Orchestre des Champs-Élysées

After plumbing the depths of Mozart’s Requiem last season, the Orchestre des Champs-Elysées returns for a magisterial Beethovian demonstration under the expert leadership of Philippe Herreweghe.

Premiered in 1807, Beethoven’s Symphony n°4 is a work full of charm. Schumann declared the piece, between the Eroica and the famous Fifth, "like a slender Greek maiden between two Norse giants"! Despite its slow and slightly anxious introduction, the first movement overflows with grace, preceding an Adagio whose melody of inexpressible tenderness captivated Berlioz. Next comes an energetic Scherzo, full of contrasts and nuances, followed by a roiling Finale, in the form of perpetuum mobile. Barely six years later, Beethoven enjoyed one of the greatest public triumphs of his career with his Symphony n°7. After an opening movement, first majestic then rhythmically explosive, comes the famous Allegretto, an impressive and obsessive march that becomes increasing ornamented with admirable overlapping melodic lines. The playful Scherzo, while citing a liturgical melody, is infused with the free spirit of dance. As for the Finale, it is the perfect example of the explosive deflagration of energy so characteristic of Beethoven: driven by the timpani, the orchestra loses itself in a savage rondo that the rarely impressed Wagner qualified as a formidable "Bacchanalia". 

Musical director Philippe Herreweghe
Orchestre des Champs-Elysées

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Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony n°4 in E flat major op. 60
Symphony n°7 in A major op. 92