as the Cleveland and Philadelphia orchestras in the USA, the NHK Symphony Orchestra in Japan, the Czech Philharmonic orchestra, etc. Since 2021, he has been the music director of the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra, the artistic advisor of the Taiwan National Symphony Orchestra, and the chief guest conductor of The Hague Philharmonic. Estonian music critic Kai Taal has highlighted Jun Märkl’s remarkably good cooperation with ERSO, describing him as a very energetic, intense, and positive conductor who is ‘specific and friendly but insistent in his demands’. Märkl’s extraordinary memory and habit of conducting without a score is also remarkable.
The opening work of the concert is one of piano cycles by Claude Debussy, Petite suite, which we will hear in an orchestral arrangement by Henri Büsser this time.
Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 24 is one of the composer’s two works in minor key in this genre, with the remaining 25 being written in major key. What makes this special is the opening theme of the first movement, in which the composer has used all 12 notes of the chromatic scale, and the triple time in the first movement, which he has used only in two piano concerts. It is known that this piano concerto with its tragic undertones also earned Beethoven’s special admiration.
The soloist of the concert, Irina Zahharenkova, is one of the most outstanding and unique pianists of her generation, the winner of numerous competitions, and highly valued for her nuanced and engaging interpretations. ‘Zahharenkova’s phenomenon is difficult to explain in words: listening to and watching her, it is as if she simply sits behind the piano and the music starts to flow from under her fingers, naturally and effortlessly, capturing the listener completely’, wrote Estonian music critic Äli-Ann Klooren.
Franz Joseph Haydn’s Symphony No. 82 is one of the composer’s six Paris Symphonies. These symphonies, commissioned by a Masonic organisation in Paris, are considered to be the beginning of Haydn’s mature symphonic style. The piece was known to have been nicknamed ‘Bear’ only 20 years after the composer’s death when the piano arrangement entitled ‘Danse de l’ours’ (The Dance of the Bear) was made public.
Claude Debussy
“Little Suite” (Petite Suite; arranged for orchestra by Henri Büsser) ~13′
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Piano Concerto No 24 in C minor, K 491 ~30′
Franz Joseph Haydn
Symphony No 82 in C major “The Bear” (L’ours) ~28′
IRINA ZAHHARENKOVA piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor JUN MÄRKL
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting ...
Presenter Nele-Eva Steinfeld
Sound Engineer Teet
Kehlmann
Technicians Virgo Mäe, Ats Treimaa
... & Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
Musicians of ERSO perform chamber music. In cooperation with Lossimuusika Concert Series.
György Kurtág
“Hommage á Robert Schumann”
Ester Mägi
“Sonare”
Eduard Tubin
Sonata for viola and piano
Robert Schumann
“Märchenerzählungen”
Franz Xaver Scharwenka
Piano Quintet in b minor
TAAVI ORRO clarinet
LIINA ŽIGURS viola
KADRI-ANN SUMERA piano
LEA LEITEN piano
STRING QUARTET ARDOR: ARVO LEIBUR violin, KADI VILU violin, RAIN VILU viola, TÕNU JÕESAAR cello
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting ...
Presenter Miina Pärn
... & Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
In the last week of March, ERSO, conducted by Olari Elts, the chief conductor and artistic director of the orchestra, will perform Symphony No. 5 by Ludwig van Beethoven, the jubilarian of this season. Elts, who has focused on performing and recording Heino Eller’s symphonic music in recent years, has invited Alban Gerhardt from Germany, one of the best cellists in the world, to Estonia. Gerhardt, who is considered one of the best soloists in the world, regularly performs with the best orchestras on both sides of the Atlantic. His international career began in 1991 with his debut with the Berliner Philharmoniker under Semyon Bychkov. In addition to the cello classics, his repertoire also includes many new works, such as the recent premiere of the Cello Concerto by British composer Julian Anderson and the premiere of the Cello Concerto by Australian composer Brett Dean with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, the Berliner Philharmoniker, and many other top orchestras in the world.
