Saturday 1 January 2011

HAPPY NEW YEAR !




Das NEUJAHRSKONZERT
der Wiener Philharmoniker



 Foyer


The New Year Concert of the Vienna Philharmonic
is a concert of classical music that takes place
each year in the morning of January 1 in Vienna, Austria. 

It is in terms of international coverage 
the largest classical music event in the world
and is broadcast on television and radio to over 70 countries worldwide.



The music always includes pieces from the Johann Strauss family
with occasional additional music from other mostly Austrian composers.
There are traditionally about a dozen compositions played,
with a pause at the half and encores at the end.


Loorin Mazel, 1996


The music include waltzes, polkas, mazurkas and marches.
Of the encores, the first is often a fast polka.
The second is Johann Strauss II's waltz The Blue Danube,
whose introduction is interrupted by applause of recognition
and a New Year greeting from the musicians to the audience.

Ricardo Muti, 1997




This year the Austrian born conductor Franz Welser-Moest,
following in the footsteps of Clemens Krauss, Josef Krips,
Willi Boskovsky, Herbert von Karajan and Nikolaus Harnoncourt,
becomes the sixth Austrian conductor to stand at the helm
of the Vienna Philharmonic on the first day of the New Year.

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As far as I can think back - each New Year's Day I've listen to this concert.
My favorite Conductor was the Austrian Willy Boskovsky, 1955 - 1979
He had this great talent to convey the concert 
that I felt Johann Strauss himself is conducting.  

Willi Boskovsky, 1964


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The last piece is Johann Strauss I's  Radetzky March,
during which the audience claps along  under the conductor's wry direction.

Here with Zubin Mehta in 1998

PROSIT  NEUJAHR !



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The complete duration of the event is around two and a half hours.
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In view of the tradition of the New Year's Concerts, 
which began during the Second World War,
the Vienna Philharmonic performs the concert even today
not only as a presentation of Viennese musical culture at the 
highest level, but also to send the world a New Year's greeting
in the spirit of
Hope, Friendship and Peace
                                                                                                                     




HAPPY  NEW  YEAR
*
EIN FROHES UND GESUNDES NEUES JAHR
*
BONNE  ANNEE

Karin 

2 comments:

  1. I would LOVE to attend one of these concerts WOW! thank you for sharing..much love Colette x

    ReplyDelete
  2. To Karin and Ron

    Happy nwe Year 2011 and all my love

    Thomas

    ReplyDelete