Waldbühne 2013: Sir Simon Rattle conducts Mendelssohn and Beethoven

A summer residence of the Berliner Philharmoniker, the Waldbühne in Berlin is one of the most beautiful outdoor amphitheatres on the European continent. It serves once again as a venue for the Berliner Philharmoniker summer concert, which performs two masterpieces of the German repertoire...

The Violin Concerto in E Minor, which was written by Felix Mendelssohn in 1843-1844, opens the concert. With a formal structure that breaks with the conventions of the classical concerto, this masterpiece is interpreted by the violonist Christian Tetzlaff, who notably recorded it with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra.

Following Christian Tetzlaff's performance, the Berliner Philharmoniker gives a rendition of the Beethoven Ninth Symphony, under the baton of its music director Sir Simon Rattle. The famous final movement, "Ode to Joy," named after Friedrich von Schiller's poem, is sung by the Rundfunkchor Berlin and the renowned soloists Camilla Tilling, Nathalie Stutzmann, Joseph Kaiser and Dimitry Ivashchenko.

© Picture: Monika Rittershaus