Voyage en Italie

Around Rigoletto, this concert is an invitation to continue the journey to the land of Verdi. A journey to Renaissance Italy, in the footsteps of Botticelli: the movements of Respighi’s Trittico Botticelliano ech a tryptich by the painter – Spring, The Adoration of the Magi and The Birth of Venus. The relative simplicity and sobriety of these pieces underline the finesse of the timbres and the refinement of the harmonies.

When it was first performed in 1832, Le Roi s’amuse was censored by the July Monarchy, which could not stand the mirror of a court with dissolute morals help up by Victor Hugo. It was not until fifty years later that the play was revived. It was on this occasion, in 1882, that the prolific Léo Delibes composed six dance tunes in the old style for the ball scene.

Hugo Wolf's name is associated with the art of the lied, whose various components he was able to bring to perfection - intensity of melody, density of harmonic colour, and subtlety of instrumental accompaniment. The Italian Serenade is the work of a composer who, at the age of thirty, was searching for himself and experimenting with new genres. It was first composed for string quartet before being adapted for small orchestra. This short 8-minute piece reveals a sunny grace and a passionate flame that is hard to resist.

Discovered a few years after Schubert’s death, the Unfinished Symphony - which consists of only two movements – contributes to the composer’s legend. Begun in 1822 and promised to the Styrian Musical Society, which had received Schubert as an honorary member, this symphony is distinguished from the others by its intimate character. It is like a fragile and moving dialogue with the audience, through which Schubert reveals his worries and doubts, right up to the coda of gentle resilience.