Heino Eller
Ballade for cello and orchestra ~9’
Robert Schumann
Cello Concerto in A minor, Op. 129 ~25’
Heino Eller
Prelude in G minor for cello and orchestra ~5’
Luigi Cherubini
Funeral March (Marche funèbre) ~5’
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67 ~35’
ALBAN GERHARDT cello
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting ...
Presenter Lisete Velt
Sound Engineer Andres Olema
Technician Virgo Mäe
... & Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
Valley of Sound concert series is presented by Inchcape BMW
ERSO will bring its spring-inspired programme, featuring works by Dvořák and Schumann, to the audience under the direction of conductor Joseph Swensen. The conductor, who has already won the support of both the audience and the orchestra twice, is the artistic director of the NFM Leopoldinum Orchestra (Wroclaw), Conductor Emeritus of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and Principal Guest Conductor of Orquesta Ciudad de Granada. In addition to conducting, Swensen is a violinist, composer, and educator, and has studied the impact of music on children’s development. Swensen has previously served as Principal Guest Conductor and Artistic Adviser of the Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Principal Conductor of Malmö Opera, and Principal Conductor of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra.
Antonín Dvořák
Serenade in E major, Op. 22 ~30’
Robert Schumann
Symphony No 1 in B flat major, Op. 38 (Spring) ~35’
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor JOSEPH SWENSEN
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting &
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
Camille Saint-Saëns
The Carnival of the Animals (Le carnaval des animaux)
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Piano duo JOHAN RANDVERE - KÄRT RUUBEL
Conductor XANDI VAN DIJK
Narrator JOHAN RANDVERE
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
Just before Valentine’s Day, ERSO’s various chamber ensembles will perform diverse pieces of chamber music. ERSO’s percussion group will take the stage in its entirety, performing Arvo Pärt’s Fratres, arranged for percussion by ERSO’s percussionist Vambola Krigul, as well as Margo Kõlar’s Cross-Stitch. Pieces for the French horn by Max Pottag and Anton Bruckner will also be performed and chamber music in the most traditional sense is represented by Brahms’ Clarinet Quintet. The concert will be led in by Olari Elts, the Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of ERSO.
The ERSO Friends Club is at the focus of the concert – in just a year and a half, it has become an inseparable part of the orchestra. With this concert, ERSO wishes to thank all members of the Friends Club – all friends, old and new!
Max Pottag
Horn Quartet (on motifs by Richard Wagner) ~5’
MATTIAS VIHMANN, KALERVO KULMALA, KALLE KOPPEL, JÜRNAS RÄHNI
Margo Kõlar
Cross-Stitch (Ristpiste) for percussion ~7′
VAMBOLA KRIGUL, TERJE TERASMAA, KASPAR EISEL
Anton Bruckner
Christus factus est for four horns ~5’
MATTIAS VIHMANN, KALERVO KULMALA, KALLE KOPPEL, JÜRNAS RÄHNI
Arvo Pärt
Fratres (for percussion arranged by Vambola Krigul) ~11′
LAURI METSVAHI, VAMBOLA KRIGUL, REIN ROOS, MADIS METSAMART
Johannes Brahms
Clarinet Quintet in B minor, Op. 115 ~35′
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet, EGERT LEINSAAR violin, MARGE UUS violin, XANDI VAN DIJK viola, THEODOR SINK cello
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting.
Presenter Nele-Eva Steinfeld
Sound Engineer Siim Mäesalu
Technicians Virgo
Mäe, Ats Treimaa
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
Chamber music by Estonian composer Ester Mägi.
