Name: Symphony Orchestra in the Palace
Start: 2025-06-19T11:00:00
Location: Tonhalle Düsseldorf

Experience a cultural adventure in Düsseldorf, where a series of captivating events blend music, dance, and opera. From the innovative choreography of 'Kalei­dos­ko' to the harmonious storytelling of 'Shooting Star from 6 years,' and the powerful renditions in 'Beethoven,' this city truly becomes a stage for extraordinary artistic expression. Join us as we explore the creative brilliance and sensory delights of these immersive performances, each contributing to the vibrant tapestry of Düsseldorf's cultural scene.

Artistic Symphony: A Journey Through Music, Dance, and Opera in Düsseldorf

Henrike Graf

Camiel Lemmens

Andrés Eloy Aragon

Lisa Michelle Rogers

Tim Lorenzen

Felicia Hamza

Dorukhan Doruk

Kerstin Beavers

Catherine Ribes

Margarita Rumyantseva

Sara Domjanic

Traian Sturza

Elisa  Tosca de Angelis

Nicole Schrumpf

Lilja Steininger

Tobias Bredohl

Gisela Hellrung

Jérôme Tétard

Simón Julián Doggenweiler-Menkhaus

Kathrin Braeme

Dragos Manza

Düsseldorfer Symphoniker

"Only those who grow up and remain children are human," Erich Kästner once said, and he faithfully adhered to this maxim. His novel "Pünktchen und Anton" (Pink and Anton) alternates masterfully between playful fantasy and philosophical contemplation. It deals with betrayal, responsibility, and the power of unconditional friendship. And with a saving blow from a wooden club. To transform the book into a musical story, the main characters encounter the rich sound of a symphony orchestra.

Shooting Star from 6 years

Tonhalle Düsseldorf

Russian extremes in fascinating proximity: Here you'll encounter the most tamed Prokofiev right next to the wildest Scriabin – and in the middle of it all, Tchaikovsky, who, as so often, takes on the role of the romantically suffering hero. Prokofiev's Symphonie Classique presents itself as a virtuoso masterpiece, reaching far back into the elegant world of Haydn's classics. Then you'll experience Tchaikovsky's most famous virtuoso piece: the passionate Piano Concerto No. 1 – played by Roman Borisov, who proves with every note that passion cannot be had without pain.

Scriabin: Le Poème de l'extase

The kickoff to the anniversary year! 100 years after the opening of the planetarium, which later became the Tonhalle, the Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra's programs feature a wealth of music from 1926. From a time when operetta was still flourishing, Berlin was becoming a hotspot of modernism, and music was moving along increasingly international paths. Axel Kober and our orchestra ignite musical rockets that—like this era of transition—shine in a variety of colors.

New Year's Concert

In 1926, Düsseldorf opened what was then the world's largest planetarium. Exactly 100 years later, we celebrate this with music that reaches as far into the heavens as it does into the depths of human emotion. The spectacular opening is Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 1, which impressively demonstrates the unimaginable range of musical languages ​​that can span between nostalgic retrospection and passionate anticipation of the future. Edvard Grieg's popular Peer Gynt Suites then take you on an "elegiac expedition" where you witness a sunrise that, since its composition, has confidently been considered the most magnificent example since the birth of mankind. And because Peer Gynt never completely leaves his Norwegian homeland, original sounds from the north resound with Ragnhild Hemsing's Hardanger fiddle. Gordon Hamilton – Green Monday audience favorite – composed a rousing concerto for her, the premiere of which perfectly rounds off the concert.

Peer Gynt Suites

Glowing cheeks and a flutter in the stomach: At the first Valentine's Day concert at the Tonhalle in 2025, there was so much love in the air that the dome almost bent into a heart. This year, Alpesh Chauhan once again unleashes his full
charm, serving up musical temptations of all kinds together with the Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra.

Valentine's Day Concert

This evening brings a much-anticipated premiere: the first encounter between Isabelle Faust and Adam Fischer – a musical summit that dispenses entirely with classical music and Mahler, yet captivates from the very first note. Together, the two invite you to an evening dedicated entirely to the dazzling soul of Hungary. Béla Bartók's Second Violin Concerto is a fascinating expression of existential struggle, in which anger, melancholy, but also deep love of one's homeland can be felt. Isabelle Faust plays the piece with an intensity as if she had shared the last glass with Bartók himself on the evening before his escape from Budapest.

Kodaly

The line from Mozart to Debussy and Ravel is usually straighter than that to their German-speaking contemporaries. For all three share a playful quality – a delight in sound that delights the ear and yet never remains superficial. But when things get serious, Mozart transcends the player and shows in his great church works that beauty and reverence are not mutually exclusive. His Great Mass in C minor is one of those masterpieces that has something tragic and, at the same time, stately about it.

Debussy

Adam Fischer has never been an ivory tower artist. Political engagement and the fight for human rights are an integral
part of his life. The Principal Conductor of the Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra is passionately committed to freedom and civil rights, is a member of the Helsinki Committee, and upon taking office in Düsseldorf, he
made the establishment of a human rights prize a condition. Since 2016, Fischer has presented
the Tonhalle's €10,000 award each year to an individual or organization that has made a special commitment to freedom, democracy, and human rights. The award ceremony, which takes place during the Human Rights Concert, is always a highlight of the concert year.

Human Rights Concert

It was a pandemic that disrupted musical mathematics – but Schubert and Beethoven defy every rule of arithmetic. Therefore, today, instead of the mysterious (and sadly nonexistent) "Seventh," Schubert's elegant and charming Symphony No. 5 will be performed again – but this time with a full orchestral sound for all. Before that, Alban Berg's "Lyric Suite" from 1926 surprises with passionate intensity and a hint of the Roaring Twenties. The "Golden Twenties" also shimmer through the operetta sounds of Franz Lehár's "Paganini," whose authentic performance is a matter close to Adam Fischer's heart: After all, as a young conductor in St. Pölten, Austria, he gained his first experience of how "light musical theater" can indeed be a serious matter. Especially with Lehár, who for the first time dispenses with the obligatory happy ending: Paganini renounces the world of women – seriously tragic, without a wink.

Beethoven 3

Sometimes you can say: more is more! Nine ensembles from the Düsseldorf Symphony Orchestra perform well-known and lesser-known gems of chamber music. From duos to octets, from elegant to lively, everything is included.

Symphony Orchestra in the Palace

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