It is a popular romantic theme: the fine line between genius and madness. In Beethoven’s case, all one needs to do is look at the portrait of the agitated artist with tangled hair and crazy eyes, who jots his notes down on paper in a manic creative frenzy and in the face of impending deafness. Wolf was hospitalized twice – and died in the clinic. When Schumann was admitted to Endenich, “melancholy with delusion” was noted as a diagnosis in the admission book. And the Italian Renaissance prince Carlo Gesualdo was not only a gifted composer, but very probably also a murderer. In the chromatic descent at the end of his madrigal, we seem to hear the agony of a guilty man tormented by remorse. The result? Insanely brilliant music!

David van Dijk

Events

29 - 30 Jun, 2024

Chamber Concert: Genius and Madness · Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra

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