Choir and Orchestra musicAeterna. Conductor Teodor Currentzis

Performers:
Orchestra and choir musicAeterna
Conductor — Theodor Kurentzis

 

In the program:
Gustav Mahler (1860–1911)
Symphony No. 2 Resurrection C minor for soprano, alt, mixed choir and orchestra (1888–1894)

 

About the program:
On the 8^th of March 2025 in the Big Concert Hall of the Krasnoyarsk Philharmonics the orchestra and choir musicAeterna ruled by Theodor Kurtenzis will start the tour, which will celebrate their 20^th jubilee. The program of concerts includes the Second Symphony by Gustav Mahler, the composer whose creative activity has been in the focus of the orchestra and conductor’s attention during the whole history of musicAeterna. The complicated idea, philosophic and religious subtext, gigantic performers cast with the participation of the choir and two singers, unbelievable expssiveness and unrestrained thematic and genre “verbosity” of the Second Symphony lead it to great success at the pmiere in 1895. Symphony Resurrection became one the most frequently performed symphonies during Mahler’s life, and with the increase of interest to his creative activity in the second half of the 20^th century it took the honorable place in the world’s concert repertoire.

The symphony, which has got the title Resurrection, starts with funerals. The composer wrote its first part in 1888 as the continuation of the First symphony: “I named the first part Trizna. I burry the hero of my D major symphony in it… At the same time this part is a great question: why did you live? Why did you suffer? Isn’t all this just a huge horrible joke?”. It took seven years to create the full five-hours cycle.  The composer explained the literature program for many times in his letters and even published in the annotation to one of the performances of the symphony, but later he withdrew it from public circulation. The name of the author, who required to isolate the titanic first part form all the others with a five-minute pause, has been saved in the score.

 

Mahler regarded the middle parts of the Second Symphony as an interlude between its opening and grand final. The second part is an exquisite lendler, memories of the hero’s good days. The third one is a picture of senseless rush of life, based on Mahler’s song The fish pachment of Antonius of Padua, in which fish continue eating each other instead of following the Saint’s  exhortation. In the fourth part a word appears for the first time. 

 

The song "Primeval Light", based on the text from the collection "The Boy's Wonderful Horn" by Arnim and Brentano, becomes an important stop for the hero, who is trying to get rid of the hardships of life: “ Oh, little red rose! Man lies in greatest need! Man lies in greatest pain!”

 

The symphony’s final lasts for over half an hour and includes two big sections: the orchestra part joins all the important themes of the cycle, which have sounded before, into a vibrant cloth, and only afterwards the choir and two solo voices join it. Mahler had been looking for the text for the final choir terribly long, and he heard it at his idol’s funerals, the conductor Hans von Bulow. The eight lines of the chant the poet of the 17^th century Friedrich Klopstock “Arise, yes, you will arise from the dead, My dust, after a short rest” the composer added his own lines: “O believe, my heart, oh believe, Nothing will be lost to you!...” According to the narrative hook of the chant the symphony got the title Resurrection.

 

About the conductor:

 

 

Teodor Currentzis is the founder and artistic director of the orchestra and choir musicAeterna.

 

He was born and grew in Greece, where he started his musical education. In 1994 he came to study to the legendary professor of the Saint Petersburg State Conservatory Ilya Musin.

 

In 2004 he became the head conductor of Novosibirsk Opera and Ballet Theatre and founded the orchestra and choir musicAeterna. In 2011—2019 he was the artistic director of the Opera and Ballet Theatre in Perm, where the musicians of musicAeterna moved with him. From 2012 he was the artistic director of Dyagilev Festival in Perm. From 2018 to 2024 Teodor Currentzis was the head conductor of the Symphony orchestra of the South-West radio of Germany. In 2019 Teodor Currentzis and musicAeterna moved to Saint Petersburg, and Dom Radio has become their creative residence.

 

As a stage conductor, Teodor Currentzis collaborates with the leading conductors of the world (Robert Willson, Romeo Castellucci, Piter Sellars, Dmitry Chernyakov, Theodoros Terzopoulos и др.) and the largest opera theatres of Europe and Russia.  Heading the Perm Opera, Kurentzis psented the new compositions, wrote on his order: opera Nosferatu by Dmitry Kurlyandskiy (2014), violin concert by Sergey Nevskiy (2015), Cantos by Aleksey Syumak (2016), choir opera Tristia (Sorrows) by Philippe Hersant (2016).

 

Together with musicAeterna and other orchestras Teodor Currentzis regularly tours over the world, performing in such venues as Berlin, Elba, Munich and Paris Philharmonics, concert halls in Colone, Madrid, Vienn Concerthause in Madrid, Vienna Konzerthaus, The Shed in New York, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Royal Albert Hall in London,  Baden-Baden Festspielhaus and La Scala, the Big Hall of the Moscow Conservatory, the Zaryadye Hall and Saint Petersburg Philharmonics. Teodor Currentzis is a constant participant of festivals in Saltsburg, Lucerne, Aix-en-Provence, Bochum and Saint Petersburg.

 

The works of Mozart, Mahler, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Rameau and Stravinsky, released by musicAeterna and Teodor Currentzis at Sony Classical record label, have been highly esteemed by music critics and become the laureates of pstigious music awards: ECHO Klassik, Edison Klassiek, Japanese Record Academy Award, BBC Music Magazine’s Opera Award.

 

Teodor Currentz is a nine-times laureate of the Russian theatre award Golden Mask, the laureate of KAIROS award, the Сommander of the medal of the Order of Phoenix and  Recipient of the Order of Friendship

 

About the orchestra:
The musicAeterna orchestra is one of the most popular Russian bands, which constantly broadens the borders of its creative abilities in the sphere of ancient music in the historically informed performing, academic classics and modern music.

 

The orchestra was founded by the conductor Teodor Currentzis in 2004 in Novosibirsk, form 2011 to 2019 it was a part of the troupe of Perm Opera and Ballet Theatre. In 2019 Saint Petersburg Radio House became the creative residence of musicAeterna, where the interdisciplinary cultural centre was established on the initiative of Theodor Kurentzis.

 

Together with Teodor Currentzis musicAeterna regularly tours around Russia and the world, performing in the most pstigious venues. In 2017 musicAeterna became the first Russian collective, which opened the main program of Saltsburg Festival. The orchestra has also participated in such festivals as RUHRtriennale, Klara Festival in Brussels, festival in Aix-en-Provence, Diaghilev PS in Saint Petersburg, Dyagilev Festival in Perm.

 

The records of Mozart, Mahler, Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Rameau and Stravinsky, released by musicAeterna and Teodor Currentzis at Sony Classical label, were highly esteemed by music critics and became the laureates of pstigious music awards: ECHO Klassik, Edison Klassiek, Japanese Record Academy Award, BBC Music Magazine’s Opera Award.

 

Age category: 6+

Photo: web-site of Krasnoyarsk Regional Philharmonics