Symphony Concert No. 4 with Christian Thielemann

This is evident both in the brilliant overture to Shakespeare’s *A Midsummer Night’s Dream*, which he composed at the age of just seventeen, and in the concert overture *Calm Sea and Happy Voyage* from 1828, in which Mendelssohn sets to music two contrasting poems by his revered Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

His early Violin Concerto in D minor also reveals the young composer’s individual style: inspired by Mozart, yet shaped by his own imagination and expressiveness. In contrast, the Reformation Symphony—which Mendelssohn composed in 1830 to mark the 300th anniversary of the Augsburg Confession and premiered himself in 1832 with the Berlin Court Orchestra—is characterized by a solemn and profound tone. Woven-in quotations such as the “Dresden Amen” and Martin Luther’s chorale “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” lend the work a special spiritual dimension.

Instrumentation

• Staatskapelle Berlin
• Christian Thielemann, conductor
• María Dueñas, violin

Program

Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy

“Calm Sea and Happy Voyage,” Concert Overture in D Major, Op. 27

Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy

Concerto for Violin, Piano, and String Orchestra in D minor

María Dueñas, violin

Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy

A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 21: Overture

Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy

Symphony No. 5 in D minor, Op. 107, “Reformation Symphony”