This season's soloists

Dalia Stasevska conducts music that, in different ways, gives voice to the longing for freedom in times of war. Thomas de Hartmann, Aaron Copland, and Benjamin Britten composed their works during World War II, while Bohdana Frolyak wrote hers amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. American violinist Joshua Bell is the soloist in de Hartmann’s Violin Concerto.

• Aaron Copland  Fanfare for the Common Man
• Thomas de Hartmann  Violin Concerto
• Bohdana Frolyak  Let There Be Light
• Benjamin Britten  Sinfonia da Requiem

• Dalia Stasevska,  Conductor
• Joshua Bell,  Violin

The German composer, conductor, and clarinetist Jörg Widmann leads the Oslo Philharmonic in Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 and two of his own works at this year’s Ultima concert. In his orchestral piece Con brio, Widmann playfully explores Beethoven’s musical devices. His sister, Carolin Widmann, is the soloist in his Violin Concerto No. 2.

• Jörg Widmann  Con brio
• Jörg Widmann  Violin Concerto No. 2
• Ludwig van Beethoven  Symphony No. 7

• Jörg Widmann,  Conductor
• Carolin Widmann,  Violin

Kazuki Yamada conducts a program of French orchestral music with vocal elements: Maurice Duruflé’s Gregorian-inspired Requiem, Maurice Ravel’s Shéhérazade, and Suite No. 2 from Daphnis et Chloé. The concert also marks the beginning of choral conductor Simon Halsey’s tenure as the Oslo Philharmonic’s Choral Director and Artistic Advisor.

• Maurice Duruflé  Requiem
• Maurice Ravel  Shéhérazade
• Maurice Ravel  Daphnis & Chloé: Suite No. 2

• Kazuki Yamada,  Conductor
• Aigul Akhmetshina,  Mezzo-soprano
• Konstantin Krimmel,  Baritone
• Oslo Filharmoniske Kor, 
• Simon Halsey,  Choral director and artistic advisor

Pekka Kuusisto conducts the Oslo Philharmonic and Ung Filharmoni in a concert featuring two musical interpretations of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet—Johan Svendsen’s Concert Overture and Sergei Prokofiev’s ballet music. Tine Thing Helseth is the soloist in a new trumpet concerto written for her by Nico Muhly.

• Johan Svendsen  Romeo and Juliet
• Nico Muhly  Doom Painting (Trumpet Concerto)
• Sergei Prokofiev  Romeo & Juliet: Suite No. 2: I. Montagues and Capulets
• Sergei Prokofiev  Romeo & Juliet: Suite No. 1
• Sergei Prokofiev  Romeo & Juliet: Suite No. 2: VII. Romeo at Juliet's Grave

• Pekka Kuusisto,  Conductor
• Tine Thing Helseth,  Trumpet
• Ung Filharmoni, 

Mieczysław Weinberg lost his family in the concentration camps. Fifty years later, he composed Symphony No. 21 in memory of the Holocaust victims from his hometown, Warsaw. Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla conducts the symphony along with Suite No. 4 from The Golden Key. Marie-Ange Nguci is the piano soloist in Sergei Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini.

• Mieczysław Weinberg  The Golden Key: Suite No. 4
• Sergej Rachmaninoff  Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini
• Mieczysław Weinberg  Symphony No. 21

• Mirga Gražinytė-Tyla,  Conductor
• Marie-Ange Nguci,  Piano
• Eirin Rognerud,  Soprano

Antonello Manacorda conducts two melodious milestones of 19th-century symphonic music: Franz Schubert’s unfinished Symphony No. 8 and Johannes Brahms’ Symphony No. 2. Maximilian Hornung is the soloist in Camille Saint-Saëns’ brilliant Cello Concerto No. 2.

• Franz Schubert  Symphony No. 8, «Unfinished»
• Camille Saint-Saëns  Cello Concerto No. 2
• Johannes Brahms  Symphony No. 2

• Antonello Manacorda,  Conductor
• Maximilian Hornung,  Cello

Honorary Conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste leads Gustav Mahler’s contrast-rich Symphony No. 5, which opens with a funeral march and culminates in a jubilant finale. Tabea Zimmermann is the soloist in Béla Bartók’s Viola Concerto, a work the composer wrote at the very end of his life.

• Béla Bartók  Viola Concerto
• Gustav Mahler  Symphony No. 5

• Jukka-Pekka Saraste,  Conductor
• Tabea Zimmermann,  Viola

Bjørn Kruse’s new violin concerto is written for Oslo Philharmonic violinist Maria Angelika Carlsen, who premieres the work as the soloist. In Unfolding Moments, new musical ideas continuously emerge, seamlessly connected by the violin’s voice. Finnish conductor Eva Ollikainen leads one of the most iconic symphonies in classical music—Ludwig van Beethoven’s Fate Symphony.

