Schubert / Martin
Fabio Luisi, Conductor
Okka von der Damerau, Alto
Philharmonia Zürich
FRANZ SCHUBERT
Symphony Nr. 8 b-Minor D 759
«Unvollendete»
FRANK MARTIN
Die Weise von Liebe und Tod des Cornets Christoph Rilke
Introduction 45 min before the performance.
Good to know
Schubert / Martin
Abstract
Schubert / Martin
"It is as if this text would have become a part of my life" is what the Swiss composer Frank Martin wrote about Rainer Maria Rilke's famous story The Way of Love and Death of Cornet Christoph Rilke, which served him as basis for his composition for alto and small orchestra. Rilke short text forcefully describes the fate of a young soldier, who pointless dies in the Turkish wars of the 17th century. During the Second World War Frank Martin meticulously dealt with this poetry that still preserved “incredible sensitivity in the portrayal of the brutal war”. Music Director Fabio Luisi is enthused over this work by the Swiss composer and will perform it with the Philharmonia Zurich. The alto part which describes the fate of Cornet as an observer and fellow sufferer will be performed by the celebrated German singer Okka from Damerau. The concert will be initiated with Franz Schuberts mystical Eighth Symphony in h minor («Unvollendete» from the year 1822). These two sentences of extensive work belong to the most innovative and at the same time most popular compositions by Schubert.