In this episode of DW Festival Concert, we listen to the London-based Aurora Orchestra playing elaborate compositions from memory.
Image: Fotolia/Alenavlad
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When it comes to creative, unusual and impressive performances, the Aurora Orchestra really stands out. Forget chairs, the London-based ensemble often plays standing, and the musicians even perform whole symphonies from memory! The orchestra's conductor, Nicholas Collon, says this gives the music a different sound.
The Aurora Orchestra took the stage twice at the 2022 Beethoven Festival in Bonn: first to perform music by Beethoven and Polish composer and violinist Grazyna Bacewicz, and then again to play Hector Berlioz's Symphonie Fantastique in the festival's closing concert.
In this episode, we'll start with the most contemporary music: Grazyna Bacewicz's Concerto for String Orchestra, written in 1948.
Grazyna Bacewicz's music is going through a renaissance of sorts.
Born in 1909 in Lodz, Poland, she began her career in 1932 in Paris. A violinist, Bacewicz performed all across Europe. Her instrument features prominently in her more than 200 compositions.
Beethoven was known for his fiery temperImage: Willfried Gredler-Oxenbauer/picture alliance
Her fellow composer Witold Lutoslawski praised how she combined the talents of both a creator and an interpreter into a harmonic whole, which made her stand out from the trending styles of the mid-20th century. Bacewicz died in 1960.
A sonata for a Black violinist
Beethoven's "Kreutzer Sonata" gets its nickname from the French violinist Rodolphe Kreutzer. What you may not know is that the composition was originally conceived with a different violinist in mind.
Musician Jonian Ilias Kadesha shares the tale surrounding this sonata: "There is this story that 'Kreutzer Sonata' should be called the 'Bridgetower Sonata' because it was dedicated to this apparently wonderful Black violinist Bridgetower, and he was the one who gave the premiere, and Beethoven was actually really happy with it."
"But then," adds Kadesha, "we know from Beethoven's history, he had quite a temper. So he had a fallout with him and changed the dedication to Rodolphe Kreutzer. And in fact, Kreutzer never played the sonata and didn't actually like the piece, so it's a kind a bit of a sad story that we keep calling it the 'Kreutzer Sonata.'"
In the edition of the piece dedicated to Kreutzer, Beethoven describes the composition as "a sonata for pianoforte and an obligato violin written in a very concert style, almost like a concerto." The version of the sonata we'll hear sounds particularly concerto-like: it's an arrangement by Australian violinist Richard Tognetti for solo violin and string orchestra.
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The "Kreutzer Sonata" is one of Beethoven's most well-known and popular sonatas, and not without reason, says violinist Jonian Ilias Kadesha. "What is wonderful about this sonata is it's written in such a big scale. It has so much material and such incredible energy. The sort of obsession he has with certain textures – it's really amazing.
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Berlioz's 'Symphonie Fantastique'
The London-based Aurora Orchestra is renowned for its creativity and unique performances. Each year the orchestra picks one work to memorize entirely. One of these pieces is Hector Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantastique," which can also be heard in this episode.
If you're already familiar with it, you'll know that it lasts more than 50 minutes and is filled with musical details. In other words, it's a challenging piece. So how does one memorize such a gigantic symphony?
Hector BerliozImage: Imago/Imagebroker
Violinist and orchestra leader Maia Cabeza explains how she does it: "It's like a story, right? So once you start, one thing leads to another. That's how I think of it, because if I go onstage and I think, 'Oh, I have to play this entire symphony by memory,' then it's quite overwhelming. But if I think, 'It's really a story, and one thing leads to the next thing, and I will know when that moment comes in story how that continues,' then it's actually much more approachable."
A versatile composition
Berlioz's symphony is a fantastical tale in five movements. It recounts the experiences of a musician who, despairing in love, takes opium in desperation.
From Iron Maiden to Beethoven: Stars on stamps
Royal Mail has unveiled a series of stamps paying tribute to rock legends Iron Maiden. Postage companies worldwide have also celebrated various cultural icons.
Image: Royal Mail
Iron Maiden
The UK's Royal Mail has revealed images of 12 new stamps paying tribute to Iron Maiden. The influential heavy metal band appears on eight stamps featuring their legendary performances worldwide, while four other stamps depict the group's grim mascot, Eddie (picture), described by the postal service as "a pop-cultural icon in his own right." The stamps will go on sale on January 12.
Image: Royal Mail
David Bowie
In 2022, Deutsche Post issued a stamp paying tribute to David Bowie, who died of cancer on January 10, 2016. The influential singer lived in Berlin in the late 70s. The stamp features a picture by US photographer Greg Gorman. For its special editions, the German postal service takes suggestions from the public.