Ostinato
MIHKEL PEÄSKE flute, HELI ERNITS oboe, SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet, JAKOB PEÄSKE bassoon, MATTIAS VIHMANN horn
Serenade
MARI-LIIS VIND flute, MIINA LAANESAAR violin, HELENA ALTMANIS viola
Whoops (Huiked)
ARVO LEIBUR violin, TERJE TERASMAA vibraphone, AGNI HALLIK guitar
Clarinet Sonata (dedicated to Hannes Altrov, a long-time Principal Clarinet of ERSO)
TAAVI ORRO clarinet, KADRI-ANN SUMERA piano
Duos in National Idiom (Duod rahvatoonis, dedicated to Samuel Saulus, a long-time Principal Flute of ERSO)
MIHKEL PEÄSKE flute, ARVO LEIBUR violin
String Quartet No. 2 Elegies (Eleegiad)
STRING QUARTET ARDOR: ARVO LEIBUR violin, KADI VILU violin, RAIN VILU viola, TÕNU JÕESAAR cello
Vesper
ERSO STRING ORCHESTRA
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting:
presenter Nele-Eva Steinfeld
sound engineer Teet Kehlmann
technicians Virgo Mäe, Ats Treimaa
...and Helipilt Grupp OÜ:
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu
Ludwig van Beethoven
Leonore Overture No. 2, Op. 72a
Christian Jost
An die Hoffnung (based on the song by Beethoven, Op. 94, Estonian premiere)
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 1 in C major, Op. 21
Rocco’s aria Hat man nicht auch Gold beineben (“Kui ei ole kulda taskus”) from Leonore
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Io ti lascio, o cara, addio, KV 621a
Ludwig van Beethoven
“Prüfung des Küssens”, WoO 89
JUHAN TRALLA tenor
AIN ANGER bass
Estonian National Symphony
Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting.
Presenter Kaisa Jõhvik
Sound Engineer Ats Treimaa
Technicians Rain
Orgus, Algis Pauljukaitis
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend, Tammo Sumera, Mait Visnapuu.
Anton Reicha
Octet in E-flat major, Op. 96
EGERT LEINSAAR violin
MAAREN VIHERMÄE violin
KAREN JOAMETS viola
MARGUS UUS cello
MATI LUKK double bass
GUIDO GUALANDI oboe
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
PEETER SARAPUU bassoon
KALLE KOPPEL horn
Ludwig van Beethoven
Septet in E-flat major, Op. 20
ARVO LEIBUR violin
SANDRA KLIMAITĖ viola
LEVI-DANEL MÄGILA cello
MATI LUKK double bass
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
KAIDO SUSS bassoon
MATTIAS VIHMANN horn
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting.
Presenter Kaisa Jõhvik
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend
Tammo Sumera
Mait Visnapuu
Richard Wagner
Siegfried-Idyll 20′
Wesendonck Songs (Wesendonck Lieder) 20′
Arnold Schönberg
Transfigured Night (Verklärte Nacht) 32′
ARETE KERGE soprano
Estonian National Symphony Orchesra
Conductor GIORDANO BELLINCAMPI
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting.
Presenter Nele-Eva Steinfeld
Sound Engineer Kaspar Karner
Technicians Virgo
Mäe, Andres Olema
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend
Tammo Sumera
Mait Visnapuu
Dmitri Shostakovich
Cello Concerto No. 1 ~28′
Johannes Brahms
Serenade No. 1 in D major, Op. 11 ~45’
MARCEL JOHANNES KITS cello
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor VASSILY SINAISKY
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public
Broadcasting.
Presenter Kaisa Jõhvik
Sound Engineer Siim
Mäesalu
Technicians Virgo
Mäe ja Ats Treimaa
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend
Tammo Sumera
Mait Visnapuu
Pyotr Tchaikovsky
Festival Coronation March
Piano Concerto No 2 in G major, Op. 44
Symphony No 1 in G major Winter Daydreams, Op. 13
KIRILL GERSTEIN piano
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor PAAVO JÄRVI
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting.
Presenter Lisete Velt
Engineer Ats Treimaa
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend
Tammo Sumera
Mait Visnapuu
This season-opening concert is more festive and special than usual – ENSO presents their new chief conductor and artistic director, Olari Elts. The key phrase of the 94th season is Ludwig van Beethoven. In December, we will celebrate the 250th anniversary of his birth, and the season is guided by the musical revolution that was sparked by his musical genius and creation.
