The Vienna Symphony Orchestra, founded in 1900 as the orchestra of the Vienna Concertverein, soon made a name for itself with premieres of important works such as Bruckner's Ninth and Mahler's Sixth. This success story continued after the Second World War under the direction of conductors such as Herbert von Karajan, Wolfgang Sawallisch and Carlo Maria Giulini. As Vienna's cultural ambassador, the orchestra undertakes several concert tours each year, and a successful cooperation with the Bregenz Festival has existed since 1946. Through lively concert activities in the outlying districts of Vienna, through benefit and youth concerts, there is also a return to the origins of the orchestra, which was founded to bring classical music to as many people as possible. CLOSE

In 2017, Petr Popelka attracted attention as the winner of the Neeme Järvi Prize of the Gstaad Conducting Academy. Only the year before, the longtime double bass player of the Sächsische Staatskapelle Dresden had turned his attention to conducting. Now everything happened very quickly: a one-year scholarship with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra under Alan Gilbert, guest conductorships in Scandinavia, the Czech Republic, Germany and, as early as 2020, his first principal position with the Norwegian Radio Orchestra Oslo. Meanwhile, Popelka has also been named artistic director by the Radio Symphony Orchestra of his native Prague. He has already conducted the symphony orchestras of WDR, SWR and SR, and the Vienna Symphony Orchestra several times. Will he still have time for his third artistic mainstay, composing? CLOSE

The name Hagen has an excellent sound in the music world thanks to the four siblings who founded a legendary string quartet over 40 years ago. With Julia Hagen, daughter of cellist Clemens, the next generation is now entering the scene: the Salzburg native won her first competition at the age of 15, was subsequently a prizewinner at the Verbier Festival Academy and a scholarship holder in Kronberg. She has since played with orchestras such as the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Konzerthausorchester Berlin and the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, and has appeared at numerous festivals from Aix to Bonn. Hagen's chamber music partners include Igor Levit, Khatia Buniatishvili and Renaud Capuçon, as well as pianist Annika Treutler, with whom she recorded the two Brahms sonatas on CD. CLOSE

In the 19th century, not too many composers dared to tackle the genre of the cello concerto, which was considered delicate due to the difficult balance between solo and orchestra. Antonín Dvorák made a real breakthrough in 1894/95 with his op. 104, which has been one of the absolute favorites of the repertoire ever since. The work exploits the vocal qualities of the solo instrument as well as its agility and bear-biting humor. In addition, the slow movement contains a wistful salute to Dvorák's childhood sweetheart, who fell ill and died shortly before the composition was completed.

With "Don Juan" Richard Strauss made his first public appearance as a gifted tone poet in 1889. His musical portrait of a vigorous libertine, who at the very end sinks into melancholy, hit the nerve of his time: an epoch characterized by faith in progress and optimism, which only barely concealed the emerging mood of the end of time. Interestingly, Strauss refrains from a detailed program in op. 20, unlike in later tone poems. Thanks to vividly designed leitmotifs, the erotic round dance of courtship, conquest and farewell can nevertheless be easily comprehended while listening.

Originally, Richard Strauss wanted to write an "Eulenspiegel" opera based on his own text. In 1894, however, he decided to write an orchestral work, following a tried-and-tested pattern: a total of five pranks are described musically, as usual drastically, in brilliant orchestration - great aural cinema. At the same time, the music follows a traditional construction plan, namely the rondo form. Again and again, the two wind themes that characterize Till flash up in the orchestra and thus lead the listener through the plot. Hence the subtitle of the piece: "Nach alter Schelmenweise in Rondeauform".