Image: dpa/picture alliance
Udo Lindenberg
Once a theme for a new German stamp is accepted, graphic designers can submit their ideas in a competition. Some celebrities simply take the design into their own hands, as was the case for German rocker Udo Lindenberg in 2018 for the collection "Udo's 10 Commandments." The proceeds went to the Boniface Association, a charity supporting social projects for women and children.
Audrey Hepburn
In 2001 Deutsche Post issued a stamp dedicated to Audrey Hepburn. But her family objected to the choice of photo showing the Hollywood icon smoking. The 14 million stamps that had already been printed had to be destroyed. A rare few survived — and became extremely valuable. A single stamp fetched €135,000 ($153,000) at an auction in 2005, and a pane of 10 stamps even reached €430,000 in 2010.
Image: Horst Ossinger/dpa/dpaweb/picture-alliance
Falco
In 2006 the Austrian post issued a special stamp with singer Falco, who died in 1998 at the age of 40. He is dressed up as Mozart, a reference to his superhit "Rock Me Amadeus" from 1985, which to this day remains the only German-language single to have reached number one of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Austria had already dedicated a stamp to its star in 1994.
Ludwig van Beethoven
An art advisory board decides on the drafts of the stamps. For deceased celebrities, the winning design must be coordinated with their heirs and estate administrators — ideally ahead of printing, as the Hepburn case taught us. The stamp for Beethoven's 250th anniversary in 2020 features a stylized version of a famous portrait of the composer by Joseph Karl Stieler.
Image: Oliver Berg/dpa/picture alliance
Hildegard Knef
Postage stamps also document the passing of time. This special stamp with the portrait of German singer and actress Hildegard Knef was issued in 2003, a year after her death. At the time, a standard letter could be sent within Germany for 55 cents. That now costs 85 cents.
Image: Raimund Müller/imago images
Sesame Street
Ernie and Bert proudly presented the 2020 series of stamps dedicated to the stars of the German spin-off of the beloved US children's show, "Sesame Street." Along with Bert, Elmo, the Cookie Monster and Ernie, the German version of the show also has the puppets Samson and Tiffy as main characters.
Image: Markus Scholz/dpa/picture alliance
Michael Jackson
Special postage stamps with prominent personalities are popular around the world. Pop stars like Michael Jackson have been immortalized in several countries. This design from a US stamp was reproduced as a mural in Rio de Janeiro, where he had shot the video for his single "They Don't Care About Us" in 1995.
Buddy Holly
Many international stamps celebrating stars are colorful and cheerful. This US postage stamp from 1993 honors rock 'n' roller Buddy Holly ("Peggy Sue"), who died in a plane crash in 1959 at the age of 22. Most pictures show Buddy Holly smiling, like the image on the stamp above.
Elvis Presley
And of course there have been stamps paying tribute to the King of rock 'n' roll all around the world — there's even one from the Pacific island state of Palau. In 1992, the US Postal Service proposed two possible designs for an Elvis Presley stamp. The design depicting him much younger won.
Australian stars
Special postage stamps often celebrate national success stories, like this 2009 series featuring Australian Academy Award winners Cate Blanchett, Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman and Geoffrey Rush. Launched in 1997, Australia Post's annual Legends Awards stamps commemorate people from the country who have made significant contributions to the world.
In 2021, the UK's Royal Mail issued a special edition featuring numerous superheroes and villains from the DC Comics universe. They were designed by British comic book artist Jim Cheung, known for his work on the Avengers series — published by DC's competitor, Marvel Comics.
Image: Royal Mail/AP/picture alliance
The Rolling Stones
In January 2022, the British postal service honored The Rolling Stones with 12 special stamps. The band celebrated its 60th anniversary that year and remains among "the most enduring rock groups of all time," the Royal Mail said. The Stones have created some of the most iconic and inspiring albums in modern music and are renowned for their groundbreaking live performances, it was noted.
Image: Royal Mail/PA Media/picture alliance
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The Aurora Orchestra is the first orchestra in the world to play entire symphonies by heart. The group's conductor, Nicholas Collon, is convinced that this opens up new performance experiences for both the musicians and the audience.
"It's brilliant: You can play the piece 10 times, and there is still an element of charged atmosphere about it, because there's a slight danger to it, also, and because you're always thinking incredibly quickly with your head at the same time. You can never sit back and just play," says Collon.
The five movements of Berlioz's "Symphonie Fantastique" use evocative musical sounds and reoccurring melodies to depict five episodes in the life of the protagonist, the despairing, drugged-up musician.
That dramatic piece was also the final one in today's show and season. The show was hosted by Cristina Burack and produced by music editor Gaby Reucher and sound engineer Christian Stäter.
If you have any feedback, write to us at music@dw.com. Join us for more exciting classical music performances in the next season of DW Festival Concert, which starts after the summer.
