First Symphony Concert

“How one is surrounded by the mysterious spell of forest life from the beginning to the end”, was Clara Schumann’s enthusiastic reaction to Brahms’ Third Symphony. She bestowed further praise on her close friend’s composition, hailing it “poetry…every movement a jewel”. The Third Symphony is one of Brahms’ Wiesbaden compositions, written here in the summer of 1883 when the composer was 50 years old. Zsolt Hamar, General Music Director of the State Theatre, continues his Brahms cycle with this magnificent work.
 
From the oeuvre of Max Reger and Wiesbaden-born Hans Zender (b. 1936) come two works which are strongly rooted in other compositions. Composed in 1914, the theme for Reger’s “Variations and Fugue on a theme by Mozart” was drawn from the first movement of Mozart’s Piano Sonata in A major, K. 331, showing how even the most supremely considered musical material can benefit from further development and re-imagination.
 
Hans Zender is highly regarded for his adaptations and development of a wholly unique tonal language, such as his famous interpretation of Schubert’s “Winterreise”. With the endless tonal possibilities offered by the orchestra, along with unusual effects such as a whining musical saw and a pistol shot, he bathes five of Claude Debussy’s Préludes in a completely new light.