Die Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen / Baeva / Paavo Järvi

She was supposed to make her debut at the Wiener Konzerthaus later in the season – but things turned out differently: within a very short space of time, Alena Baeva stepped in for Janine Jansen, who was ill, as soloist at the season-opening concert. Under the direction of Klaus Mäkelä, she shone together with the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Prokofiev's First Violin Concerto. Now she returns – as originally planned – and joins The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen under Paavo Järvi on two evenings.

Jewel of the violin literature

This time, Alena Baeva is devoting herself to an early work by Richard Strauss: he composed his Violin Concerto in D minor op. 8 at the age of just 17. Strauss later recalled having written the piece »in a class exercise book in lower primary school«. His technical sophistication and love of expressive melody are already evident in this work.

Two Schubert symphonies

The programme is complemented by two symphonies by Franz Schubert, which he wrote at the age of 19 and 20 –, only slightly older than Strauss at the time of his violin concerto. Symphony No. 5 is characterised by chamber music-like lightness and cheerfulness. Symphony No. 6, on the other hand, is much more powerful – Schubert was inspired for his finale by the music of Gioachino Rossini, to whom he attributed an »extraordinary genius«.