SUMMER SONATA – A FESTIVAL OF OPERA, BALLET AND CONCERT FILMS

SUMMER SONATA – A FESTIVAL OF OPERA, BALLET AND CONCERT FILMS 
Curated and Introduced by Sunit Tandon

CONCERT
A Mozart Gala from Salzburg
(106 min; 2006; dvd)

Anna Netrebko, soprano; Magdalena Kožená, mezzo-soprano; Patricia Petibon, soprano; Ekaterina Siurina, soprano; Thomas Hampson, baritone; Michael Schade, tenor; René Pape, bass

Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Conductor: Daniel Harding
Harpsichord: Anton Holzapfel
Directed by Brian Large

Mozart was born in Salzburg and, except when touring Europe as a Wunderkind, spent his formative years there. His relationship with the Salzburg was not always happy, but the city more than made amends in 2006 when it celebrated the 250th anniversary of his birth. Besides staging every one of his operas, it mounted this very special gala concert on 30th July that year, with what amounted to a United Nations assembly of distinguished Mozartians. The conductor was British, the orchestra Austrian, the singers were, in order of appearance, German (René Pape), Canadian (Michael Schade), French (Patricia Petibon); Czech (Magdalena Kožená), American (Thomas Hampson) and Russian (Ekaterina Siurina and Anna Netrebko). Yet they all spoke a common language: Mozart.

Opening with the Don Giovanni Overture, the Gala included arias from that opera, from Mitridate, re di Ponto, La Clemenza di Tito, Cosi Fan Tutte, the Overture and excerpts from Idomeneo and was rounded off with a performance of Mozart’s Symphony No. 38 in D major, K.504, which was premiered under the composer’s direction in Prague.