Summer Night goes Stars and Stripes

[Eva Elisabeth]

I meant to post this sooner, hope it's not too late to alert you not to miss this on PBS.

This past Thursday (public holiday, Corpus Christi) I attended for the third time the magnificent Summer Night Concert at Schönbrunn Palace. It is an annual event and a gift by the Vienna Philharmonic to all music lovers (who actually come from all over the world to see it). Each year a different top conductor and Solist (last year Anna Netrebko!) are featured. Since it's a gift, entrance is free, and ca.100,000 music lovers use to heed the call, plus over a million via TV alone in German speaking countries.

This year's event featured Gustavo Dudamel and Yuja Wang, and the program was all New World - Bernstein, Gershwin, Hollywood, Stars and Stripes Forever - check it out here (and some pics for impression if you scroll down) :
https://www.sommernachtskonzert.at/index_en.html
Here you get an impression of the music and setting from the final rehearsal (without "the" audience):
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gW3ZsylYNxw

I really loved all pieces, so I can't call any my favorite, but "The Star–Spangled Banner March" by Carl Michael Ziehrer (the guy who composed the Austrian National Anthem) was possibly the most interesting one and not what you would expect it to be. Ziehrer composed the piece in 1893 for the Chicago World Fair, where he and his orchestra were invited to to perform. It was meant a "March after American national tunes", and is a medley of „Marching Through Georgia“, „The Girl I Left Behind
Me“, „I Wish I Was in the Land of Cotton“ and „Yankee–Doodle"...

The concert will be broadcasted sometime soon by 70 "foreign" stations throughout the world including PBS. I'm sorry I couldn't yet find out when, but if you come across I highly recommend "virtual attendance"!!
       
PS: Schönbrunn was actually the Soldier's Home = summer residence of the Habsburg Emperors...

[RJNorton]

Sounds and looks absolutely wonderful, Eva. Thanks for posting. I checked the PBS website and found that last year's concert aired on 08/17/18. I could not find the date for this year's.

[LincolnMan]

I second Roger. Sounds wonderful!

[Lincoln Wonk]

(06-24-2019 07:51 PM)Eva Elisabeth Wrote:  I meant to post this sooner, hope it's not too late to alert you not to miss this on PBS.

This past Thursday (public holiday, Corpus Christi) I attended for the third time the magnificent Summer Night Concert at Schönbrunn Palace. It is an annual event and a gift by the Vienna Philharmonic to all music lovers (who actually come from all over the world to see it). Each year a different top conductor and Solist (last year Anna Netrebko!) are featured. Since it's a gift, entrance is free, and ca.100,000 music lovers use to heed the call, plus over a million via TV alone in German speaking countries.

This year's event featured Gustavo Dudamel and Yuja Wang, and the program was all New World - Bernstein, Gershwin, Hollywood, Stars and Stripes Forever - check it out here (and some pics for impression if you scroll down) :
https://www.sommernachtskonzert.at/index_en.html
Here you get an impression of the music and setting from the final rehearsal (without "the" audience):
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=gW3ZsylYNxw

I really loved all pieces, so I can't call any my favorite, but "The Star–Spangled Banner March" by Carl Michael Ziehrer (the guy who composed the Austrian National Anthem) was possibly the most interesting one and not what you would expect it to be. Ziehrer composed the piece in 1893 for the Chicago World Fair, where he and his orchestra were invited to to perform. It was meant a "March after American national tunes", and is a medley of „Marching Through Georgia“, „The Girl I Left Behind
Me“, „I Wish I Was in the Land of Cotton“ and „Yankee–Doodle"...

The concert will be broadcasted sometime soon by 70 "foreign" stations throughout the world including PBS. I'm sorry I couldn't yet find out when, but if you come across I highly recommend "virtual attendance"!!

PS: Schönbrunn was actually the Soldier's Home = summer residence of the Habsburg Emperors...

---

Thanks, Eva

[Steve]

The release date for the concert on PBS is August 9, 2019. Now local PBS stations have different schedules so depending on the specific market it could air anytime within the following week or so. So if you're interested start looking at your local schedules around then:

https://www.thirteen.org/13pressroom/pre...cert-2019/

[L Verge]

I would have been in heaven just to be at Schonbrunn Palace once again. It has been over forty years since I was there, but it was definitely my favorite grand palace. I even preferred it to Versailles. It was not as intimidating in its majesty; its color palettes were soft pastels; the rooms were of reasonable size; and the grounds were gorgeous. You can take a tour here:

https://www.schoenbrunn.at/en/about-scho...he-palace/

[Eva Elisabeth]

You would have loved it, Laurie! Thanks for the info, Steve!!

[Gene C]

Our summer concerts are fun, but not so grand. I love the excitement of an outdoor concert

Which reminds me of a song - Hoop Dee Doo by Doris Day
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEpUwsjf...h&index=53

[LincolnMan]

(06-29-2019 06:55 AM)Gene C Wrote:  Our summer concerts are fun, but not so grand. I love the excitement of an outdoor concert

Which reminds me of a song - Hoop Dee Doo by Doris Day
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEpUwsjf...h&index=53

Nice one Gene!