Eighth Symphony Concert

A rarely programmed work awaits in the last symphony concert of the season: a symphonic version of Richard Wagner’s “Ring des Nibelungen”, without vocals, yet with all the splendour of Wagner’s great magnum opus. “The ‘Ring’ Without Words” is an arrangement by Bayreuth stalwart Lorin Maazel. Remaining as faithful as possible to Wagner’s epic cycle, it contains all the highs and lows of Wotan, King of the Gods, the lovers Siegmund and Sieglinde, the hero Siegfried, Brünnhilde the Valkyrie, and of course the forging of the ring from the Rhine maidens’ stolen gold. Wagner’s reinvention of the orchestra elevated its role to that of equal narrator, allowing it to weave an eloquent subtext to the stage action through his intricate employment of leitmotifs. This compact insight into Wagner’s world precedes Mozart’s overtly dark, dramatic and impassioned Piano Concerto in D minor, since its first performance in 1785 one of the composer’s most performed concertos.  The soloist is Tzimon Barto, who has distinguished himself not only as a pianist, but also as conductor and author of two novels, while General Music Director Zsolt Hamar conducts the Hessian State Orchestra.