words and photography: Alessandra Ressa
The young and talented musicians of the Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester performed at Verdi theater in a lively concert directed by Finnish Maestro Jukka Pekka Saraste. The event anticipated Trieste’s concert season, premiering this Saturday, September 3rd.
Rarely did the audience in town get to experience such passionate youngsters on stage and in such large numbers, making the Friday night prelude to symphonic season an engaging experience that culminated in endless applause and cheering. The concert opened with Franz Schubert’s fast paced and beautifully arranged Symphony n. 3 and concluded with Jean Sibelius’ intense Symphony n.2, believed to be the masterpiece of the Finnish composer, for whom fellow countryman Saraste is considered one of the most expert directors.
Several times director Saraste was called back on stage by enthusiastic applause. At the end of the performance the joy and relief for the great success was unusually expressed by the young artists with warm and emotional embraces on stage. These heartwarming, reciprocal acknowledgements of accomplishment culminated in a sudden and unexpected jam session where an involving csarda found the whole orchestra suddenly engaged while standing disorderly on stage. The audience, about to leave the building, was forced to rush back inside by the compelling rhythm and moves of the young performers.
The Gustav Mahler Jugendorchester was founded in Vienna in 1986 by Italian musician and director Claudio Abbado to create an international artistic environment where to welcome the most talented young musicians at a time when Eastern Europe was partitioned into impassable borders. Purpose of the project was, and still is, to erase all frontiers and promote peace through the international language of music. It is considered the most important youth orchestra in the world, with its 110 members (all strictly 25 and younger) coming from 25 different cities in Europe. It performs all over the world, and is often backed up by the greatest interpreters of classical music.
The performance anticipated Verdi theater’s concert season, opening on Saturday September 3rd with a grand program, Franz Schubert’s romantic Symphony n. 5 D. 485, and Anton Bruckner’s Symphony n.3 “Wagner-Symphonie”, dedicated to German composer Wagner. The first performance will be directed by Hartmut Haenchen. There are six exceptional classical music appointments at Verdi throughout September, October and November at very affordable prices, with great discounts for young people . Check out the program on the theater website at www.teatroverdi-trieste.com
