Conductor: Iván Fischer Soloist: Akiko Suwanai – violin Brahms: Variations on a Theme by Haydn, op. 56/a Prokofiev: Violin Concerto No. 2 in G minor, op. 63 Brahms: Symphony No. 1 in C minor, op. 68 “A fitting ante-chamber to the main building of the symphonies”, was Antal Molnár’s accurate description of the Haydn Variations. Brahms, who was strongly interested in the genre of variation writing, was introduced to the Haydn theme by his friend, Karl Ferdinand Pohl who was writing a biograph...y of Haydn. (Since then, it has been determined that the St Anthony Chorale used in the divertimento was not written by Haydn.) Brahms treats the melody in eight variations before appending a passacaglia form finale. “Above all, one has to write good, high quality music, a work which in its spirit and technique keeps pace with the requirements of our time. […] It must primarily be melodic without becoming trivial.” Sergei Prokofiev wrote these lines in 1934 and was led by its principals when composing his Violin Concerto No. 2 shortly afterwards. This evening’s soloist will be the Japanese Akiko Suwanai who won the Moscow Tchaikovsky Competition in 1990 when she was the youngest participant in the event’s history. Since 1992 she has given concerts regularly and performed with virtually all the leading orchestras of Europe, America and the Far East. “Seldom, if ever, has the entire musical world awaited a composer's first symphony with such tense anticipation”, wrote the famous critic Eduard Hanslick in his report on the première of Brahms’s First Symphony in 1876. Even though Brahms was a highly self critical composer, the more than two decades of hesitation between the first sketches and the finished score are exceptional. This monumental work is a fusion of classical structure and full blown Romantic imagination. Hans von Bülow described it as “The Tenth”, implying that Brahms had succeeded in reaching the standards set by Beethoven in composing symphonies.
Parking information
We wish to inform you that in the event that Müpa Budapest's underground garage and outdoor car park are operating at full capacity, it is advisable to plan for increased waiting times when you arrive. In order to avoid this, we recommend that you depart for our events in time, so that you you can find the ideal parking spot quickly and smoothly and arrive for our performance in comfort. The Müpa Budapest underground garage gates will be operated by an automatic number plate recognition system. Parking is free of charge for visitors with tickets to any of our paid performances on that given day. The detailed parking policy of Müpa Budapest is available here.
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