Conductor

Harpsichordist

Accordionist

There's something magical about the change that comes with the seasons. The idea of ​​a leaf growing from a bare branch in spring seems unimaginable, at least during the winter months. And yet: as soon as the first warm rays of sunshine make their way through, everything sprouts and blooms everywhere. Accompanied by Israeli mandolinist Jacob Reuven, students from grades 1 to 4 stroll through the seasons in this concert. Surrounded by music spanning more than 250 years, spring, summer, autumn, and winter seem both distant and close at hand. Sometimes the messenger of spring sits chirping on our shoulder, sometimes we dance the tango with him through the colorful sea of ​​leaves.

EPSG:4326

Eight Seasons

Elbphilharmonie Hamburg

Under the direction of Omer Meir Wellber, the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra is adding a colorful accent to the season: THE BLUE WEEK. The new festival replaces the former Academy Concerts and combines unique works and programs on the one hand and showcases the special qualities of our orchestra musicians on the other. In the first edition, they make metamorphoses of all kinds audible: In the third concert program of the festival week, Vivaldi's and Piazzolla's spring, summer, autumn and winter come together in an interplay and form eight seasons of different climatic zones.

3. Blue Concert EIGHT SEASONS

Elbphilharmonie

Starting this season, the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra's program will feature a new, colorful highlight: Blue Week. This festival replaces the former Academy Concerts and combines unique works and programs while showcasing the special qualities of the orchestra's musicians. In this first edition, they will make metamorphoses of all kinds audible – in this concert, humans are transformed into animals, oboe notes into alienated soundscapes, and fantasies into sonic reality.

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra

Under the direction of Omer Meir Wellber, the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra is adding a colorful accent to the season: THE BLUE WEEK. The new festival replaces the former Academy Concerts and combines unique works and programs on the one hand and showcases the special qualities of our orchestra musicians on the other. In the first edition, they make metamorphoses of all kinds audible - for example, in the first festival concert with Boulez's groundbreaking and enigmatic work Le Marteau sans maître, the instruments mutate into singing voices, while the singer repeatedly takes on a sound role without text. In a labyrinthine way, the work itself unfolds all its characteristics from a single small cell, as if from the sequence of our genetic information, from which first an embryo and then everything else emerges, without anyone arbitrarily intervening from outside.

1. Blue Concert THE HAMMER WITHOUT A MASTER

Hall 424 Jürgen Carstensen e. K.

Under the face of the wandering moon, spirit and body quarrel in all their greatness and wretchedness until the blood of two bodies flows. Strauss remains close to Wilde's re-creation of the biblical material, which leads Salome from her mother's tool to autonomy. It is she who, in her unfulfilled desire for the liberatingly different, the body of the prophet Jochanaan, seeks revenge and demands his head - a price the male-dominated society around Herod is willing to pay for their dance. Now that Salome holds his severed head in her hands, she can kiss Jochanaan, possess him if not alive, then dead. As if under a burning glass, Strauss pours Oscar Wilde's demonic dramaturgy into sound like an eruption of the psyche, accompanying his protagonist from her failed escape from the decadence of her existence to her death.

Salome

Staatsoper Hamburg

The Peri - an angelic mythical creature. Fallen from paradise and thrown into the world, she is denied a return to heaven. It takes three attempts before the gates open for her again: It takes more than the drop of blood of a young man, martyred in war, and the last sigh of a girl who died because she did not want to leave her lover, who was sick with the plague, alone. Only the last gift, the tear of an old man who bitterly regrets his own life's sins at the sight of a child, will enable Peri to enter the kingdom of heaven. Robert Schumann's secular oratorio Paradise and the Peri is based on the oriental epic poem by the Irish poet Thomas Moore. In Hamburg, the Persian myth narrative becomes a panopticon of the very recent past.

Paradise and the Peri

Every piece, every cast and every artistic intervention in this inaugural concert - presented by Ina Müller - tells us something about the artistic minds of the three sections of the Hamburg State Opera. Works by Georg Friedrich Haas, Olga Neuwirth, Claudio Monteverdi and even Udo Jürgens are played, danced and sung by unexpected artists in even more unusual line-ups. The Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra is the musical protagonist of the evening, which is far from over after the last note: afterwards, the corks will pop for the first time and all levels of the front building will be transformed into a place of experience until late into the night, with lots of entertainment on numerous stages.

