On November 19th, the Staatskapelle Dresden, founded 469 years ago, will appear yet again on the NCPA (National Centre for the Performing Arts) stage and perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 and Richard Strauss’s Symphonia Domestica under the leadership of American conductor Alan Gilbert in cooperation with pianist YUNDI, to serve the audience an original-flavoured feast of German and Austrian music.

The Staatskapelle Dresden, which boasts a long and rich history, stands tall as one of the world’s oldest orchestras. The music masters - Carl Maria von Weber, Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss - left their footprints in the orchestra during its remarkable growth. Over the recent century, the orchestra has improved with the efforts of the prominent instrumentalists Ernst von Schuch, Fritz Reiner, Fritz Busch, Karl Böhm, Joseph Keilberth, Rudolf Kempe, Otmar Suitner, Kurt Sanderling, Herbert Blomstedt and Giuseppe Sinopoli,. Throughout its long history, the Staatskapelle Dresden has been defending tenaciously to the glorious traditions of the German and Austrian music.

Since the NCPA opened a decade ago, the orchestra has visited the NCPA five times under the leadership of Fabio Luisi, Nikolaj Znaider, Christian Thielemann, Myung-Whun Chung and Rudolf Buchbinder respectively, giving audiences a taste of the authentic voice of Germany. In 2009, Alan Gilbert, who was 41 years old then, took over from Lorin Maazel, who became music director of New York Philharmonic, thus receiving more attention from global music circles. What’s more, he is highly praised by music lovers for refining music to make it sound fresh and flowing. How will Alan Gilbert and the time-honoured Staatskapelle Dresden amaze us with music at the forthcoming concert? We’re looking forward to finding out.

The celebrated pianist YUNDI perform Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 with the orchestra. He said, “The Staatskapelle Dresden is my old friend. It will be my first time to cooperate with Alan Gilbert, so I’m expecting to have myself inspired differently. We will play Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 23 this time. It is one of my favorite music works, and I love its dulcet melody.” Apart from this work,, the orchestra will play Richard Strauss’ Symphonia Domestica, which has been rarely played at domestic concerts. The symphony was composed as a gift for “his beloved and children” by Richard Strauss in 1903. Sounding like a piece of orchestral music, the symphony reveals a happy home life, namely how the composer lives cheerfully with his wife and children and how he quarrels with his wife. It feels warm, sounds humorous, and is filled with the joys of life.

by NCPA