Composer

A monstrous concert with the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra. Rebellious, unpolished – and written by a young man of just 21: Prokofiev's 2nd Piano Concerto is a supernova of a concert. With civilized brutality, Prokofiev recreates the music in his own image. The result is a deeply fascinating mix of primal savagery and moments of breathtaking beauty.

Nielsen 5

Aarhus Music Hall

The wind players of the Dresden Philharmonic lead through various sound worlds: Richard Dubugnon's "Frenglish Suite" charmingly combines French elegance and British wit. Erkki-Sven Tüür's "Architectonics I," on the other hand, is a modern sound experiment - like an exciting architectural journey through music. György Orbán's Quintet impresses with rhythmic drive and Hungarian temperament, while James MacMillan's "Untold" touches with its intensity and emotionality. The conclusion is Carl Nielsen's Quintet, a masterpiece full of warmth, lightness, and typical Nordic melancholy.

EPSG:4326

Wind quintet

Palace of Culture

The DSO’s Northern Lights Festival continues with compositions from Sweden and Denmark. Norwegian violinist Eldbjørg Hemsing makes her DSO debut with an ethereal concerto by Anders Hillborg. Principal Guest Conductor Tabita Berglund, a Norwegian native, also leads the orchestra in the dramatic interplay of contrasts in Nielsen’s Fifth.

Northern Lights Festival | Excelsior! and Nielsen

Detroit Symphony Orchestra

The Academy of St Martin in the Fields Wind Ensemble brings the unmistakable brilliance of one of the world’s most revered chamber orchestras to an intimate setting. Under the direction of Joshua Bell, the Academy is celebrated for its dynamic and refined performances, a legacy upheld by this elite group of principal players. Joined by guest pianist Caroline Palmer, the Wind Ensemble offers a program that highlights the elegance of Mozart, the boldness of Beethoven, and the rich tradition of chamber music at its finest.

Academy of St Martin in the Fields Wind Ensemble

Reynolds Club

Get going to Scandinavia. With composers from Finland, Norway, and Denmark, Masterworks V is full of Nordic flair. Start with the delicate melancholy of Sibelius’s Valse triste – A melancholic waltz of memories both beautiful and somber. Pianist Winston Choi dives into the icy and emotional depths of Edvard Grieg’s Piano Concerto. Carl Nielsen’s Symphony No. 4, “The Inextinguishable,” finishes the program in fiery, fierce, and dramatic style.

Masterworks V

Paramount Theatre Iowa

5th Plaza

Join the Danish String Quartet and the Danish National Girls’ Choir for an extraordinary evening of music that transcends genres and generations. Featuring a stunning new work by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer David Lang, this collaboration between two of Denmark’s most celebrated ensembles promises to be a powerful celebration of artistry and innovation.

Danish String Quartet with Danish National Girls' Choir

Segerstrom Center for the Arts

A concert celebrating the human spirit traverses a wide emotional landscape from the playful to the profound. The orchestra opens with Kabalevsky’s The Comedians Suite, a spirited work full of wit and charm, its theatrical flair guaranteed to bring a smile. The mood turns deeply expressive with Robert Schumann’s Cello Concerto in A Minor, performed by Garrick Woods, whose soulful and sensitive artistry brings Schumann’s poetic voice to life. The evening concludes with the Danish composer Carl Nielsen’s bold and vibrant Symphony No.1 in G Minor, a work brimming with the energy and optimism of one of Scandinavia’s great symphonists. From the whimsical to the deeply heartfelt,  this concert offers a rich and rewarding musical journey.

In conjunction with this concert, we present our annual Schools to Symphony program. Committed to high quality music education in Humboldt County, the Eureka Symphony and the Humboldt County Office of Education bring approximately 1300 students to share the excitement of live symphonic music in the Arkley Center.

Humor, Passion and Power

Arkley Center for the Performing Arts

With the United States nearing its 250th anniversary, Summit, Myths & Music honors the landscapes and myths that have defined the country’s spirit. Carl Nielsen’s Helios Overture traces the sun’s grand ascent over the Aegean, filling the orchestra with brilliance. Britten’s Four Sea Interludes from Peter Grimes follows—an evocative seascape of shimmering blues, stark silences, and surging waves. The mystery of Mount Rainier unfolds in Stephen Lias’s It Stands Alone, a powerful multimedia tribute commissioned in partnership with the National Park Service to honor Mount Rainier National Park’s 125th anniversary. The evening concludes with Dvořák’s American Suite, where dance-like melodies and rustic harmonies celebrate the composer’s love for the New World.

