Name: Double debut
Start: 2024-11-28T19:30:00
Location: Philharmonie Mercatorhalle

Duisburger Philharmoniker

George Gershwin made history with his "Rhapsody in Blue": He wanted nothing less than to give his fellow countrymen their own, American music, beyond all ethnic and cultural boundaries - and initially even had the title "American Rhapsody" in mind. Blue notes and jazz can be heard in this work, as can the hustle and bustle of New York; the audience was absolutely thrilled after the premiere. Gershwin's hit actually has three big cadenzas for piano, and at the premiere the composer himself took on the solo part. In the 4th Philharmonic Concert, the young Lithuanian Martynas Levickis will play it on the accordion in his debut with the Duisburg Philharmonic. A lyrical theme in "Rhapsody in Blue" is somewhat reminiscent of Sergei Rachmaninoff, whose "Symphonic Dances" are on the program afterwards. However, it is not really exuberant, but the composer quotes from his "Isle of the Dead" and plays the "Dies Irae" from the Last Judgement several times. Cheerful and reminiscent of Haydn's classical musical language, the concert begins with Sergei Prokofiev's 1st Symphony, conducted by Delyana Lazarova, who has already performed on the concert stage with Martynas Levickis and is also making her debut with the Philharmonic.