Waldbuehne 2016 - Czech Night

In June 2016 the Metropolitan Opera, New York City, announced that Yannick Nezet-Sequin would be the company's next Music Director succeeding Music Director Emeritus James Levine. When Nezet-Seguin made his MET debut seven years ago at Lincoln Center, very few knew him as he was virtually unkown. His professional ascent since that time has been non stop. Born in Montreal, forty-two years old this month, March 2017, and youngest of three children of a supportive family of educators, his development has been phenomenal. The MET will wait four years, 2020, before he finally becomes the full-time music director. Meanwhile, beginning this Fall, 2017, he is scheduled to lead two operas each year as "Music Director Designate". (In part from Opera News March 2017) This Waldbuehne production from Summer 2016 offers an excellent insight into this conductors energy, talent and imagination. The Berliner Philamoniker is formidable as usual with their performance. Respect for this conductor is visible.

Good concert.

energetic, exciting, well done .

Always wonderful performances at Waldbuhne.

PLEASE NOTE : THIS BLUE-RAY DISC IS A UNIVERSAL WORLDWIDE REGION PLAYBACK This disc offers a presentation of music that will surely gladden the hearts of many music lovers, aimed as it is directly at the core repertoire of Czech music. This especially features two major works by Dvorak which may not be his most familiar to some, but which undoubtedly qualifies for major repertoire status. This annual occasion was also fortunate to be held in particularly kind weather conditions. The featured concerto is that of Dvorak’s violin concerto, a melodic work which is strongly nationalist in character with its use of Slavonic dance idiom pervading the whole structure. The soloist, Lisa Batiashvili, delivers a bright and lithe rendering of the piece that is simply a joy. The interpretation is not dissimilar to that of the famous Josef Suk rendering with conductor Karel Ancerl made in the early 1960s and which will have been the introduction to the work for vast numbers of collectors. Since then the piece has steadily infiltrated the core repertoire although trailing behind its more famous partner, the cello concerto. Lisa Batiashvili, as followers of the annual BPO EuroKonzerts will recall, was also the solo violinist in the notably successful Brahms concert of 2007 with Rattle conducting her partnership with cellist Truls Mork in the Brahms Double concerto. This performance is an equally successful occasion. Prior to the traditional Berliner Luft signing off piece, the evening concludes with sparkling renditions of Dvorak’s Symphony 6 and his Slavonic Dance 8 which acts as an encore piece to the highly successful performance of the symphony. The symphony, once known as number 1, was actually the sixth to be written and is strongly Slavonic in nature as with the previous violin concerto. The third movement, a furiant styled dance-inflected movement, makes this connection abundantly clear although the whole work exudes Slavonic-inflected joy and high spirits. The conductor, Annick Nezet-Seguin, encourages the orchestra to be on their most lively and sparkling form throughout this concert even though the opening Vltava does little to banish Karajan entirely from memory – it was one of Karajan’s oft played signature items. The recording quality itself offers strikingly clear visuals with nicely involving camera work of the musicians and which also plays across the rapt audience from time to time. The sound is also clear but some may find that the lower reaches may lack resonance. This is striking when comparing the sound with the 2016 Eurokonzert, also presented in stereo and DTS 5.0. In both cases therefore, the separate sub-woofer channel is not used. In the indoor situation of the Eurokonzert this does not matter as the lower resonances are retained by the surrounding building but the open-air Waldbuhne does not provide such support. Instead the bass frequencies simply get lost. By way of example, the 2001 Spanish Night Waldbuhne concert presented in DTS 5.1 is strikingly fuller and more effective in that regard. It should be noted that this comment is made in the light of using main speakers that go as low as 19 Hz. Use of different playback equipment may offer different results of course. Collectors should applaud the far more affordable price being asked for this disc (UK), either as Blu-ray as reviewed here, or DVD. This must be further reason for praise due to Euroarts for this incentive. It offers a clear challenge to other labels still expecting premium prices. There are several new Euroarts issues at these reduced prices recently available and reviews will be following shortly! Overall, this projects a very successful concert with notably idiomatic and joyful performances throughout. The only reservation relates to the lack of a separate sub-woofer channel which may worry some more than others. Still, a very enjoyable disc though.

ho dato questa valutazione per le riprese del video mi è piaciuta la sequenza dei brani musicali lo consiglio a tutti gli appassionati della musica classica

As allways an excellent concert

outstanding in every way and to hear probably Dvorak"s greatest symphony was special a change for those people obsessed with his overplayed and overrated new world symphomy

Fantastic production, Waldbühne from Berlin rarely disappoints. Young Czech Conductor Yannick Nezet is dynamic and full of expression. And then there is Lisa Batiashvili, an amazingly talented young violinist. The Berliner Philharmoniker are their usual best, a great DVD and an even greater price

Well played and recorded