Carnegie Hall

Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra

Beethoven’s heroic music frames a Bartók work influenced by Debussy. Bartók’s sensibilities changed after a visit to Paris, absorbing the lushness of French music while also adding accents of folk music. The courageous protagonists of Beethoven’s opera Leonore—later renamed Fidelio—are depicted in a rousing overture that features themes from the opera. His brawny Third Symphony, the “Eroica,” is grandly scaled and boldly opens the door to a new age with its muscular depiction of an unnamed hero.

Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra

Haydn and Mozart are deeply rooted in the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra’s tradition. Hearing them perform works by both composers is a special occasion, but when violin superstar Leonidas Kavakos joins them in Mozart’s elegant and dramatic Violin Concerto No. 5, it’s a concert you cannot miss. Haydn’s Symphony No. 97 thrills from its opening martial trumpets and drum fanfares to its bustling finale. Mozart’s “Jupiter,” his final symphony, opens with great pomp as well, but that’s only an episode in a work of tremendous emotional range that culminates in a miraculous display of counterpoint and joy.

Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra

Solemnity, fury, and joy—sometimes in a single work—characterize the music on this program. Ives’s Decoration Day (now known as Memorial Day) with its allusions to church bells, hymns, and military band music evokes a mood of reverence. Brahms also conjures a serious tone in the second movement of his Symphony No. 2, but the work’s overall warmth and jubilant finale dispels all sorrow. Beethoven balances a stormy mood, melancholy, and high spirits in his groundbreaking Piano Concerto No. 3, a work played by Igor Levit, “one of the essential artists of his generation” (The New York Times).

Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra

Mahler’s final complete symphony is the brilliant culmination of his career. The grand scale, intense emotion, earthy dance, and startling power—the hallmarks of his symphonies—are also present, pointing to an ethereal finale that ascends to the otherworldly. Michael Tilson Thomas and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra—both renowned Mahler interpreters—offer a vision into the eternal.