Summit, Myths & Music

Federal Way PAEC

Symphony V:  Rossini's Bassoon Concerto with Hunter Gordon, plus Nielsen's "Inextinguishable" 4th Symphony

Port Angeles High School

Camellia Symphony Orchestra: Folk Spirits and Temperaments

C.K. McClatchy High School

, you can't skip steps. Those who try will either fall flat on their face, or at some point have to climb back to make up for lost time. Highly gifted musicians sometimes seem to take three steps at once, yet they don't miss a single one. For, as Robert Schumann wrote: "There is no end to learning." The beautiful notion that the "path" is the "destination" helps. Or Brahms's certainty that something great can emerge, even if one's idea is just beginning.

Levels

Pfalzbau Ludwigshafen

Guest Concert

Tourist, Congress and Saalbau GmbH

Behind the Mask: Romeo and Juliet

Walton Arts Center

Nielsen's untamed 5th Symphony and Prokofiev's sea of ​​flames of a piano concerto: Experience music at its most untamable.
A monstrous concerto. Rebellious, unpolished – and written by a young man of just 21: Prokofiev's Second Piano Concerto is a supernova of a concerto. With civilized brutality, Prokofiev recreates the music in his own image. The result is a deeply fascinating mix of primal savagery and moments of breathtaking beauty.

Viborg Sports College

Visionary maestro David Robertson conducts a program of movement and transformation. Nielsen’s Helios Overture follows the path of the sun across the sky, while the world premiere of Reena Esmail’s Double Concerto puts star siblings Gil and Orli Shaham center stage. To close, Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5 dances with themes shaped by landscape and time, with its famous finale inspired by the sight of a flock of swans flying overhead.

Shaham & Shaham play Reena Esmail Robertson conducts Sibelius’ Fifth

Kennedy Center

What do the home countries of all the guest artists and composers participating in this concert have in common? Denmark, Russia, Sweden, and Estonia border the Baltic Sea! And the creative potential of this cultural region is nothing short of legendary. Two of the most popular protagonists from there are now meeting with the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra: the Estonian star conductor Paavo Järvi and the exceptional Swedish clarinettist Martin Fröst, who has been invited as NDR Artist in Residence for 2025/2026.

NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra / Martin Fröst / Paavo Järvi

Elbphilharmonie Hamburg

Join us in a visit to heaven on earth! Tomas von Brömssen narrates the story of Lars-Erik Larsson’s Swedish classic, performed by the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, choir and vocal soloists.

God in Disguise

Göteborgs Symfoniker

Since 2016, the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra has hosted an ”Orchestra Academy”. The international RSPO Orchestra Academy is a one-year, advanced academic programme for young musicians. Under the guidance of the section leaders from the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra and the Piteå School of Music, the musicians receive intensive training individually, in chamber music, and orchestral playing.

Concert with the RSPO Orchestra Academy

Stockholm Concert Hall

Conductor and Artistic Director finalist Silas Huff leads an evocative and richly textured program that spans continents and centuries. The evening begins with Coleridge-Taylor’s vibrant “Overture to the Song of Hiawatha” and features the uplifting piece “We Will Soar” by rising contemporary composer Elena Specht. Acclaimed violinist Dylana Jenson brings both fiery virtuosity and emotional depth to Sibelius’s hauntingly beautiful Violin Concerto. The program culminates in Nielsen’s bold and dramatic Symphony No. 5, offering a gripping musical journey of struggle and triumph.

Huff Conducts Nielsen

Athenaeum Center for Thought & Culture

Our concert hall organ, the "orchestra in one instrument," is at the center of Francis Poulenc's Organ Concerto - a work full of contrasts. Sometimes deeply serious, almost sacred, then surprisingly playful, Poulenc combines tradition and modernity in a fascinating way. The soloist of the evening, Anna Lapwood, one of the most exciting organists of her generation, impresses with her virtuosity and her ability to engage people with classical music.

Lapwood with Poulenc

There is something special about being able to say that a Danish musician plays in what is probably the world's most prestigious symphony orchestra. Jesper Busk Sørensen is a trombonist in the Berlin Philharmonic and is only the fourth Dane in the orchestra's more than 100-year history – an orchestra that has been a symbol of musical excellence since its founding.