House Warming Concert

The Hamburg State Orchestra's Philharmonic Concerts become time-plays, transcending the boundaries of the ordinary: In this concert, Stephen Hough interprets Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto, entirely in the spirit of its creator, both as pianist and composer—he replaces the second movement with a newly composed piece inspired by Beethoven's original. Beethoven encounters us today as a mirror of the past and, through Hough, as a part of the here and now. This unabashed musical interplay opens up new perspectives on our musical culture, our thinking and being, and our way of receiving music.

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Stephen Hough / Omer Meir Wellber

IM.PRO.LOG The prelude to Peter and the Wolf of St. Pauli

Schmidt's Tivoli

In the morning hours, the Elbphilharmonie is bustling with one thing above all: rehearsals. But before the Philharmonic State Orchestra prepares for the upcoming concert in the Great Hall, its new chief conductor, Omer Meir Wellber, invites students from grade 9 and up backstage for a special get-together: With a freshly baked croissant in hand, they will receive an exclusive introduction to the music and previously unpublished #insights about the orchestra.

Croissant with Omer

Seeking to test their girlfriends’ fidelity, two men wager that they will remain steadfast. They subject the women to passionate onslaught, and in the end, the fortress of their faithfulness falls. The men, however, involved as they are in the experiment, failed to reckon that they too might betray their partners and feelings. All this cheating, confusing, lying – to others and oneself – is grotesquely comical and simultaneously cruel. One side is inclined not to think about the new situation (Guglielmo and Dorabella), while the others try to comprehend it to the point of exhaustion (Fiordiligi and Ferrando). The final ceremony seeks to cement the social status quo, bringing this new freedom to its knees. The marriage, however, is only for show, and beneath the surface of tradition, the first cracks appear.

Così fan tutte

Dance, and its consequences. This is, implicitly, the common thread of this evening, which began with Bach, via the Musical Offering reinterpreted by Webern, followed by the First Partita for solo violin , then culminating with Beethoven's Seventh Symphony , in which Wagner heard "the apotheosis of dance, dance in its supreme essence, the fusion of body and mind." There is still dance, with Aziza Sadikova, refining a Chaconne for mandolin after Bach.

Beethoven, Symphony No. 7 / Omer Meir Wellber

Maison de la Radio et de la Musique

If the tutelary figure of Bach hovers over the evening, it is to better reinvent him, to decline links between places and eras, with dance as a fixed idea. Thus, the First Partita responds to a Chaconne for orchestra and mandolin by the composer Aziza Sadikova from Uzbekistan, while tango and klezmer accents smile on the Andalusia of Asturias of Albeniz. Not forgetting the conductor Omer Meir Wellber who came with his accordion. Beware of false pretenses!

Visitors to the National

The celebrated singer Tosca lives only for art, until political intrigue suddenly disturbs her life and that of her lover, the painter Cavaradossi: When Cavaradossi hides the political refugee Angelotti, he is targeted by the unscrupulous police chief Scarpia, who has long had his eye on Tosca. To save Cavaradossi, Tosca not only has to betray Angelotti, but also give herself to Scarpia. Premiered in 1900, Puccini’s »Tosca« is practically unique in its close interweaving of political power and personal passions. The German premiere of this opera about love, jealousy, betrayal and tyranny was held in Dresden in 1902. Director Johannes Schaaf has found a timeless narrative style for his staging.

Tosca

Semperoper Dresden

Tristano e Isotta – Tristan and Isolde set an example: Nemorino has the evident idea to boost the feelings of his beloved Adina with a love potion. The charlatan Dulcamara sees his chance for a good deal and sells a bottle of the pretended potion to the unhappy lover...

The Elixir of Love

Hamburg State Opera

The philharmonic concerts of the Hamburg State Orchestra become ZeitSpielen and transcend the boundaries of the ordinary: In this concert, Detlev Glanert's play with Haydn's way of thinking will be heard - for his new composition inspired by the Farewell Symphony will be juxtaposed with the original. In this way, we encounter Haydn today as a mirror of the past and at the same time, through Glanert, as part of the here and now! This musical play without fear of contact opens up new perspectives on our musical culture, our way of thinking and being, on our way of receiving music.

