When Robert Schumann arrived in Düsseldorf in September 1850 with his pregnant wife Clara and their five children, the family were warmly welcomed by the voices of a choral reception committee. A long-sought permanent post had led Schumann from Dresden to the Rhine. Written shortly after his move, the «Rhenish» Symphony sparkles with rediscovered joie de vivre and the proverbial good cheer of the Rhineland. It is preceded by Janáček’s inventive suite to the opera «The Cunning Little Vixen» and the Harp Concerto by Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki, who characterizes his style as a synthesis of old and new. That high-ranking soloist Xavier de Maistre follows up his acclaimed appearance with Diana Damrau with a return to Grafenegg for this concert.

The Programme for «Rheinische Symphonie» was slightly changed. In place of Krzysztof Penderecki's harp concerto, the Tonkunstler Orchestra will play Einojuhani Rautavaara's Concerto for Harp and Orchestra.Thank you for your understanding.