Both Beethoven’s Violin Concerto and Eroica are among the most ground-breaking works in their genres. Olari Elts calls Eroica one of the first political manifestos in music history, and according to him, it was Eroica, one of Beethoven’s highest musical statues of liberty, that marked the beginning of the concert tradition in the form that we know today. ‘It is a composition that was largely responsible for the emergence of the art of interpretation. It influenced the transition of concert life from salons to concert halls, and it is the first symphonic work that can be called avant-garde or transcending traditional boundaries.’
The soloist of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto is Sergey Khachatryan, who was born in Armenia and has performed in the best orchestras in the world. In 2000, at the age of 15, he won the VIII International Jean Sibelius Violin Competition in Helsinki, and five years later, he won the first prize at the Queen Elisabeth Music Competition in Brussels. Beethoven’s Violin Concerto has a special place in his repertoire. In 2006, he made his debut in New York, playing this work. His first joint performances with Olari Elts also date back almost 20 years, when they had both recently won the Sibelius Competition – Khachatryan winning the violin competition and Elts winning the conducting competition.
The opening pieces of the concert, as well as the puff of clouds in the visuals of the concert, are based on the current mood across the globe. ‘I think that for everyone involved with music or theatre, this year has been the most apocalyptic year in their career,’ said Olari Elts, describing the situation. ‘It is known that even during the war, concerts and theatre performances continued, offering comfort and consolation to people fighting on the front lines and the home front alike. With Lyadov’s From the Apocalypse, written on the eve of the First World War, we summarise the current situation. We express gratitude to all those who have been to the front lines in battling the global pandemic. As the concert happens to take place on the symbolic date of 11 September, we will also dedicate the concert to the heroes and victims of the event which took place 19 years ago. 11 September is also the birthday of Arvo Pärt and we will, naturally, start the season with his music.’
Arvo Pärt
Arbos
Anatoly Lyadov
From Apocalypse
Ludwig van Beethoven
Violin Concerto in D major, Op. 61
INTERMISSION
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 3 Eroica in E flat major, Op. 55
SERGEY KHACHATRYAN violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Concert is presented by Epiim.
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting.
Presenter Lisete Velt
Engineer Siim Mäesalu
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend
Tammo Sumera
Mait Visnapuu
Eino Tamberg is a composer with a flair for the theatrical, a romanticist and Estonian music’s bard of love. Music for orchestra and the stage occupy a central position in his work: he is the writer of four symphonies, nine concertos for solo instrument and many works for the stage. (emic.ee)
... And Thus Our Life Will Be Happy ("… ja nõnda on meie elu õnnelik")
Created after the “Theses of Happiness” written by Eino Tamberg and his friends. Timo Steiner’s composition of Eino Tamberg’s music (2015)
PIRET SANDBERG violin, TARMO TRUUVÄÄRT violin, KADI VILU violin, EEVA-LIISA EHALA violin, RAIN VILU viola, TÕNU JÕESAAR cello, SILVIA ILVES cello, REGINA UDOD double bass
Eino Tamberg
Vivo e lento, Op. 106 (2000)
VAMBOLA KRIGUL percussion, REIN ROOS percussion, TERJE TERASMAA percussion, KASPAR EISEL percussion
Journey with Cello and Percussion (“Teekond tšello ja löökpillidega”), Op. 128 (2007)
THEODOR SINK cello, MADIS METSAMART percussion, LAURI METSVAHI percussion