4th Philharmonic Concert HAYDN / GLANERT

The Hamburg State Orchestra's Philharmonic Concerts become time-plays, transcending the boundaries of the ordinary: This concert showcases Detlev Glanert's play with Haydn's way of thinking – his new composition, inspired by the Farewell Symphony, is juxtaposed with the original. Haydn thus encounters us today as a mirror of the past and, through Glanert, as a part of the here and now. This unabashed musical play opens up new perspectives on our musical culture, our thinking and being, and our way of receiving music.

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Omer Meir Wellber

In this New Year's Eve concert, the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra and its General Music Director Omer Meir Wellber present a bizarre and dazzling blend of virtuoso vocal artistry, imaginative sound, and humorous expressiveness.

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Hila Baggio / Omer Meir Wellber

At the New Year's Eve concert, the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra and its General Music Director Omer Meir Wellber will present a bizarre and dazzling mixture of virtuoso vocal artistry, imaginative tonal language and humorous expressiveness. More is not yet revealed, except: „Psst! Pspsst! Pspspsst! Schscht! Ko! Koko! Kokokoko! Kokoko! Kokode zero! Oh! Kococode Zero Zero: höchste Geheimnisstufe! Zero, Zero! Kommen Störche! Dabeljusi! Krokodil groß! Menge, Menge, Menge! [Kaiserschmarrn!] Vo-vo-vo-volksmenge!“

New Year's Eve concert

At the New Year's Eve concert, the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra and its General Music Director Omer Meir Wellber will present a bizarre and dazzling mixture of virtuoso vocal artistry, imaginative tonal language and humorous expressiveness. 

New Year's Eve concert Omer Meir Wellber

Violetta is the most sought-after courtesan of the Parisian demimonde. However, her encounter with Alfredo makes her pleasure-seeking life seem questionable: they fall in love and try to build a life for themselves, far from the fast pleasures of the city...

La Traviata

Beethoven's Concerto for Violin, Cello, Piano and Orchestra, Op. 56 is also known as the Triple Concert. Before embarking on a tour of the world's concert stages, it was first performed privately twice in the spring of 1804 for its patron – Prince Franz Joseph Maximilian Lobkowitz. Arranged for accordion, mandolin and piano, the performance will feature a trio of Israeli artists, with composer and conductor Omer Meir Wellber both conducting and playing the accordion. The mandolin will be played by Jakob Reuven and the piano by Guy Mintus, a composer and pianist also involved in jazz and an enthusiastic music teacher.

Beethoven and Dvořák's Eighth

Municipal House

The wild 80s on Hamburg's Kiez: the sex business is in full swing, the power struggles in the red light district are escalating and in the midst of it all, a hitman with white leather gloves is terrifying the whole scene: Werner “Mucki” Pinzner. Pinzner killed at least five pimps, including Lackschuh-Dieter and Corvette-Rolf, on behalf of neighborhood bigwig and pimp “Wiener Peter”. The series of murders ended with Pinzner's staged suicide at police headquarters - after the Kiez killer also shot his wife Jutta and public prosecutor Wolfgang Bistry.

Peter and the Wolf of St. Pauli

Culture creates meaning and structure. The music theater project by Christopher Rüping, Omer Meir Wellber, and Malte Ubenauf demonstrates that it can even provide existential support. Here, for an extraterrestrial group, Mozart's music becomes a daily reminder and admonition of what it means to be and remain human. And what happens when it all falls silent. Thus, we rediscover Mozart's music in distant worlds.

The Great Silence

Elsa of Brabant is suspected of having killed her younger brother Gottfried in the forest. When King Henry the Fowler asks Elsa to defend herself, she pleads for an imaginary knight to come to her aid. Suddenly, Lohengrin, the Knight of the Swan, appears. He promises to fight for Elsa, but makes her promise beforehand never to question him about his identity or provenance.

Lohengrin

Guest performance in Dortmund | Ruhr Piano Festival

Konzerthaus Dortmund

With over 200 artists, from vocals and dance to rock bands, Leonard Bernstein's spectacular "MASS: A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players, and Dancers" will be performed at this year's Hamburg International Music Festival.

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Audi Youth Choir Academy / Omer Meir Wellber

With over 200 artists ranging from singers and dancers to a rock band, Leonard Bernstein's spectacular MASS: A Theatre Piece for Singers, Players, and Dancers will be performed at this year's International Music Festival Hamburg.

Special concert music festival

In Wagner's interpretation, the medieval myth about the tragic love between the Irish king's daughter Isolde and Tristan, King Mark's henchman, to whom Isolde was married against her will, becomes a key work of musical theater at the beginning of a new era. This season, the Hamburg State Opera is bringing Ruth Berghaus' legendary production from 1988 back into the repertoire.