New chief conductor with visit from the Berlin Philharmonic

Alsion Concert Hall

German House

The Seven Wonders of the World – what are they, and where can we find them? Ayla Kabaca is our tour guide as we take off with the help of music to visit the world’s seven modern wonders, together with the Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Norwegian conductor – or should we say pilot – Halldis Rønning.

School Concert – The Seven Wonders of the World

Stockholm City Hall

Written against the backdrop of World War I, Nielsen’s Fourth Symphony, “The Inextinguishable”, stands as a beacon at the onset of the twentieth century. From its thunderous opening to one of the most stunning finales of the orchestral repertoire, the symphony comes to a grand close with a triumphant and enormous affirmation of life itself. Pianist Orli Shaham then joins Maestro Robertson for John Adams’ wickedly entertaining piano concerto in its long-anticipated Vancouver premiere.

Nielsen’s “The Inextinguishable”

Orpheum

Founded in 1946, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is recognized as the U.K.’s most in-demand orchestra, with a busy schedule of national and international performances. The RPO also enjoys an annual season of concerts in London’s Royal Albert Hall, where it is Associate Orchestra; the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall; and Cadogan Hall, where it recently celebrated its 20th season as Resident Orchestra. Vasily Petrenko was named Music Director in 2021. This program of Nielsen, Tchaikovsky and Sibelius, conducted by Petrenko, will feature violin star Ray Chen, who delighted the local audience with his April 2024 performance.

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with Ray Chen

Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts

Anything can happen when Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra’s Principal Guest Conductor and violinist Pekka Kuusisto takes the stage. This time, he presents a musical journey of discovery with Anne Sofie von Otter, with focus on man and nature.

Pekka Kuusisto & Anne Sofie von Otter

Crypt Concert I Ravel, Nielsen &  Dvořák

St. Michaelis (Michel)

Music director Vasily Petrenko, 2017 Gramophone Awards Artist of the Year, “has brought style and excitement to the RPO ... since taking over three seasons ago” (The Guardian). These qualities will be showcased brilliantly in their performance of Sibelius’ grand and luminous Symphony No. 2. With its gorgeous melodies, luxurious harmonies and a finale that is pure joy, it’s easy to see why the Second Symphony has become one of the composer’s most celebrated works.

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts

James Ehnes was a teenager when he made his debut with the Minnesota Orchestra at Symphony Ball in 1993. He’s been back many times since, and we’re thrilled to have him play Sibelius during this year’s Nordic Soundscapes festival. And our favorite Dane, Thomas Søndergård, invites you to embrace the First Symphony by Carl Nielsen, one of Denmark’s heroes.

Søndergård and Ehnes

Orchestra Hall

Celebrate the arrival of the new year with a dazzling New Year’s concert at the Opera House. As the year draws to a close, the Royal Danish Theatre invites audiences to a grand musical celebration, with the Royal Danish Orchestra performing on the Opera’s Main Stage.

New Year’s Concert at the Opera House 2025

The Royal Playhouse and The Old Stage

In a tour of recent Nordic music, this concert offers several examples of composers who were inspired by elements from early modernism and neoclassicism and who at the same time held fast to their Nordic origins.

Both the Swedish Rosenberg and the Norwegian Sæverud and our own Carl Nielsen introduced modernist musical ideas into national romantic-based musical cultures. With Sæverud this is already visible in the titles, which refer to Norwegian folk music, and with Carl Nielsen this is heard through his creation of his own musical language, where he mixes Danish folk tunes and impressionism, of which his work “Pan and Syrinx” is a typical example. 

The Magnificent North

Southern Denmark Conservatory of Music

The opportunity to play chamber music together is always a delight for us, as it allows our musicians to showcase their individual talents in smaller ensembles, far removed from the grand orchestral repertoire. This concert offers a magical blend of wind and string sounds with surprising pieces and humorous, playful antics – after all, music should be fun. Richard Strauss clearly shared this sentiment when he once remarked with a twinkle in his eye: "I just wanted the people in the concert hall to have a good laugh." He was referring to his delightful composition about the mischievous Till Eulenspiegel, which we now have on our music stands in a slightly different version: In 1954, Franz Hasenöhrl transformed the famous symphonic poem into a whimsical, grotesque chamber music piece – a series of jokes in several episodes for just five instruments. A playful spirit was also the guiding principle for Harald Genzmer, and his 1967 quartet is an impressive work brimming with experimentation and vitality. Franz Berwald's Septet, completed in 1828, is equally original and remarkable for its rich soundscape – and we can indulge our virtuoso musicality in daring, rollercoaster-like passages. We'll also stage a "futile serenade" with the cheerful "Serenata in vano" from 1914.

