Sibelius Liszt Mäkelä Wang

Jean Sibelius put an end to his career with a unique contribution to orchestral music with his tone poem Tapiola in 1926. Just like his seventh and last symphony, which was completed a few years previous, Sibelius strived for unity in the music he created. Everything in it originates from one basic idea. As is often with Sibelius, inspiration was taken from the deep forests of the Nordic countries. Tapio is the god of the forest in Finnish mythology.

Franz Liszt was a legendary concert pianist and could conjure up the most incredible improvisations at the piano. It still took him nearly 25 years to finish writing his Piano Concerto No. 1. He played the piano himself at the premiere in 1855. At this concert, Yuja Wang, one of today’s most famous and gifted pianists, will showcase her talent in Liszt’s piece.

Richard Strauss wrote his tone poem Ein Heldenleben in the 1890s. In six parts he portrays the hero in the story, his adversaries, his companion, and the different phases of his life: battle, reconciliation, and completion. The music ranges from the monumentally heroic in the depictions of the hero’s ambitions and struggles to the soft and tender in the portrayal of the hero’s great love.