THE PIANIST WHO COULD NOT GO HOME
No two standing ovations are alike. Considering Pasacal Amoyel’s impressive itinerary, he might have seen all sorts. Still, he will not easily forget the way he was applauded at the Berliner Philharmonie for his performance of Liszt’s Totentanz. After eight reappearances on stage, surrounded by a glowing Anima and with a proud and smiling conductor by his side, he understood that the only thing that would soothe the roaring hall was an encore. If you were not one of the thousands (!) of listeners in Berlin, Weimar or at Bonn’s Beethovenfest you can catch up on the experience at one of our upcoming concerts in Bruges (B), Amsterdam (NL), Dijon (F) or even in Maribor (SLO) and Graz (A).
‘We’ that is: Anima Eterna Brugge, Pascal Amoyel, Thomas Bauer, Franz Liszt, Richard Wagner, Hugo Wolf and – sine qua non – Jos van Immerseel.
The 480 seats that we had reserved in Bruges for Anima’s public rehearsal on 22nd October were sold out in no time. Keep your eye on the calendar: next spring there will be another chance to witness the toiling of our musicians from up close.
BIRTHDAY BOY
On 22nd October 1811 Franz Liszt was born in Raiding, Hungary. Liszt was many things but he was not exactly a party animal. Suffering from recurring depressions, he was accompanied by a melancholy that would haunt him most of his life. The Conservatoire de Paris would not admit him as a student because he was a foreigner. But his irresistible music made his success inevitable. Virtuoso on the piano, tutor, thinker and consecutively and sometimes overlapping a husband, father, lover, womanizer, philosopher and a priest, he changed western music forever with his own musical language.
Hugo Wolf is responsible for a number of beautiful adaptations of some of Goethe’s poems. Thomas Bauer sings them for you, and also inspiringly takes on the role of Prometheus.
Liszt’s daughter Cosima knew how to pick a husband: she married Richard Wagner. His Siegfried Idyll and the Prelude from the third Act of Lohengrin complete this programme in honour of his father in law’s birthday.
Although we would like to, there is no way to cram so much music into one evening. Please consult the calendar to know the programme per concert.
We celebrate Liszt’s 200th birthday at home, at the Concertgebouw Brugge. Before that, you can find us at the following venues:
Maribor (SLO) – 15.10.2011 – Union Hall
Graz (A) – 17&18.10.2011 – Muzikverein
Amsterdam (NL) – 21.10.2011 – Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ
PROGRAMME 1
Richard Wagner, Siegfried Idyll für kleines Orchester
Franz Liszt, Klavier Konzert n°2, A Dur (Pascal Amoyel, fortepiano)
Franz Liszt, Von der Wiege bis zum Grabe
Richard Wagner, Preludium, Act III Lohengrin
Franz Liszt, Les Préludes, Symphonische Dichtung n°3
Dijon (FR) – 20.10.2011 – Auditorium de Dijon
PROGRAMME 2
Franz Liszt, Deux légendes pour orchestre
Hugo Wolf, Harfenspieler I-III (Thomas Bauer, baritone)
Hugo Wolf, Prometheus Bedecke deinen Himmel, Zeus (Thomas Bauer, baritone)
Franz Liszt, Ungarische Rhapsodie n°3
Franz Liszt, Totentanz, Paraphrase über “Dies Irae” (Pascal Amoyel, fortepiano)
Brugge (B) – 22.10.2011 – Concertgebouw Brugge
(Public rehearsal at 16h00 (sold out), Concertgebouw Brugge)
PROGRAMME 3
Richard Wagner, Siegfried Idyll für kleines Orchester
Richard Wagner, Preludium, Act III Lohengrin
Franz Liszt, Totentanz, Paraphrase über “Dies Irae” (Pascal Amoyel, fortepiano)
Franz Liszt, Ungarische Rhapsodie n°1
Hugo Wolf, Harfenspieler I-III (Thomas Bauer, bariton)
Hugo Wolf, Prometheus Bedecke deinen Himmel, Zeus (Thomas Bauer, baritone)
Franz Liszt, Ungarische Rhapsodie n°3
LISTEN TO LISZT!
In case you cannot make it to one of these venues, there is always the comfort of our recordings. Most of the works by Liszt that are travelling Europe with us this month, were recorded by Anima.
Listen to an excerpt from Von der Wiege bis zum Grabe on the discography page.
ANIMA-TUBE
With each newsletter, we send you some footage. This time it is not an interview with Jos, but a bit of music. It is our core business after all. For once the choice was easy: Liszt! Amoyel! Here are Anima Eterna Brugge performing the Totentanz three years ago in La Côte-Saint-André.
http://animaeterna.be/home/happybirthdayliszt/
BIRTHDAY BAND
After our autumnal roaming in the company of Liszt we will take a short winter break. Come and find us in February for our own birthday! Anima Eterna Brugge turns 25 and celebrates with Ravel and Debussy. Much more information on the happy occasion is to be found in The Anima Tribune (TAT), this season’s brochure. If your postman did not deliver it at your home, please check the online version on the website. And we will be back with more news before the spring.
WHAT HAPPENED TO 1?
Our open invitation to become our 501st facebook fan in exchange for a T-shirt left us puzzled. The same day we posted the question, we happily welcomed our 501st, 502nd and 503rd fan, who all joined up anonymously. We would very much like to give somebody that T-shirt – it is so pretty – so we will give it another try when the 1 comes around again. Number 601, please send an e-mail to sigrid@animaeterna.be with your address and your T-shirt size and post an original comment on our facebook page. It takes less than a minute. Keep an eye on the counter and spread the word!
Wishing you a colourful autumn,
Anima Eterna Brugge