Chamber concert: Septet

Bamberger Symphoniker

Learn more about the music, artists, and personalities of Echoes of Greatness with composer and Professor of Music at Pacific Lutheran University, Gregory Youtz, and Symphony Tacoma Music Director Sarah Ioannides.

Echoes of Greatness (2025-2026 Season)

Pantages Theater

Beethoven’s radiant Septet, Nielsen’s playful Serenata, and Strauss’ mischievous Till Eulenspiegel combine for an evening of warmth, wit, and artistry.

Joyful Beethoven: Season Opener

The Church of Bethesda-By-The Sea

500 years ago, a boy was born in the Italian city of Palestrina. He grew up as a choirboy, and over time he became one of the most important and influential composers of the Renaissance, who was associated with, among other things, the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Palestrina 500 years - in the footsteps of the master

Trinity Church Copenhagen

Odder Parish Church

Assistens Cemetery

Music Director, Daniel Wiley marks his debut and ignites the season with Fire & Fjord, a vivid Nordic-inspired program that bursts with bold contrasts and energy. The program opens with Carl Nielsen’s Symphonic Rhapsody, an embodiment of sweeping Nordic color.

Pianist Cathal Breslin, Professor of Piano at ASU performs Grieg’s Piano Concerto, a romantic masterpiece. The journey concludes with Sibelius’ Symphony No. 2, hailed as his most uplifting work.

Fire and Fjord

The Vista Center for the Arts

“Music is Life, and like it, it is inextinguishable.” Composer Carl Nielsen penned these words across the top of the score of his Fourth Symphony, now best known as “The Inextinguishable” — the Fourth sets out to “express what we understand by the spirit of life or manifestations of life, that is: everything that moves, that wants to live.” Nielsen never provides a clear story, instead unleashing the music to express a range of pure feeling, both primal and pleasantly chaotic; guest conductor Rune Bergmann is perfectly suited for this ambitious symphony.

Paul Lewis Plays Grieg

Warner Grand Theater

Immerse yourself in the fiery passion of Antonín Dvořák's Slavonic Dances, inspired by the exuberant rhythms of traditional Bohemian folk dances. The Orchestra, led by conductor Rumon Gamba, also perform Malcolm Arnold's Dvořák-inspired English Dances: Set 2 and conclude with Nielsen's dynamic, expressive Fifth Symphony.

Slavonic Dances

Arts Commons

Our idea of ​​Scandinavia is shaped by images of endless forests, pristine lakes and fjords, rugged mountains, clear and bright summers, and icy winters. This fascinating landscape also shapes art, from folk tales to paintings. In its autumn program, the Rhein-Ruhr Philharmonie focuses on this special atmosphere, which the "sound poets of the North" uniquely translate into music. Carl Nielsen, Johan Svendsen, Hugo Alfvén, Jean Sibelius, and Edvard Grieg draw on a rich repertoire of folk music, ancient myths, and legends.

Rhein-Ruhr Philharmonie - Sound Poets of the North

Bochumer Symphoniker

Carl Nielsen’s bustling overture to his 1904 opera, Maskarade, launches this Nordic programme from the acclaimed partnership of Vasily Petrenko and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, joined here by regular collaborator, Simon Trpceski, for Grieg’s evergreen Piano Concerto.  Composed when he was just 25, it’s an astonishingly accomplished blend of personal style with national musical identity, mixing Norwegian folk idioms with youthful solo writing that’s both brilliant and warmly lyrical.

Royal Concert Hall Nottingham

Join MSO and two of the Nordics' great composers on a journey across the full range of the clarinet and the powerful beats of the snare drum, bringing hope for freedom.

Saariaho & Nielsen

Malmö Concert Hall

The 2nd Symphony Concert, entitled "Northern Lights," focuses on composers from Scandinavia: Sweden and Denmark are represented in the program with Wilhelm Stenhammar and Carl Nielsen.  


