5. Sinfoniekonzert: Von Trauer zu Triumph
5th Symphony Concert: From Sorrow to Triumph
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
Violin Concerto in A Minor BWV 1041
Frank Michael Erben, Violin
Maurice Ravel (1875-1937)
Le tombeau de Couperin
Intermission
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Symphony No. 7 op. 92
Johann Sebastian Bach's Violin Concerto in A Minor is one of the most performed and beloved solo concertos in the repertoire. The work was most likely composed in Leipzig, where Bach, in addition to his duties as Thomaskantor, also led the Collegium Musicum. Maurice Ravel considered the suite Le tombeau de Couperin (Tomb for François Couperin) as a tribute to French music of the 18th century. He completed the work in its original version for piano in 1917 shortly after his front-line service in World War I, dedicating each movement to a fallen comrade. The orchestral arrangement of the suite was created two years later. Shortly after the Battle of Leipzig, Beethoven himself conducted the premiere of his 7th Symphony in Vienna as part of a benefit concert for the anti-Napoleonic fighters. This premiere was a great success, with the 2nd movement being demanded for an encore. Due to its use in numerous films, it is still well-known to a wide audience today.
Frank Michael Erben comes from a Leipzig family of musicians and began playing the violin at the age of five. After completing his studies at the Leipzig University of Music "Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy," he was elected as the first concertmaster of the Gewandhaus Orchestra at the age of twenty-one. In 2007, he was also appointed as the first concertmaster of the Bayreuth Festival Orchestra. Under conductors such as Sir Neville Mariner, Kurt Masur, Herbert Blomstedt, and Riccardo Chailly, he performed violin concertos by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Bruch, Tchaikovsky, Sibelius, and Korngold, and appeared as a soloist with renowned orchestras in Europe, the Middle East, North and South America. Most recently, Frank Michael Erben performed as a soloist in Haydn's Sinfonia Concertante under the direction of Andris Nelsons at Symphony Hall in Boston. Together with the Gewandhaus Orchestra, Erben toured Europe multiple times performing Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto. For his contributions to Beethoven's chamber music works, Erben was elected as an honorary member of the Bonner Beethoven Society. His complete recording of Beethoven's string quartets with the Gewandhaus Quartet was awarded the German Record Prize. The city of Leipzig awarded him the International Mendelssohn Prize. For several years, Frank Michael Erben has also worked as a conductor. In addition to various German orchestras, including the Gewandhaus Orchestra, he has also conducted the Royal Scottish National Orchestra and the Herzliya Chamber Orchestra (Israel). From 2009 to 2014, he served as the chief conductor of the Leipzig Symphony Orchestra. In 2009, Frank Michael Erben founded the 2nd subscription concert series of the LSO at the Markkleeberger Lindensaal. Through his personal commitment to Leipzig's Mayor Burkhard Jung, the former West Saxon Symphony Orchestra adopted its current name.
Concert introductions with Claudia Forner will take place 1 hour before the concert starts.
Admittance from 7 p.m.