Whether with Till Eulenspiegel's funny pranks by Richard Strauss, Haydn's "Sinfonia concertante," or Darius Milhaud's "Le boef sur le toit" – fun is a must! And not only in the music itself, but also in the world of orchestral musicians, there's plenty of humor at play, as presenter Johannes Büchs will discover.

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Classical music with a twist: Have you laughed today? | WDR@Philharmonie

Museum Ludwig

Chamber Concert 5

WDR Funkhaus

Chamber Concert 3

»Music of human breath, it creates a world of its own, conjured up by the sorcerous forces of sounds which, summoned by an imagination rich in visions, enter and pass through our earthly bodies all the way to the soul.« (Henri Sauguet) Our chamber concert offers delightful pieces for flute and bassoon: Vivaldi‘s trio sonata in A minor is a magnificent composition full of intricate sound cascades, but also of introspective moments with expansive cantilenas. The chamber trio in F major, also baroque, was composed by Friedrich Wilhelm Zachow, who lived from 1663 to 1712 and came from a Leipzig family of town pipers: the melodic roles of flute and bassoon interact intensively on the harmonic foundation of the continuo – with expressive upswings and dynamic outbursts of virtuosity. Beethoven‘s trio is a precious early work from his Bonn days – where he confided to the Kurfürst about his early preoccupation with composing, that his muse whispered: »Just try it and jot down some of your soul‘s harmonies!« The piece was probably written around 1786 as chamber music for private use – and the passionate love for the daughter of a count‘s family might have been the impetus for the lush sounds that are interspersed throughout the otherwise very concerto-like progress of the work. Finally, Weber‘s enchanting G minor trio from 1819, when the composer was ill and obviously dealt with his mental suffering with music: the highly romantic composition is thus characterised in parts by deep melancholy, in particular in the pivotal Andante, which bears the title »Shepherd's Lament« – yet it captivates the listener with a very playful character in the framing movements.

Ulrich Witteler

Events

Past events

May 21, 2026

Classical music with a twist: Have you laughed today? | WDR@Philharmonie · WDR Sinfonieorchester

May 10, 2026

Chamber Concert 5 · WDR Sinfonieorchester

Future and recently performed repertoire

Cello in String Quartet by Verdi

WDR Sinfonieorchester

Cello in String Quartet No. 3 by Beethoven

WDR Sinfonieorchester

Cello in Piano Quintet by Brahms

WDR Sinfonieorchester

Cello in Trio for Piano, Flute and Cello by Weber

Bamberger Symphoniker

Cello in Piano Quintet in G minor by Taneyev

WDR Sinfonieorchester

About

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