Stenhammar's overture "Excelsior" [German: sublimity, height] is brimming with optimism, never settling, but always striving higher, even to the point of ecstasy.


The first part of the concert begins with a work by this year's Louis Spohr Music Prize winner Carola Bauckholt. "Aus dem Geröll" is a work for percussion and orchestra. Premiered in 2023, Dirk Rothbrust will play the percussion solo today, as he did then.

2nd Symphony Concert: Northern Lights

Staatstheater Braunschweig

A proud "Allegro marziale" in Carl Nielsen's opera "Saul and David" sets the tone for David's heroic triumph over Goliath in the second act. Jean Sibelius strikes heroic and pastoral tones in his Symphony No. 2, which one can tell was composed in light-filled Italy – as does Nielsen's overture, incidentally.

2nd Symphony Concert

Eurogress Aachen

Under the direction of Viswa Subarraman the HSO performs a program of grandeur and evolution, highlighted by Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3, a masterful balance of stormy intensity and lyrical beauty performed by guest artist Drew Petersen. Carl Nielsen’s Helios Overture opens with a radiant orchestral depiction of the sun’s journey, setting the stage for Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5, a triumphant work inspired by nature and transformation.

Beethoven & Sibelius

The Bushnell

Under the direction of Viswa Subbaraman the HSO performs a program of grandeur and evolution, highlighted by Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3, a masterful balance of stormy intensity and lyrical beauty performed by guest artist Drew Petersen. Carl Nielsen’s Helios Overture opens with a radiant orchestral depiction of the sun’s journey, setting the stage for Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5, a triumphant work inspired by nature and transformation.

HSO Masterworks Series: Beethoven & Sibelius

Maxwell M. & Ruth R. Belding Theater

It all started in Alsion over 10 years ago, when the Nordic Masterclass was founded in 2012. Every year, more than 100 talented conductors from all over the world apply for one of the coveted places. Participants have the unique opportunity to be guided and taught by the legendary Finnish conductor Jorma Panula and the Danish conductor Maria Badstue, who is also the founder of the course. As part of the experience, you can enjoy an exciting closing concert, which is free to experience – a unique chance to witness the conductors of tomorrow in action.

Nordic Masterclass

Stephanie Childress | Nielsen & Schumann

The Bell, Bremen

We have enjoyed our long-standing collaboration with the Folkwang University of the Arts.

Folkwang Gala 2025

Esbjerg Ensemble's opening concert has the sea as its theme. The concert begins with three festive sailor's songs by the English Malcolm Arnold. The sea continues to play a role in Bruun's Letters to the Sea , which has given its name to the concert. Here, it is very much about an inner sea, inspired by the author Ursula Andkjær-Olsen : "You could write a letter to the sea and ask it to lie down..." . 

Letters To The Sea – Opening Concert

Is there a more beautiful violin concerto than this one? The violinist Joseph Joachim, in any case, called Mendelssohn's E minor concerto the "most precious," the "heart jewel" among German violin concertos. Much of it was innovative at the time of its premiere (1845): that the violin (not the orchestra) takes on the major themes, that the solo cadenza comes in the middle of the first movement, that the movements flow into one another without a break. Later concertos were influenced in many ways by this—but Mendelssohn's beautiful melodies remained unrivaled.

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Imagine a symphony that doesn’t follow traditional rules but instead feels like a living, breathing force of nature. It’s filled with turbulence, soaring melodies, and moments of pure, primal energy. That’s Nielsen’s Fourth Symphony, and in this concert, we’ve paired it with Rachmaninoff’s beloved Second Piano Concerto, an emotionally powerful piece performed by legendary pianist Garrick Ohlsson.

Garrick Ohlsson Plays Rach 2

Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center

The Royal Life Guard Band

Konservatoriets Koncertsal

Join us on an unforgettable journey through Europe – a journey where wine and classical music merge in a relaxed, atmospheric atmosphere.

Taste the notes

The Southern Jutland Symphony Orchestra begins a new and exciting season with a magnificent opening concert that unites two of classical music's greatest masterpieces. Under the direction of the charismatic Latvian conductor Andris Poga, and with the award-winning violinist Johan Dalene as soloist, an evening awaits where passion and perfection meet.