• György Ligeti  Concert Românesc
• Bjørn Kruse  Unfolding Moments (fiolinkonsert)
• Ludwig van Beethoven  Symfoni nr. 5

• Eva Ollikainen,  Dirigent
• Maria Angelika Carlsen,  Fiolin

Vasily Petrenko and Nobuyuki Tsujii perform Sergei Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No. 2 – the concerto that was lost in a fire and had to be rewritten.

• Sergei Prokofiev  Piano Concerto No. 2

• Vasily Petrenko,  Conductor
• Nobuyuki Tsujii,  Piano

Vasily Petrenko conducts two works by Sergei Prokofiev that, in their own way, rose from the ashes: Piano Concerto No. 2, which was lost in a fire and had to be rewritten, and Symphony No. 3, based on the abandoned opera The Fiery Angel.

• Sergej Prokofjev  Piano Concerto No. 2
• Sergej Prokofjev  Symphony No. 3

• Vasily Petrenko,  Conductor
• Nobuyuki Tsujii,  Piano

With his grand and multifaceted cantata Carmina Burana, Carl Orff created a unique gateway to classical music that has captivated new audiences since its premiere in 1937. Santtu-Matias Rouvali conducts the Oslo Philharmonic alongside soloists and choir.

• Carl Orff  Carmina Burana

• Santtu-Matias Rouvali,  Conductor
• Beate Mordal,  Soprano
• Brett Sprague,  Tenor
• Audun Iversen,  Baritone
• Oslo Philharmonic Choir, 
• Håkon Matti Skrede,  Choirmaster

Edvard Grieg and Pyotr Tchaikovsky met on New Year’s Day in 1888. They admired each other’s music and quickly became close friends. Nathalie Stutzmann conducts Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 5, which he composed shortly after his meeting with Grieg, while Nikolai Lugansky is the soloist in Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor.

• Richard Wagner  The Mastersingers of Nuremberg: Overture
• Edvard Grieg  Piano Concerto
• Pyotr Tchaikovsky  Symphony No. 5

• Nathalie Stutzmann,  Conductor
• Nikolai Lugansky,  Piano

Nathalie Stutzmann conducts the overture to Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg, and Nikolai Lugansky is the soloist in Grieg’s Piano Concerto in A minor.

• Richard Wagner  The Mastersingers of Nuremberg: Overture
• Edvard Grieg  Piano Concerto

• Nathalie Stutzmann,  Conductor
• Nikolai Lugansky,  Piano

Before the orchestra’s European tour with Chief Conductor Klaus Mäkelä and violin soloist Lisa Batiashvili, you’ll have the opportunity to hear the music that the Oslo Philharmonic will perform on tour.

• Pjotr Tsjaikovskij  Violin Concerto
• Dmitrij Sjostakovitsj  Symphony No. 8

• Klaus Mäkelä,  Conductor
• Lisa Batiashvili,  Violin

Mari Eriksmoen is the soloist in Ludvig Irgens-Jensen’s song cycle Japanischer Frühling, with texts drawn from a collection of Asian poetry. Honorary Conductor Jukka-Pekka Saraste also leads the Oslo Philharmonic in Anton Bruckner’s monumental Symphony No. 8.

• Ludvig Irgens-Jensen  Japanischer Frühling
• Anton Bruckner  Symphony No. 8

• Jukka-Pekka Saraste,  Conductor
• Mari Eriksmoen,  Soprano

Roberto González-Monjas conducts music by two Vienna-based composers who excelled both as musicians and composers: Piano Concerto No. 21 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, featuring Mao Fujita as soloist, and Symphony No. 2 by Franz Schmidt.

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  Piano Concerto No. 21
• Franz Schmidt  Symphony No. 2

• Roberto González-Monjas,  Conductor
• Mao Fujita,  Piano

Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider conducts music by two close friends and towering figures in music history: Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 7 and Johannes Brahms’ Tragic Overture. Amalie Stalheim is the soloist in Anders Hillborg’s Cello Concerto from 2020, which has been praised for its intimate soundscape and elegant references to Renaissance music.

• Johannes Brahms  Tragic Overture
• Anders Hillborg  Cello Concerto
• Antonín Dvořák  Symphony No. 7

• Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider,  Dirigent
• Amalie Stalheim,  Cello

A unique Norwegian compositional voice meets Norway’s leading piano star as Leif Ove Andsnes premieres Ørjan Matre’s Piano Concerto. Thomas Søndergård conducts Matre’s orchestral work Lyric Pieces, inspired by Edvard Grieg’s piano miniatures, along with Richard Strauss’ virtuosic and self-revealing symphonic poem Ein Heldenleben.

