Concert information
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With his ballet music The Firebird, the young Igor Stravinsky revolutionized the dance theatre – through an unusual fusion of Russian folk music with shimmering timbres and powerful rhythms. Klaus Mäkelä, the incoming Chief Conductor of the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, pairs Stravinsky’s work with Andrew Norman’s Symphony Play. In this piece, the American composer explores our attention span in the digital age and the rules of complex video games. He does so with a musical language that oscillates between wit and aggressive sharpness.
Artists
Berliner Philharmoniker
Klaus Mäkelä conductor
Programme
Andrew Norman
Play for orchestra (German premiere)
Interval
Igor Stravinsky
L'Oiseau de feu (The Firebird), Ballet Music
Additional information
Duration ca. 2 hours and 15 minutes (incl. 20 minutes interval)
Dates and tickets
Main Auditorium
39 to 111 €
Introduction
19:15
with Meike Pfister
Series G: Concerts with the Berliner Philharmoniker
Main Auditorium
39 to 111 €
Introduction
19:15
with Meike Pfister
Series E: Concerts with the Berliner Philharmoniker
Main Auditorium
39 to 111 €
Introduction
18:15
with Meike Pfister
Series AK: Compact
Background
The man who knows no fear
A portrait of Klaus Mäkelä
Still in his twenties, Klaus Mäkelä has rapidly established himself on the international conducting scene. He currently leads both the Orchestre de Paris and the Oslo Philharmonic, and has already been named future chief conductor of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He now returns to the Berliner Philharmoniker for a third appearance. A portrait.
Biography
Klaus Mäkelä
Klaus Mäkelä is known for the intensity and concentration of his performances. “The most important thing in conducting is not the hands and arms, but presence,” he says. Born in 1996, the Finnish conductor is Music Director of the Orchestre de Paris and Chief Conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic until May 2026. In 2027 he will take up his posts as Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, with which he began a long-term collaboration as Artistic Partner in the 2022/23 season.
Mäkelä first studied cello at the Sibelius Academy in his native Helsinki. As a soloist he has appeared with many major orchestras, while as a chamber musician he has performed at festivals in Kuhmo, Naantali and Verbier. He later studied conducting with Jorma Panula. By the age of 20, he was already conducting leading Scandinavian orchestras, before making debuts across Europe, the United States and Japan.
His repertoire ranges from Baroque music to contemporary works. “What is very close to my heart,” he says, “is precise stylistic work: every composer has to be approached differently.”
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