Andris Poga is the chief conductor of the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, and has established himself as one of Europe’s most exciting conductors. For the season opener, he puts his stamp on Tchaikovsky’s intense and beautiful Violin Concerto, after which he leads the orchestra through Brahms’ Symphony No. 1 – a monumental work that took 14 years to create. The symphony is often called “Beethoven’s 10th” for its grandiose beauty and deep emotional range. From the dramatic introduction to the triumphant finale, the symphony takes us on a journey through darkness and light, doubt and victory.

Season opening: Johan Dalene plays Tchaikovsky

All music has been new once. All works have had a premiere; a day when the audience heard this very music for the first time. In tonight's concert, we try to give the feeling of what it was like to hear a completely new work in 1725, 1825, 1925 and 2025. In 1725, one of the world's best-known musical works was first performed, namely Vivaldi's The Four Seasons, and as a soloist at the concert here is Michala Petri, who plays the world-famous notes from Vivaldi's smash hit. Again, there is music by Mendelssohn on the program from 1825, and from 1925 there is a very significant Danish premiere: Carl Nielsen's 6th Symphony. Like the completely fresh work, the evening's premiere, a work by Ole Buck was written specifically for Michala Petri, who will be on stage again as a soloist. Dew-fresh works from four centuries. Danish music's answer to Wikipedia, Mathias Hammer, leads the audience through 300 years of music history and puts all music into perspective.

The History Of Music – With Mathias Hammer & Michala Petri

Odense Concert Hall

Mozart's masterful clarinet concerto is central to this concert and is flanked by music by two composers for whom Mozart was perhaps the greatest role model – Schubert and Carl Nielsen.

Vienna and the youth

The Garrison Church

Roskilde High School

Concert "OSLO & COPENHAGEN"

Schloss Moritzburg

Experience the Nordic light in music when DUEN and visiting young musicians from the Nordic countries gather for a concert in Garnisonskirken. Under the direction of Morten Ryelund, we play works by Grieg, Sibelius and Carl Nielsen, among others.

Nordic light

Engelsholm Castle

Sometimes you can say: more is more! Nine ensembles from the Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra perform well-known and lesser-known gems of chamber music. From duos to octets, from elegant to lively, everything is included.

Symphony Orchestra in the Palace

Tonhalle Düsseldorf

Great interest in conducting the Philharmonie Südwestfalen: Applications from around 250 conductors from all over the world

On June 29, 2024, Nabil Shehata gave his farewell performance as artistic director of the Südwestfalen Philharmonic. A search committee consisting of representatives from the orchestra, the sponsoring association, the support association, and district politicians, chaired by the district administrator, is currently deliberating on who he will pass the baton to.

Conducting to the Chief Conductor – Evening

Philharmonie Südwestfalen

10th Symphony Concert

Nikolaisaal

Nielsen, Golijov, and Dvořák infused their compositions with folk and dance traditions from their homelands. Nielsen’s Little Suite for Strings combines Scandinavian Romanticism with waltz-like rhythms. Argentine composer Golijov’s Last Round honors the tango, with two quartets exchanging phrases as if caught in a passionate dance. FWSO winds join the strings for Dvořák’s Serenade in D minor, which echoes the fiery rhythms of the Bohemian furiant.

Night of Strings at the Garden: Strings in Motion

Fort Worth Botanic Garden

What Jean Sibelius is to the Finn, Carl Nielsen is to the Dane. In this concert we bring the two together and combine one of the best-known works of the one with a brilliant violin concerto by the other, which is finally making its breakthrough in this country 100 years after its premiere. Although Carl Nielsen was an incredibly versatile composer and, like Sibelius, initially succeeded as a violinist, he only wrote one concerto for "his" instrument. But this one is something special. It is full of contrasts, sometimes intoxicating, then quiet and lyrical, here trembling with energy and dynamics and there floating in the most delicate realms. Late romantic nuances meet Nielsen's adoration of Bach. This violin concerto is full of enchanting melodies, technically so challenging that it was almost considered unplayable, and extraordinarily rich in contrast. "Out of crazy runs" develops "a naive, beautiful melody in a positive sense," says Kolja Blacher.

