In memoriam – zwischen Trauer und Aufbruch

In the organizer's words:

IN MEMORIAM - BETWEEN MOURNING AND NEW BEGINNINGS

Compositions for string orchestra

Members of the Collegium musicum of the Ruhr University Bochum play an expressive program of compositions for string orchestra as part of the "ERINNERN" series of events to commemorate the end of the war 80 years ago.

Alongside Tchaikovsky's String Serenade, Barber's Adagio for Strings and Schoenberg's Verklärter Nacht, Richard Strauss' Metamorphosen and Dmitri Shostakovich's Chamber Symphony are among the most important, best-known and moving compositions for string orchestra. The genesis of both compositions is closely linked to the composers' personal experiences during the Second World War. Both Strauss and Shostakovich process experiences of loss, destruction and dictatorship in their music. Johann Nepomuk David's Melancholia is not directly related to the war, but the viola concerto inspired by Albrecht Dürer's famous engraving of the same name can certainly be heard as David's confrontation with his past. Like Strauss and Shostakovich, David's existence was dependent on political concessions - something that was repeatedly criticized in retrospect. It is therefore rewarding to listen to music that was created under such circumstances. These are sounds that are immediately moving - that give a sense of the emotional states of the time - of their longings and hopes, their despair and fears, and of their memories and utopias.