BACK-TO-SCHOOL CONCERT BRAHMS • TANAKA • MOZART

The Orchestre national Montpellier Occitanie kicks off the season with a Finnish conductor on a meteoric rise: Eva Ollikainen, winner of the Jorma Panula Competition and artistic director of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra, leads a program of contrasting brilliance.

First, Brahms' Tragic Overture, composed in 1880: a dark and vehement piece, like a condensed drama. Then, the Swedish Håkan Hardenberger, an exceptional trumpeter (over 40 years pushing the boundaries of his instrument), premieres in France Verse of Light by Karen Tanaka, a Japanese composer trained in Paris under Tristan Murail and Luciano Berio. Her concerto, with its pure atmospheres, blends bright bursts and meditation. Finally, Mozart's Symphony No. 39, the first of his glorious final triptych. The initial adagio opens with solemn grandeur, followed by a lively minuet and a sparkling finale. Three works, three worlds: from stormy romanticism to classical grace, leading to contemporary creation. An evening that combines tradition and boldness.

Program

Johannes Brahms (1833 – 1897)
Tragic Overture Op. 81

Karen Tanaka (*1961)
Verse of Light, trumpet concerto
French premiere
Commissioned by the Malmö Symphony Orchestra and the Opéra Orchestre national Montpellier Occitanie

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)
Symphony No. 39 in E-flat major KV 543

Duration: ±1h20 without intermission

Single ticket price: €16

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