DE VOCHT In Exile
BRUCH Violin Concerto No. 1
STRAUSS Don Juan
STRAUSS Till Eulenspiegel
STRAUSS Dance of the Seven Veils, Op. 54 (from Salome)
Poetic evocation, instrumental virtuosity, and vivid musical storytelling come together in a programme that explores different facets of the symphonic language of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Lodewijk De Vocht’s In Exile, composed during the First World War, was inspired by the experience of displacement, transforming nostalgia and uncertainty into a work of compelling lyricism and evocative power. This performance marks the first time the work will be heard in Madrid. Bruch’s Violin Concerto No. 1, premiered in its final version in 1868 with the invaluable collaboration of the violinist Joseph Joachim, remains one of the most beloved works of the Romantic concerto repertoire. Its seamless blend of dazzling virtuosity, expansive lyricism, and direct emotional appeal achieves a remarkable balance between technical brilliance and expressive depth.
The three Richard Strauss works that conclude the programme demonstrate the composer’s unrivalled ability to transform the orchestra into a vehicle for musical narrative. Don Juan (1889), the tone poem that established Strauss’s international reputation, unfolds with irresistible vitality and dazzling orchestral brilliance. Till Eulenspiegel (1895) vividly depicts the exploits of the legendary German trickster with wit, imagination, and remarkable orchestral ingenuity. Finally, the Dance of the Seven Veils, drawn from Salome, distils into a few extraordinary minutes the sensuality, sumptuous orchestral colour, and dramatic tension that define one of the most groundbreaking operas of the early twentieth century.