• Ørjan Matre  Lyric Pieces
• Ørjan Matre  Piano Concerto
• Richard Strauss  Ein Heldenleben

• Thomas Søndergård,  Conductor
• Leif Ove Andsnes,  Piano

Experience Mozart’s Requiem with the entire main floor of the hall transformed into one large choir, singing together with the Oslo Philharmonic Choir while the orchestra performs. For the first time ever, the Oslo Philharmonic presents a sing-along concert, led by the choir’s new conductor, Simon Halsey. This will be a powerful experience for listeners, musicians, and singers alike. Please note: Tickets on the main floor for singers wishing to participate will go on sale at a later date. Audience members who wish to listen only may purchase seats in the balcony.

• Gabriel Fauré  Cantique de Jean Racine
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  Requiem

• Simon Halsey,  Conductor
• Oslo Philharmonic Choir, 
• Choir from Edvard Munch VGS, 
• Lina Johnson,  Soprano
• Melis Jaatinen,  Mezzo-soprano
• Eirik Grøtvedt,  Tenor
• Johannes Weisser,  Bass

Giovanni Antonini conducts Mozart’s final symphony alongside works by two influential composers of his time. Christoph Willibald Gluck revolutionized stage music with pieces like the ballet Don Juan, while Giovanni Battista Viotti reshaped the solo concerto. Dmitry Smirnov is the soloist in Paganini’s Violin Concerto No. 1.

• Christoph Willibald Gluck  Don Juan: Suite
• Niccolò Paganini  Violin Concerto No. 1
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  Symphony No. 41

• Giovanni Antonini,  Conductor
• Dmitry Smirnov,  Violin

Aivis Greters conducts the Oslo Philharmonic’s choir and orchestra in Johannes Brahms’ dramatic Schicksalslied, Pēteris Vasks’ meditative The Fruit of Silence, and Igor Stravinsky’s powerful Symphony of Psalms. The Easter concert also features the world premiere of Herman Vogt’s orchestral work Lux Manifesta.

• Pēteris Vasks  The Fruit of Silence
• Igor Stravinsky  Symphony of Psalms
• Herman Vogt  Lux Manifesta, 1st and 2nd movement
• Johannes Brahms  Schicksalslied

• Aivis Greters,  Conductor
• Oslo Filharmoniske Kor, 
• Simon Halsey,  Choral director and artistic advisor

The clarinet was still a relatively new instrument when Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed his famous Clarinet Concerto. Tonight’s soloist is Martin Fröst, who has expanded and reinvented the expressive range of the clarinet in our time.

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  Clarinet Concerto

• Osmo Vänskä,  Conductor
• Martin Fröst,  Clarinet

The clarinet was still a relatively new instrument when Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composed his famous Clarinet Concerto. Tonight’s soloist is Martin Fröst, who has expanded and redefined the expressive possibilities of the clarinet in our time. Finnish composer Sauli Zinovjev explores the sound, taste, and weight of metal in his symphony Taste of Metal. Osmo Vänskä conducts.

• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart  Clarinet Concerto
• Sauli Zinovjev  Taste of Metal

• Osmo Vänskä,  Conductor
• Martin Fröst,  Clarinet

Maxim Emelyanychev conducts two of the 19th century’s most beloved orchestral works: Johannes Brahms’ orchestral debut, Piano Concerto No. 1, and Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s farewell work, Symphony No. 6. Alexander Melnikov is the soloist in Brahms’ piano concerto.

• Johannes Brahms  Piano Concerto No. 1
• Pjotr Tsjaikovskij  Symphony No. 6 «Pathétique»

• Maxim Emelyanychev,  Conductor
• Alexander Melnikov,  Piano

The premiere of the ballet The Rite of Spring was one of the most legendary scandals of the 20th century, but Igor Stravinsky’s music has endured as one of the century’s masterpieces. Håkan Hardenberger is the soloist in Jörg Widmann’s trumpet concerto Towards Paradise, conducted by Alain Altinoglu.

• Jörg Widmann  Towards Paradise (Labyrinth VI)
• Igor Stravinskij  Vårofferet

• Alain Altinoglu,  Dirigent
• Håkan Hardenberger,  Trompet

Truls Mørk is the soloist in Antonín Dvořák’s Cello Concerto as the Oslo Philharmonic and Chief conductor Klaus Mäkelä bring the concert season to a close. Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg made his international breakthrough as an orchestral composer with the massive work Kraft, scored for soloist ensemble, electronics, and orchestra.

• Antonín Dvořák  Cello Concerto
• Magnus Lindberg  Kraft

• Klaus Mäkelä,  Conductor
• Truls Mørk,  Cello
• Magnus Lindberg,  Piano
• Chen Halevi,  Clarinet
• Anssi Karttunen,  Cello
• Terje Viken,  Percussion
• Christopher Lane,  Timpani
• David Poissonnier,  Sound design