8. Sinfoniekonzert

In the organizer's words:

"Royal Flush"

Joseph Haydn
Symphony in B flat major No. 85 Hob. I:85 "La Reine"

Richard Strauss
Concerto for Horn and Orchestra No. 2 in E flat major TrV 283

Rebecca Saunders
traces

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Missa brevis in C major KV 317 "Coronation Mass"

The Hagen Philharmonic Orchestra bids a regal farewell to the summer break with its eighth symphony concert. Joseph Haydn's Symphony No. 85 "La Reine", which owes its nickname to Marie-Antoinette, opens the concert in a lively manner. The piece is dance-like and folksy through and through, be it in the light-footed opening movement, in the variation movement on the romance "La gentille et jeune Lisette", in the minuet with its Ländler trio or in the final rondo finale.

Richard Strauss considered his creative work complete in 1941. From then on, he only devoted himself to "wrist exercises" for his estate, including the Four Last Songs, the Metamorphoses, the Oboe Concerto and the Second Horn Concerto. The latter was composed in 1942 and only hints at the circumstances of the time in its uncompromising repression. From the three-movement structure to the rondo finale and the key of E flat major to the dedicatee, reminiscences of the first horn concerto shine through everywhere. At the same time, Strauss' compositional maturity is evident in the originality and freedom of the form.

Berlin-based British composer Rebecca Saunders is one of the leading composers of her generation. In 2019, she received the prestigious Ernst von Siemens Music Prize. In her oeuvre, she pays particular attention to the three-dimensional and spatial qualities of music. In traces , the contrast between silence and surprising sound effects plays a special role. The pupil of Wolfgang Rihm deliberately prefaces the piece with cryptic quotations and comments in which she plays with meaning.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "Coronation Mass" is less cryptic, but no less fascinating. As Salzburg court organist, he created it for performance at Easter 1779 and it probably owes its nickname to the coronation of Franz II the following year. Its symphonic character, the captivating rhythms and the charming contrast between the soloist quartet and the choir are captivating. With great solemnity, the work forms the crowning finale of the concert season.