Tristan und Isolde (Tristan and Isolde)

Two pinnacles of film music, both born in 1938. From his gilded exile in Hollywood, Korngold poured grand, ardent melodies into his sensual orchestrations and magnified the adventures of Errol Flynn, aka Robin Hood. Prokofiev, back in a locked-down USSR, signed with Sergei Eisenstein an epic monument of cinema, whose apotheosis would be the Battle on the Ice sealing the victory of Alexander, Prince of Novgorod. Layers of strings and torrents of lyricism in the West, sordid chords on a barbaric orchestra in the East.

Alexander Nevsky / Omer Meir Wellber

The Hamburg State Orchestra's Philharmonic Concerts become ZeitSpielen and transcend the boundaries of the ordinary: In this concert, Barbara Assiginaak's compositional interpretation of Max Bruch's sonic imagination will be heard - for the first movement of his Violin Concerto will be replaced by a new composition from her pen, inspired by the original. Bruch meets us today as a mirror of the past and at the same time, through Assiginaak, as part of the here and now! 

10th Philharmonic Concert BRUCH / ASSIGINAAK

The Hamburg State Orchestra's Philharmonic Concerts become time-plays, transcending the boundaries of the ordinary: This concert features Barbara Assiginaak's compositional interpretation of Max Bruch's sonic imagination – the first movement of his violin concerto is replaced by a new composition by her, inspired by the original. Bruch confronts us today as a mirror of the past and, through Assiginaak, as a part of the here and now. This unabashed musical interplay opens new perspectives on our musical culture, our thinking and being, and our way of receiving music.

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Hilary Hahn / Omer Meir Wellber

The world we live in has rarely been as unstable as it is these days. Surrounded by crises and wars, the noticeable shift to the right is increasingly fueling fears for our democracy. If you ask young people on the street how they view their future, the majority answer is: worried. Starting with Antonín Dvořák's Symphony "From the New World," the Philharmonic State Orchestra asks in this concert: If we were allowed to dream, what would our world of tomorrow look like? How would our coexistence be shaped – between people, but also between people and the environment? As part of a one-year, participatory project, the musicians of the Philharmonic State Orchestra, together with students from two schools in Hamburg, are artistically searching for answers. They will present their results in this concert.

Conductor, Harpsichordist, Accordionist

Omer Meir Wellber

Events

Upcoming events

Dec 20, 2025 - Jan 25, 2026

The Elixir of Love · Staatsoper Hamburg

21 - 22 Dec, 2025

4th Philharmonic Concert HAYDN / GLANERT · Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg

21 - 22 Dec, 2025

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Omer Meir Wellber · Elbphilharmonie

Dec 31, 2025

Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra / Hila Baggio / Omer Meir Wellber · Elbphilharmonie

Dec 31, 2025

New Year's Eve concert · Staatsoper Hamburg

Past events

Oct 13, 2025

Eight Seasons · Elbphilharmonie

12 - 13 Oct, 2025

3. Blue Concert EIGHT SEASONS · Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg

Future and recently performed repertoire

Conductor in Così fan tutte by Mozart

Staatsoper Hamburg

Conductor in Symphony No. 8 by Dvořák

Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in Triple Concerto by Beethoven

Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra

Conductor in The Musical Offering by Bach

Orchestre National de France

Conductor in The Adventures of Robin Hood by Korngold

Orchestre National de France

Conductor in Alexander Nevsky by Prokofiev

Orchestre National de France

Conductor in Symphony No. 7 by Beethoven

Orchestre National de France

Conductor in Lohengrin by Wagner

Staatsoper Hamburg

Conductor in Tristan und Isolde by Wagner

Staatsoper Hamburg

Conductor in La traviata by Verdi

Staatsoper Hamburg

Conductor in Tosca by Puccini

Semperoper Dresden

Conductor in Partita No. 2 by Bach

Orchestre National de France

Conductor in Piano Concerto No. 3 by Bartók

WDR Sinfonieorchester

Conductor in The Elixir of Love by Donizetti

Staatsoper Hamburg

Conductor in The Eight Seasons by Vivaldi

Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg

Conductor in Chaconne by Sadikova

Orchestre National de France

Conductor in The Great Silence by Mozart

Staatsoper Hamburg

About

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