10th Philharmonic Concert

Konzerthalle Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach

Don’t be misled by the title: for Tchaikovsky, ‘Pathétique’ meant ‘full of emotion’ and when he composed his autobiographical final symphony… well, let’s just say that he didn’t hold back. Soaring romance, desperate tragedy and brilliant celebration: it’s all here, in a symphony that leaves no heartstring un-tugged, right up to its devastating and unforgettable conclusion. If you’ve heard our guest conductor Antonello Manacorda in action at the Royal Opera House, you’ll know that he aims straight for the heart of everything he conducts. So expect elegance and joy in Mozart’s exuberant Overture to The Magic Flute, and pure energy when he joins RPO Artist-in-Residence Johan Dalene to perform the piece with which Dalene shot to fame in 2019: the powerful Violin Concerto by Carl Nielsen. It’s possible that no one alive plays it better.

Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony

Cadogan Hall 

Carl Nielsen's 2nd symphony "The Four Temperaments" is a magnificent study of the human mind. Because even though the title suggests a simplistic division of the human psyche, Nielsen's work is precisely a three-dimensional exploration of being human itself, all our contradictions and inner battles exhibited in terrific musical form. To guide us through the many emotions, we have the young conducting students from the Royal Danish Conservatory of Music, and the concert also offers a soloist from the Southern Danish Conservatory of Music in Darius Milhaud's "Suite Anglaise".

The Four Temperaments

Alongside Ligeti’s musical puzzles and Nielsen’s captivating Wind Quintet, the Ormonde Ensemble shine a spotlight on incredible works by female composers and those from underrepresented backgrounds. They’ll perform some exciting new arrangements and Isa Gibbs’ Dreamery – a musical journey through a factory where dreams are made…

Ormonde Ensemble

The Music Room

The Hero’s Journey

MassBay Community College

Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider conducts music based on legends and fairytales: Richard Strauss’ tone poem Till Eulenspiegel and Pyotr Tchaikovsky’s Sleeping Beauty Suite. Ting-Wei Chen is the soloist in Carl Nielsen’s Flute Concerto.

Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider Ting-Wei Chen

Oslo Concert Hall

Written against the backdrop of the First World War, Carl Nielsen’s Fourth Symphony shifts between turbulent and triumphant as two sets of timpani, winds, and strings wage an internal conflict that ends with the universal truth that the composer described as “music is life, and like life, it is inextinguishable.” Los Angeles-native Ryan Bancroft leads the LA Phil in Nielsen’s primal and spirited symphony as well as Anders Hillborg’s Sound Atlas that channels otherworldly sounds like a glass harmonica to create snowy, crystalline landscapes.

Mozart & Nielsen

Walt Disney Concert Hall

James Ehnes has established himself as one of the most sought-after violinists on the international stage.

Masterclass with James Ehnes

Beethoven’s 4th and Nielsen’s 5th symphonies share a strong tonal similarity: in both works, surprising gentleness can be found alongside rough, rugged landscapes – both in a delicate balance. Nielsen, who became an important representative of Danish late romanticism, especially with his orchestral music, found his most modern musical language in his symphony, which premiered in 1922. Robert Schumann once said of Beethoven’s Fourth from 1807 that it was the most romantic of his symphonies. Both compositions are comparatively rarely played in concert programs: Beethoven’s 4th Symphony is overshadowed by the preceding “Eroica” and the subsequent so-called “Symphony of Fate”. And Carl Nielsen is celebrated in Denmark and sometimes referred to as a national composer, but he is little known here.

6th Symphony Concert

Hessisches Staatstheater Wiesbaden

A spotlight shines on the best Shepherd School musicians as they compete for the opportunity to perform a concerto with a Shepherd School ensemble the following school year. 

Winds, Brass, Percussion, & Harp Concerto Finals

Alice Pratt Brown Hall

Gala Flagello will return to Delaware to introduce her composition Bravado, which was written for the Tanglewood Orchestra last year. Dylana Jenson, a renowned violinist who received the Silver Medal at the Tchaikovsky Competition and has performed at Carnegie Hall, will play Brahms's only violin concerto. The Symphony will close the concert by performing Carl Nielsen's second symphony, The Four Temparaments.

Composer

Carl Nielsen

Events

Upcoming events

11 - 17 May, 2026

DRØM · Det Kongelige Teater

May 12, 2026

Kensington Symphony Orchestra · Cadogan Hall

May 14, 2026

Forces of Nature · Eugene Symphony

May 16, 2026

Northern Lights · BBC Philharmonic

May 16, 2026

BBC Philharmonic - Northern Lights · The Bridgewater Hall

Past events

May 3, 2026

Nielsen 5 · Musikhuset Aarhus

Apr 19, 2026

Wind quintet · Dresdner Philharmonie

About

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