Events

Johann Sebastian Bach: St Matthew’s Passion BWV 244

Collegium Vocale Salzburg and its soloists
Virgil Hartinger, evangelist
Stefan Zenkl, Jesus

L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Michael Schneider, director

A composition which moves and quietens us, leaving us contemplative. We are thrilled to join forces once again with our longstanding Salzburg colleagues.

Johann Sebastian Bach: St Matthew’s Passion BWV 244

Collegium Vocale Salzburg and its soloists
Virgil Hartinger, evangelist
Stefan Zenkl, Jesus

L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Michael Schneider, director

A composition which moves and quietens us, leaving us contemplative. We are thrilled to join forces once again with our longstanding Salzburg colleagues.

“Utopia with Bach”

Johann Sebastian Bach
Brandenburg Concertos No. 1 in F major BWV 1046, No. 4 in G major BWV 1049, No. 5 in D major BWV 1050 & No. 2 in F major BWV 1047

“A utopia with Bach” is presented in Raiding with four of the “Six concerts avec plusieurs instruments”. Bach demanded unprecedented and challenging virtuosic playing from his musicians. The history of the Brandenburg concertos commences in 1721. Back then Bach was chapel master at the court in Köthen and was considering changing his job. His manuscript of the Brandenburg concertos is dedicated to the Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg who maintained an excellent court orchestra and could therefore be regarded as a “letter” of application. Whether the Margrave took notice or even appreciated these works is not recorded. Until 1850 they remained unused in the court library. Only in the 20th century they became synonymous with the “top hits in Classical music”.

L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Michi Gaigg, director

Dreams come true (for any wind ensemble) if one plays this masterpiece:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Serenade No. 10 in B flat major K. 361 “Gran Partita”
Texts by Ingeborg Bachmann, Peter Shaffer and from letters by W. A. Mozart
Concert introduction: Albert Hosp

L’Orfeo Bläserensemble
Carin van Heerden, oboe & director

Marianna von Martines Overture in C major
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Concerto for piano and orchestra No. 23 in A major K. 488
Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach Sinfonie in E minor Wq. 178 H. 653 “Berlin Symphony No. 3”
Joseph Haydn Symphony No. 104 in D major Hob. I:104 “London”

To celebrate our 30th anniversary we would like to bring a metropolitan flair to the Brucknerhaus in Linz. Apart from Haydn’s Symphony No. 104, composed in 1795 during his second visit to London, we also present Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach’s third “Berlin Symphony” which he composed while in service with Frederic the Great. The first half of the programme includes one of Mozart’s most famous piano concertos, composed in Vienna, preceded by an overture by Marianne von Martines, a pupil of Haydn’s in Vienna. This programme celebrates the First Viennese School and their predecessors, in a way circumscribing our own history.

Olga Pashchenko, fortepiano
L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Michi Gaigg, conductor

Georg Philipp Telemann
Concerto in D major for violin, strings and b.c. TWV 22:6
“Vernunft, Geduld und Zeit” & “Stirbt mein Geist durch Dein Verlangen” TWV 22:6
“Mein Vergnügen wird sich fügen” TWV 20:18/1
„Die Hoffnung des Wiedersehens” TWV 20:70
Concerto in e minor for violin, 2 oboes, strings and b.c. TWV 53:e2
“Quillt, ihr überhäuften Tränen” TWV 22:13
“Fließen nichts als bittre Tränen” TWV 22:7
“Ein tröstendes Hoffen auf freudige Stunden” TWV 21:14
a.o.

“Hope is a disposition of the soul to persuade itself that what it desires will come to pass.” This inspiring thought from the great French philosopher René Descartes gave rise to this programme. It conveys the certainty that love prevails over all inner conflicts, dispels our fears and breeds trust. With this matinee we are happy to return with Dorothee Mields to a festival which has been a wonderful partner for many years.

Dorothee Mields, soprano
Julia Huber & Martin Jopp, violin
L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Carin van Heerden, oboe, recorder & direction

Georg Philipp Telemann Sonata in G minor TWV 43:G9 (Concerto ripieno)
Johann Sebastian Bach Concerto in D minor for harpsichord, strings & basso continuo BWV 1054
Antonio Vivaldi Concerto D major for recorder, strings & basso continuo RV 428
Johann Sebastian Bach Concerto in C minor for violin, oboe, strings & basso continuo BWV 1060R
Georg Philipp Telemann Concerto in E flat major TWV 43:Es1 (Concerto ripieno)
 
L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Carin van Heerden, recorder, oboe & direction

Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load”
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Libretto by Philipp Blom

Company of music
Katharina Linhard & Barbara Achammer, soprano
Lucia Varsic & Anna Kargl, alto
Sebastian Taschner & Jakob Gerbeth, tenor
Maximilian Schnabel & Daniel Menczigar, bass
Barbara Novotny theatrical performance
L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Johannes Hiemetsberger musical direction

Saskia Bladt music adaption
Manuela Kloibmüller stage direction
Isabella Reder stage & costume design

The annual music theatre production at the Greinburg Castle introduces a fresh approach in 2026. A “Bach opera” titled Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load” combines the boundless power of Johann Sebastian Bach’s music with living causes of our time. In Greinburg Castle a a many-layered soundscape will evolve in which the arcade court will serve as a lively stage with The Company of Music and the L’Orfeo Barockorchester, conducted by Johannes Hiemetsberger.

