Klaus Mäkela
Antoine Tamestit Felix Mendelssohn
Hector Berlioz

Felix Mendelssohn traveled to London for the first time as a 20-year-old in 1829. It was to be the first of many visits to the British Isles, and he got many loyal fans there. This summer, he went on a three-week tour of Scotland. The experience made a strong impression on the composer, and after a visit to Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh, he got the idea for a Scottish symphony. He did not finish the symphony until 13 years later, without any references to Scotland. But the story and the nickname "the Scottish" stuck to Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 3 nonetheless. 

In 1830, Hector Berlioz won the prestigious French music award Prix de Rome. A condition for receiving the prize money was a more extended stay in Rome, something Berlioz was less interested in than the prize money. The visit became memorable and fueled many of Berlioz' later pieces. In Rome, he also got to know a composer he appreciated - Felix Mendelssohn. Harold in Italy from 1833 took its title from a famous epic poem by Englishman Lord Byron and bears the stamp of the composer's own wanderings in the Italian mountain landscapes.

About Antoine Tamestit

Violist Antoine Tamestit is internationally recognized as a leading soloist, recitalist and chamber musician beloved for his unsurpassed technique and the much-vaunted beauty of his richly coloured tone. His broad repertoire ranges from Baroque to the present, and his strong commitment to contemporary music is reflected in numerous premieres of new works.