
12nach12
Direction, Piano and Harpsichord
Works by Mozart, Beethoven und Schostakowitsch
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Piano Concerto No. 12 in A major, KV 414
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 95, version for strings
Dmitri Shostakovich (1906-1975)
Piano Concerto No. 1 in C minor for Piano, Trumpet, and String Orchestra, Op. 35
— Programme with interval —
Running time: approx. 1.5 hours
Today we openly call Mozart and Beethoven classics. And at the same time we interpret Don Giovanni and Eroica as revolutionary, even subversive in a political sense.
With Dmitri Shostakovich, the situation is different. The Soviet government, which had emerged from a revolution, would have liked to see him as a "classic." But at least since his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, the composer always had to fear the strong arm of the state. From Shostakovich's early days comes the Concerto for Piano, String Orchestra and Trumpet. The movement is cinematic, music full of references and humour. What Shostakovich later smuggled into his music as hidden messages is often within reach here: Rossini is quoted as well as Tchaikovsky, a Broadway hit of the time, and especially Beethoven with the Appassionata and the Fourth Piano Concerto.
Pianist Alexander Melnikov, however, places not Beethoven but Mozart at the beginning of the programme, indeed with the latter's Piano Concerto No. 12 in A major. About this music, Mozart once wrote that connoisseurs would get “satisfaction,” yet without disappointing the rest of the audience. Which means nothing other than that several layers of meaning are hidden here too, even without direct quotations like Shostakovich.
Beethoven then naturally also gets his place in this programme. The CAMERATA BERN plays his String Quartet No. 11 in F minor. Music through which Napoleon's cannons thunder before Vienna. But perhaps Beethoven was only dealing with private lovesickness. Or – who knows? – both.
This concert is also available as part of a subscription
Ticket pricing:
CHF 85.–/ 65.–/ 45.–
CHF 5.– for children and teenagers 18 and under
Discounts (for all categories):
20% for members of the Friends of CAMERATA BERN
50% for young adults aged 19 to 30
30% for KulturLegi cardholders
Kultur-GA: free admission for remaining same-day seats
Refugees (with ID): free admission for remaining same-day seats
In-depth insights into the concert programme, with detailed descriptions of the works and biographies of participating artists. The evening programme booklet is available (in German only) as a PDF download starting approximately one week before the concert and is distributed free of charge at the concert.
The texts are produced in collaboration with the Institute for Musicology at the University of Bern.
Background information and context for the programmes, with musical sneak peeks and sound bites from the performers.
The podcast is available (in German only) from approximately 10 days before the concert.