Farewell (“Hüvastijätt”), Op. 130 (2007)
INDREK VAU trumpet, ARVO LEIBUR violin, KADI VILU violin, RAIN VILU viola, TÕNU JÕESAAR cello
Music for Trumpet and String Orchestra (“Muusika trompetile ja keelpilliorkestrile”), Op. 126 (1970/2006)
1. Dialoge– 2. Prelude – 3. Rondo – 4. Aria – 5. Sonatine– 6. Postlude
INDREK VAU trumpet, ARVO LEIBUR violin, ELISABETH HÄRMAND violin, KADI VILU violin, EEVA-LIISA EHALA violin, RAIN VILU viola, TÕNU JÕESAAR cello, SILVIA ILVES cello, REGINA UDOD double bass, JANA PEÄSKE piano, MADIS METSAMART percussion
Dancing with Tuba (“Tantsivad tuubaga”), Op. 105 (2000)
MADIS VILGATS tuba, MEELIS VIND clarinet, PIRET SANDBERG violin, REGINA UDOD double bass, JANA PEÄSKE piano, MADIS METSAMART percussion
Wind Quintet No. 2 Sheperd’s Tunes (“Karjaseviisid”), Op. 71 (1984)
I: Herding Call. Andante con moto; II: Watch at Night Herding. Moderato; III: Calling the Cattle Home. Andante; IV: Shepherd´s Sunday. Allegretto
MIHKEL PEÄSKE flute, HELI ERNITS oboe, MEELIS VIND clarinet, PEETER SARAPUU bassoon, KALLE KOPPEL horn
Eino Tamberg’s songs for children: Poelaul, Kassilaul, Kõdilaul, Hällilaul nukule, Magusad sõrmed, Suveöö laul, Vannimineku laul, Karumõmmi unelaul
Soloist MARIANNE LEIBUR
Instrumental ensemble:
ARVO LEIBUR violin
KADI VILU violin
RAIN VILU viola
TÕNU JÕESAAR cello
LINDA VOOD flute
MARTEN ALTROV clarinet
MADIS METSAMART percussion
JOEL REMMEL piano
Arrangements for ensemble by Elis Hallik.
Do you wish to go to a real concert? Starting from Friday, 5 June, we welcome audiences back to the Estonia Concert Hall! We will be sure to abide by the 2 + 2 rule in the concert hall – please make sure to read the reminders for concertgoers. Those who wish can also tune in to the live broadcasts of our concerts via ERSO TV or Klassikaraadio.
The musicians of ENSO will perform two extensive Classical chamber music pieces in two separate concerts. The pieces are penned by composers celebrating jubilees this year: 2020 marks the passing of 250 years since the birth of both Czech-French composer Antoine Reicha and German composer Ludwig van Beethoven. The paths of the Prague-born Reicha and the Bonn-native Beethoven crossed in their teenage years, when they both worked at the Bonn court orchestra: Reicha played the violin and the flute, while Beethoven played the violin and the organ.
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770–1827)
Septet in E-flat major, Op. 20 (1799–1800)
Adagio – Allegro con brio
Adagio cantabile
Tempo di menuetto
Tema con variazioni. Andante
Scherzo. Allegro molto e vivace
Andante con molto alla marcia – Presto
TRIIN RUUBEL-LILLEBERG violin
SANDRA KLIMAITĖ viola
LEVI-DANEL MÄGILA cello
MATI LUKK double bass
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
KAIDO SUSS bassoon
MATTIAS VIHMANN horn
Concert is presented by Inchcape Motors Estonia
Do you wish to go to a real concert? Starting from Friday, 5 June, we welcome audiences back to the Estonia Concert Hall! We will be sure to abide by the 2 + 2 rule in the concert hall – please make sure to read the reminders for concertgoers. Those who wish can also tune in to the live broadcasts of our concerts via ERSO TV or Klassikaraadio.
The musicians of ENSO will perform two extensive Classical chamber music pieces in two separate concerts. The pieces are penned by composers celebrating jubilees this year: 2020 marks the passing of 250 years since the birth of both Czech-French composer Antoine Reicha and German composer Ludwig van Beethoven. The paths of the Prague-born Reicha and the Bonn-native Beethoven crossed in their teenage years, when they both worked at the Bonn court orchestra: Reicha played the violin and the flute, while Beethoven played the violin and the organ.
