Neuland.Lied | Beethoven con Belcanto

The fact that Beethoven was not in the habit of taking his singers into consideration when composing is in keeping with his character and can often be heard in the vocal works – so the general consensus. The reality is somewhat more complex: Italian opera dominated the musical life of Vienna around 1800; to the leading classes, Italian was considered almost as chic as anything French. Like his younger colleague Franz Schubert later, Beethoven studied Italian vocal style with none other than Antonio Salieri. And just like Schubert, he composed a number of particularly cantabile arias and songs in the melodious language of the Apennine peninsula, including gems like the setting of Giuseppe Carpani's poem »In questa tomba oscura« intended for an anthology – later a showpiece of the great Luciano Pavarotti. Simon Bode's vocally demanding program comes up with numerous rarities. The young tenor boldly traverses the massif of the Alps: on the one hand, the Italian-language escapades of the Viennese classics alongside the important cycle »An die ferne Geliebte« - south of the mountains, on the other hand, the elegance of Mediterranean song compositions by the masters Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti, who were active at the same time.

Concert with intermission

In cooperation with Heidelberg University

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