Beethoven and Dvořák performed by the Czech Philharmonic
Saturday, 12 November 2022 / 8 pm / Karlovy Vary Municipal Theatre
Especially for Variations, the Czech Philharmonic presents Antonín Dvořák’s famous Violin Concerto in A Minor and Beethoven’s Symphony no. 7 in A Major, under the direction of conductor Domingo Hindoyan and featuring a violin solo by concert master of the Czech Philharmonic Jan Mráček.
Program:
Antonín Dvořák: Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in A Minor, op. 53, Ludwig van Beethoven: Symphony no. 7 in A Major, op. 92
Performed by:
Czech Philharmonic
Conductor:
Domingo Hindoyan
Solo violinist:
Jan Mráček (concert master of the Czech Philharmonic)
About the program
Antonín Dvořák (1841–1904) composed his only violin concerto at the turn of the 1870s/1880s. Its world premiere performance was originally supposed to feature German violinist Joseph Joachim. In the end, however, it was first performed by František Ondříček with the orchestra of the National Theatre in Prague. Thanks to his efforts, the concerto was subsequently performed at concert halls around the world and acquired a level of popularity it still enjoys today. Around the same time, Dvořák also composed his first set of Slavonic Dances, the Czech Suite, and his Sixth Symphony. The violin concerto demands a virtuoso playing style but is also characterized by a distinctive song-like melody and a rich and elaborate orchestral accompaniment. The inclusion of Ludwig van Beethoven’s (1770–1827) Seventh Symphony in the program was not done by chance. The composer worked on it in 1811 and 1812 during his stay at the spas in Teplice, Karlovy Vary, and Františkovy Lázně. The symphony was first performed around 1813 in Vienna, where it was an extraordinary success. Musically, it builds on Beethoven’s two previous symphonies, combining the drama of the Fate Symphony with the joyful lyricism of his Pastoral Symphony. One person who spoke admiringly of this work was Richard Wagner, who called it an “apotheosis of dance.”
Domingo Hindoyan
Conductor
Domingo Hindoyan is the Chief Conductor of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and is one of today’s most exciting and celebrated conductors. Hindoyan also holds the position of Principal Guest Conductor of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra. Hindoyan enjoys a vibrant career leading acclaimed ensembles and orchestras around the world including performances in the USA with the LA Philharmonic, Kansas City Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Symphony, New World Symphony, and in Europe with the Czech Philharmonic, Orchestra National du Capitole de Toulouse, Orchestre National de Bordeaux Aquitaine and Prague Philharmonia. Domingo Hindoyan was born in Caracas, Venezuela. He began his career as a violinist and member of the renowned Venezuelan musical education program El Sistema, and then was a member of Daniel Barenboim’s West-Eastern Divan Orchestra. He later went on to study conducting in Europe at the Haute École de Musique de Genève with Professor Laurent Gay and was the first assistant to Daniel Barenboim at the Deutsche Staatsoper Berlin between 2013 and 2016.
Jan Mráček