Antoine Reicha (1770–1836)
Octet in E-flat major, Op. 96 (1820)
Lento – Allegro
Adagio
Andante
Minuetto. Allegro
Finale. Allegro vivace
EGERT LEINSAAR violin
MAAREN VIHERMÄE violin
KAREN KRIIT viola
MARGUS UUS cello
MATI LUKK double bass
GUIDO GUALANDI oboe
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
PEETER SARAPUU bassoon
KALLE KOPPEL horn
Concert is presented by Inchcape Motors Estonia
There will be no conductor at the concert ‘Shaping up again’, but the orchestra will take the stage regardless. Soloists include Guido Gualandi, the principal oboe, Peeter Sarapuu, the principal bassoon, and harp soloist Iván Bragado Poveda. The programme includes pieces from Italian Baroque and Viennese Classics to French music from the first half of the twentieth century.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Serenade in D major, K 239 (Serenata notturna)
Alessandro Marcello
Oboe Concerto in D minor
Soloist GUIDO GUALANDI
Claude Debussy
Danse sacrée et danse profane for harp and string orchestra
Soloist IVÁN BRAGADO POVEDA
Jean Françaix
Divertimento for bassoon and strings
Soloist PEETER SARAPUU
ERSO String Orchestra
1st violins: Triin Ruubel-Lilleberg, Marge Uus, Elisabeth Härmand, Piret Sandberg, Kaarin Lehemets
2nd violins: Kaido Välja, Triin Krigul, Miina Laanesaar, Johanna Marie Kork, Mari-Katrina Suss
Violas: Liina Žigurs, Helena Altmanis, Sandra Klimaitė, Karin Sarv
Cellos: Theodor Sink, Silvia Ilves, Villu Vihermäe
Double basses: Mati Lukk, Madis Jürgens
Timpani: Rein Roos
Join the dance!
The future chief conductor Olari Elts will be leading ERSO and the summer will be celebrated with two dance concerts. Together with the dances of Mozart, Beethoven, and Tubin, two cheerful and short symphonies will be performed: Mozart’s Paris Symphony, which was composed to reflect the musical taste of the French audience and is therefore perhaps Mozart’s most extravagant symphony, and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8 with its dance rhythms and humour.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Contredance in D major, K 603 No 1
Contredance in C major La bataille, K 535
Symphony No 31 in D major, K 297/300a Paris
Eduard Tubin
Anglaise and Bear’s Dance from Estonian Folk Dances
Ludwig van Beethoven
Contredances, WoO 14
Symphony No 8 in F major, Op. 93
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor OLARI ELTS
Concert is presented by Epiim
Concert is dedicated to famous Estonian composer Veljo Tormis (7 August 1930 – 21 January 2017).
Eino Tamberg
Opening Fanfares
Veljo Tormis
When Arno Arrived at the School House with his Father from Suite from Kevade
The Singer's Childhood from Melancholy Songs
Spring from Suite from Kevade
Time of Beauty from Melancholy Songs
Eduard Tubin
Crossed Sticks Dance from Suite on Estonian Dances
Old Waltz from Suite on Estonian Dance Tunes
Setu Dance from Suite on Estonian Dances
Heino Eller
Homeland Tune
Veljo Tormis
Overture No. 2
Tõnu Kõrvits
Gaze at the Mountain from Kreek’s Notebook
Kristjan Järvi
Frozen Tears
Veljo Tormis
Nostalgia
Veljo Tormis/Tõnu Kõrvits
Song of a Level Land
Veljo Tormis
Boat Ride to Land of Wonder (arr. by Ülo Krigul)
Liisi Koikson
Sind vaid kiidan (arr. by Ülo Krigul)
LIISI KOIKSON vocal
ARVO LEIBUR violin
Estonian National Symphony Orchestra
Conductor KRISTJAN JÄRVI
ERSO TV broadcasts are created in cooperation with Estonian Public Broadcasting.
