Published on Mar 8, 2018

Rating:

Genre: NCPA

Dates: Sunday, May 27, 2018

Venue: Concret Hall of NCPA

Prices: 200, 400, 600, 780, 880, 980, 1200

Features: WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne is one of the most influential orchestras in the musical landscape of North Rhine Westphalia. On May 27th, the orchestra and Jukka-Pekka Saraste will be performing at Concert Hall of NCPA in Beijing.

PROGRAMME

Beethoven
Symphony No.7 in A major, Op. 92

——Intermission——

Sibelius
Symphony No. 2 in D major, Op. 43

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

Jukka-Pekka Saraste
Jukka-Pekka Saraste has established himself as one of the outstanding conductors of his generation, demonstrating remarkable musical depth and integrity. Born in Heinola, Finland, he began his career as a violinist before training as a conductor with Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.

An artist of exceptional versatility and breadth, Saraste feels a special affinity with the sound and style of late Romantic music. Equally, he maintains a strong connection with the music of our time, such as that of Dutilleux, Lindberg, Salonen and Saariaho, among others. He conducted world premieres of works by Wolfgang Rihm, Friedrich Cerha, Pascal Dusapin and others. Moreover, he is co-founder of the Avanti! Chamber Orchestra, which has a strong emphasis on contemporary music.

Saraste has served as Chief Conductor of the WDR Symphony Orchestra, Cologne since 2010 and extended his contract in 2015 until the end of the 2018/2019 season. He was Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra from 2006 to 2013, and at the end of his tenure was appointed Conductor Laureate, the very first such title bestowed by that orchestra. His previous positions include the principal conductorships of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra (1987-1991), Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra (1987-2001), after which he was made Conductor Laureate, Toronto Symphony Orchestra (1994-2001), and he also served as Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra (2002-2005). He has recently held the position of Artistic Advisor of the Lahti Symphony Orchestra, and founded the Finnish Chamber Orchestra, for which he is still Artistic Advisor. He also founded the orchestras annual Tammisaari Festival, for which he is Artistic Director.

WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne
WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne is one of the most influential orchestras in the musical landscape of North Rhine Westphalia – thanks to its subscription series at Kolner Philharmonie and Funkhaus Wallrafplatz as well as partnerships with the region’s largest concert halls and festivals. International tours and a growing number of award-winning CD releases confirm its international rank as an outstanding representative of the German orchestra scene. Broadcast by the WDR on radio and television as well as in the digital media, recordings of the orchestra and its illustrious guests are regularly available to the public at large. With a wide range of projects in musical education the WDR Symphony Orchestra also makes a major contribution to cultural literacy.

During the concert season 2017/2018 the WDR Symphony Orchestra celebrated its 70th birthday. Founded in 1947, it initially worked with renowned guest conductors before Christoph von Dohnanyi was appointed as its first principal conductor in 1964. It was mainly under the direction of Gary Bertini that the ensemble gained an international standing, becoming a champion of the symphonies of Gustav Mahler in the 1980s.

Tickets for Jukka-Pekka Saraste and WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne are Available now!