A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM / FELIX MENDELSSOHN-BARTHOLDY

26 May 2024, Sunday
Time 19:00
Witold Lutosławski Concert Studio of Polish Radio, Modzelewskiego 59, Warsaw

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Concert for the 460th anniversary of Shakespeare’s birth.

In his comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream, William Shakespeare created a strange world in which the magic of love is intertwined with the wonder of nature, supernatural creatures interfere in the world of human events, and the ancient Greek context emphasizes the continuity of the Mediterranean tradition. Scenes on the border between dreams and consciousness are masterfully reflected in the music of Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy, who entered Oberon’s kingdom twice. First, at the beginning of his compositional career, he created a brilliant overture, which he incorporated into a full-scale theater music piece more than a decade later.

The overture was written in the summer of 1826, partly outdoors, in the garden of the composer’s family home in Berlin. Whether it was due to the special aura or as a result of a fascination with Shakespeare’s captivating story, the 17-year-old composer created an extraordinary work, which George Grove, not without reason, considered to be “the greatest marvel of early maturity that the world has ever seen in music – probably in any art”. On the pages of the score, one can see reflections of the music of old masters, yet the artist’s fully developed individual compositional language dominates, delighting with the songfulness of the melody, the clarity of the themes, the romantic mood, and the original harmonic and instrumental solutions. The minor mode, favored throughout Mendelssohn’s works, symbolizes the fantasy world, while the major mode – the real world. There are also traces of genius in the passages that follow. Particularly noteworthy is the Scherzo succeeding the overture and the famous Wedding March, which has since become one of the most recognizable musical hits.

PROGRAM

Felix Mendelssohn-Bartholdy – A Midsummer Night’s Dream Op. 61

Overture, Op.21
Scherzo
L’istesso tempo
Lied mit Chor
Andante
Intermezzo. Allegro appassionato
Notturno. Con moto tranquillo
Andante
Hochszeitsmarsch
Marcia funebre
Ein Tanz von Rüpeln
Allegro vivace come I
Finale mit Chor

PERFORMERS

GABRIELA KAMIŃSKA SOPRANO

ANETA ŁUKASZEWICZ MEZZOSOPRANO

ANDRZEJ MASTALERZ NARRATOR

THE CHORUS OF THE POLISH ROYAL OPERA

THE ORCHESTRA OF THE POLISH ROYAL OPERA

JAKUB SZAFRAŃSKI CHORUS MASTER

MARTA KLUCZYŃSKA CONDUCTOR


Duration: approx. 1 h 15 min