MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Strauss, (R.): An Alpine Symphony / Der Rosenkavalier (Suite)

"A superbly played and recorded Alpine Symphony from one of today's leading Straussians - and a tempting coupling too"

In October 2000 Christian Thielemann made his eagerly awaited Vienna Philharmonic début in the Musikverein. It was recorded by DG. The concert featured Richard Strauss's Alpine Symphony and Rosenkavalier-Suite. It fulfilled the high expectations, unanimously celebrated by both the Viennese audience and press.

Strauss is an important composer in Thielemann's repertoire. To him, Strauss's harmonic audacity and virtuosic orchestral writing in the Alpine Symphony are incredible. There are so many such combinations arising out of Strauss´ sheer delight in instrumental excess.

Die Presse, Wien, wrote of Thielemann's performance of the Alpine Symphony: "An intellectually construed interpretation combined with emotional freedom, such as is achieved by only the very greatest conductors, is apparently a matter of course with Thielemann, whereby a great orchestra need fear no restriction of its personality for even a moment."

A completely different Richard Strauss, the composer of Der Rosenkavalier, is equally important to Thielemann. The Suite is a concert compilation of Rosenkavalier´s best-known themes and had its first performance in 1946 in the Vienna Konzerthaus.

The Wiener Zeitung wrote of Thielemann's performance: "Luxuriously he allowed this glorious music from the "Rosenkavalier" to take on form before us, and the Vienna Philharmonic, who of course know exactly how they should play such music, were by no means sparing with their splendid and sensual golden tones."

Exclusive DG artist Christian Thielemann, Music Director of The Deutsche Oper Berlin, is ever more widely recognised as one of the leading conductors world-wide. Following his successful début with Die Meistersinger at the Bayreuth festival last year, he will be a key figure there over the next decade (Parsifal in 2002 and a new Ring Cycle in 2006), the Vienna State Opera awaits him with a Tristan première, as does the Salzburg Festival with the première of a new opera by Henze.