Musical theatre in times of present-day ruptures…
Even though Johann Sebastian Bach did not compose any operas himself, his cantatas and choruses convey an impressive dramatic power. From this rich abundance, Saskia Bladt weaves a fine musical collage and forms Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load” into a musical-theatrical pasticcio of our time. Philipp Blom’s libretto questions current social issues: How does artificial intelligence influence our thinking, our decisions and our understanding of humanity?

The central scene is the festive launch of the omniscient AI Sophia. Between music by Bach, champagne and visionary images of the future, the machine answers the questions of its admirers with impressive clarity. When the waitress Leila asks a very personal question, this confident clarity crumbles and a space for reflection and dialogue opens. Thus, the work invites the audience to an intensive mental experiment about progress, responsibility and human freedom and opens a multi-layered, moving view of our possible future.

Fo(u)r Violins Only

Music for …
1 violin by Giuseppe Tartini, Johann Joseph Vilsmayr, Nicola Matteis and Balduin Sulzer
2 violins by Jacques Aubert and Paul Hindemith
3 violins by Johann Joseph Fux, Joseph Bodin de Boismortier and Richard Hofmann
4 violins by Georg Philipp Telemann, Richard Rudolf Klein and Witold Lutosławski

L’Orfeolinisti – the violinists of L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Julia Huber, Martin Jopp, Sabine Reiter, Elisabeth Wiesbauer violin

The violin is a richly gifted instrument in the world of chamber music, but mostly in combination with other instrument groups. A single violin often faces the challenge of performing major works. When two, three or even four violins play together, one usually thinks of educational duos or torturous student recitals. L’Orfeolinisti prove that this can be quite different in their programme featuring music from the Baroque to the modern era. The programme centres on Telemann’s Concerti for 4 Violins without Bass (TWV 40:201-203), around which all possible interpretations are woven, from the fantastical to the contemplative, from the scholarly to the lively, from the virtuosic to the lyrical, creating an auditory journey through the world of the violin.

Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load”
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Libretto by Philipp Blom

Company of music
Katharina Linhard & Barbara Achammer, soprano
Lucia Varsic & Anna Kargl, alto
Sebastian Taschner & Jakob Gerbeth, tenor
Maximilian Schnabel & Daniel Menczigar, bass
Barbara Novotny theatrical performance
L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Johannes Hiemetsberger musical direction

Saskia Bladt music adaption
Manuela Kloibmüller stage direction
Isabella Reder stage & costume design

The annual music theatre production at the Greinburg Castle introduces a fresh approach in 2026. A “Bach opera” titled Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load” combines the boundless power of Johann Sebastian Bach’s music with living causes of our time. In Greinburg Castle a a many-layered soundscape will evolve in which the arcade court will serve as a lively stage with The Company of Music and the L’Orfeo Barockorchester, conducted by Johannes Hiemetsberger.

Musical theatre in times of present-day ruptures…
Even though Johann Sebastian Bach did not compose any operas himself, his cantatas and choruses convey an impressive dramatic power. From this rich abundance, Saskia Bladt weaves a fine musical collage and forms Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load” into a musical-theatrical pasticcio of our time. Philipp Blom’s libretto questions current social issues: How does artificial intelligence influence our thinking, our decisions and our understanding of humanity?

The central scene is the festive launch of the omniscient AI Sophia. Between music by Bach, champagne and visionary images of the future, the machine answers the questions of its admirers with impressive clarity. When the waitress Leila asks a very personal question, this confident clarity crumbles and a space for reflection and dialogue opens. Thus, the work invites the audience to an intensive mental experiment about progress, responsibility and human freedom and opens a multi-layered, moving view of our possible future.

Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load”
Music by Johann Sebastian Bach
Libretto by Philipp Blom

Company of music
Katharina Linhard & Barbara Achammer, soprano
Lucia Varsic & Anna Kargl, alto
Sebastian Taschner & Jakob Gerbeth, tenor
Maximilian Schnabel & Daniel Menczigar, bass
Barbara Novotny theatrical performance
L’Orfeo Barockorchester
Johannes Hiemetsberger musical direction

Saskia Bladt music adaption
Manuela Kloibmüller stage direction
Isabella Reder stage & costume design

The annual music theatre production at the Greinburg Castle introduces a fresh approach in 2026. A “Bach opera” titled Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load” combines the boundless power of Johann Sebastian Bach’s music with living causes of our time. In Greinburg Castle a a many-layered soundscape will evolve in which the arcade court will serve as a lively stage with The Company of Music and the L’Orfeo Barockorchester, conducted by Johannes Hiemetsberger.

Musical theatre in times of present-day ruptures…
Even though Johann Sebastian Bach did not compose any operas himself, his cantatas and choruses convey an impressive dramatic power. From this rich abundance, Saskia Bladt weaves a fine musical collage and forms Sophia or “Liberty’s heavy load” into a musical-theatrical pasticcio of our time. Philipp Blom’s libretto questions current social issues: How does artificial intelligence influence our thinking, our decisions and our understanding of humanity?

The central scene is the festive launch of the omniscient AI Sophia. Between music by Bach, champagne and visionary images of the future, the machine answers the questions of its admirers with impressive clarity. When the waitress Leila asks a very personal question, this confident clarity crumbles and a space for reflection and dialogue opens. Thus, the work invites the audience to an intensive mental experiment about progress, responsibility and human freedom and opens a multi-layered, moving view of our possible future.