A clever marketing coup: When London audiences were fighting over tickets for Joseph Haydn's concerts, a rival concert organizer hired Haydn's former student Ignaz Pleyel. Flanked by a newspaper campaign that conjured up a "bloody harmonic war" between teacher and student, the rival company's box office was also expected to ring. In this context, the Sinfonia concertante was created as a counterpart to a Sinfonia concertante by Pleyel, which was performed in London in February 1792. However, the composer competition never materialized. Pleyel and Haydn demonstratively cultivated their friendship and paid each other mutual respect. Despite Gustav Mahler's initial complaints that his "Fifth" was a "cursed work" because no one could understand it, it is now one of his most esteemed compositions. This is probably largely due to the moving "Adagietto", which became well known outside of the concert hall through its use in Luchino Visconti's film adaptation of Thomas Mann's "Death in Venice". The Munich Philharmonic is looking forward to welcoming its honorary conductor Zubin Mehta, who was awarded the Golden Medal of Honor of the City of Munich in January 2024.

Haydn Mahler

Gasteig HP8

The question of the authenticity of Mozart's Sinfonia concertante for wind instruments has been discussed for decades without any convincing result. This plays no role for either the audience or the four soloists from the ranks of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra - either way, the Sinfonia concertante is a masterpiece of wind literature. With the tender, lyrical "Siegfried Idyll", Richard Wagner gave his young wife Cosima a personal birthday present. Opera lovers will recognize leitmotifs from Wagner's music drama "Siegfried". Nathalie Stutzmann also presents a rarity: "Lachrimae antiquae" comes from a collection of lamentations by the Renaissance composer John Dowland. Robert Schumann did not look back all the way to the Renaissance, but at least to the Baroque period when composing his 2nd Symphony. His intensive engagement with the works of Johann Sebastian Bach was reflected in the work.

Marie-Luise Modersohn

Events

Upcoming events

Jun 21, 2026

Miniatures · Munich Philharmonic

Past events

21 - 22 May, 2025

Haydn Mahler · Munich Philharmonic

7 - 8 Dec, 2024

Mozart Wagner Dowland Schumann · Munich Philharmonic

Future and recently performed repertoire

Oboe in Introduction and Allegro by Elgar

Munich Philharmonic

Oboe in Oboe Quartet by Mozart

Munich Philharmonic

Oboe in 6 Oboe Quintets by Boccherini

Munich Philharmonic

Oboe in Miniature by Cohen

Munich Philharmonic

Oboe in Divertimento by Crusell

Munich Philharmonic

About

Marie-Luise Modersohn hasn't added a bio