Presenter Marge-Ly Rookäär
Engineer Tanel Klesment
Helipilt Grupp OÜ
Priit Perend
Tammo Sumera
Mait Visnapuu
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Duo in G major, KV 423 (arr. by Johannes Taeg)
I: Allegro
II: Adagio
III:
Rondeau – Allegro
Claude Debussy
Beau soir / Beautiful
Evening (arr. by Ruubel-Lilleberg & Poveda)
Camille Saint-Saëns
Fantasy for Violin and Harp, Op. 124
Claude
Debussy
Cello Sonata
I: Prologue: Lent, sostenuto e molto
risoluto (sdn
/ arr. by Poveda)
Lepo Sumera
Waltz from the puppet film Spring Fly (arr. by Ruubel-Lilleberg
& Poveda)
Reynaldo Hahn
L’énamourée / The Loved One (arr. by Ruubel-Lilleberg & Poveda)
Triin Ruubel-Lilleberg (violin)
Iván Bragado Poveda (harp)
Theodor Sink (cello)
LEPO SUMERA
8 May 1950 – 2 June 2000
Silent Odalisque from the cycle Odalisques
JANIKA LENTSIUS flute
Two Capriccios
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
A Horn Piece
YE PAN horn
We!
TERJE TERASMAA, VAMBOLA KRIGUL, LAURI METSVAHI, KASPAR EISEL percussion
Waltz
ARVO LEIBUR violin, KADRI-ANN SUMERA piano
Two Pieces from the Year 1981: The Piece from the Year 1981 & Pardon, Fryderyk!
KADRI-ANN SUMERA piano
Quasi improvisata (premiere of the arrangement for bassoon)
PEETER SARAPUU bassoon, KADRI-ANN SUMERA piano
Senza metro per clarinetto A e pianoforte
MARTEN ALTROV clarinet, KADRI-ANN SUMERA piano
Antonín Dvořák
Terzetto in C major
TRIIN RUUBEL violin, NINA KAWAGUCHI violin, HELENA ALTMANIS viola
Frank Bridge
Lament for two violas
LIINA ŽIGURS, RAIN VILU
Tõnu Kõrvits
Wanderer's Song
KARIN SARV viola
Ástor Piazzolla
Five Tangos (arr. by A. Wiebecke-Gottstein)
LIINA ŽIGURS viola, REGINA UDOD double bass
Sancho Engaño
Blues Suite for viola quartet
RAIN VILU, LIINA ŽIGURS, KARIN SARV, MAIRIT MITT
Katrina Wreede
Violas on a Roll
RAIN VILU, LIINA ŽIGURS, KARIN SARV, MAIRIT MITT, HELENA ALTMANIS, SANDRA KLIMAITĖ, KAREN KRIIT, TRIIN RUUBEL-LILLEBERG
Claude Debussy
Rhapsody No. 1 (arr. by I. Bragado Poveda)
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
IVÁN BRAGADO POVEDA harp
Carl Maria von Weber
Clarinet Quintet in B-flat major, Op. 34
SOO-YOUNG LEE clarinet
KAIDO VÄLJA violin
MARLIS TIMPMANN violin
KRISTIINA VÄLJA viola
MARGUS UUS cello
Carl Maria von Weber
Clarinet Quintet in B-flat major, Op. 34
I: Allegro
II: Fantasia
III: Menuetto. Capriccio presto
IV: Rondo. Allegro giocoso
Gabriel Fauré
Lullaby (Berceuse) from Dolly Suite, Op. 56 (arr. by I. Dobrinescu)
ERSO Clarinet Quartet:
SOO-YOUNG LEE, MADIS KARI, MARTEN ALTROV, MEELIS VIND
Witold Lutosławski
Dance Preludes (Preludia taneczne) (arr. by A. Skender)
ERSO Clarinet Quartet:
SOO-YOUNG LEE, MADIS KARI, MARTEN ALTROV, MEELIS VIND
I: Allegro molto
II: Andantino
III: Allegro giocoso
IV: Andante
V: Allegro molto
Meelis Vind
Tempus est ludendi (dedicated to tho ERSO clarinet section, PREMIERE)
ERSO Clarinet Quartet:
SOO-YOUNG LEE, MADIS KARI, MARTEN ALTROV, MEELIS VIND
Vittorio Monti
Czardas (arr. by S. Brusca)
ERSO Clarinet Quartet:
SOO-YOUNG LEE, MADIS KARI, MARTEN ALTROV, MEELIS VIND
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