Rain date: Sunday, 28 June

King Stephen – overture, Op. 117
Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125

Klára Kolonits soprano
Kornélia Bakos  alto
István Kovácsházi tenor
András Palerdi bass

Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra
Hungarian National Choir (choirmaster: Csaba Somos)

Conductor: Gábor Káli

Even Beethoven paid tribute to the king who founded the state of Hungary. In 1811, the Pest German Theatre opened its doors, and August Friedrich Kotzebue (1761–1819) wrote his play King Stephen to mark the occasion. Beethoven composed incidental music for the piece, and the overture from this work remains popular to this day. It is sure to delight lovers of Hungarian melodies with its energetic verbunkos themes. Some 13 years later, in 1824, Beethoven completed his most famous creation, the Ninth Symphony. Its finale introduced a revolutionary innovation by incorporating a chorus and soloists in setting Friedrich Schiller’s (1759–1805) poem, Ode to Joy, to music. For this performance, the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra is joined by the National Choir (choirmaster: Csaba Somos). The soloists, Klára Kolonits, Kornélia Bakos, István Kovácsházi and András Palerdi, are among Hungary’s finest singers and have all achieved many notable successes abroad. Gábor Káli is one of the country’s most outstanding young conductors: he has won international competitions and his performances have been celebrated by audiences from Germany and France to Finland and Portugal.