Dshamilja Kaiser, mezzo-soprano
Nicky Spence, tenor
Carl Rumstadt, baritone
Philharmonischer Chor der Stadt Bonn e. V.
Karthäuser-Kantorei Köln
Paul Krämer, rehearsal
Beethoven Orchestra Bonn
Thomas Guggeis, conductor

Edward Elgar 1857-1934
The Dream of Gerontius, Oratorium op. 38

18:15: Concert introduction with Tilmann Böttcher on stage

The most famous composer in his country – that didn’t count for much in England around 1900. But one with world renown, one whom Richard Strauss cheered on and called „master“: Edward Elgar had something to be proud of. He appeared on the world stage with a double blow, namely with his Enigma Variations in 1899, and then, just in time for the turn of the century, with his oratorio The Dream of Gerontius. Incidentally, it was after its German premiere in Düsseldorf in 1902 that the composer of Zarathustra and Till Eulenspiegel made the aforementioned toast! A new oratorio in the land of choirs, in the land that had witnessed the birth of Handel’s Messiah and Mendelssohn’s Elias: this caused a sensation, and although the premiere turned into a disaster in Elgar’s eyes due to lack of preparation, the work was enthusiastically celebrated by the audience and critics from the very beginning! The work is not to be found in our records of the last 20 years – all the more reason to play it in our Good Friday concert. Thomas Guggeis, one of the absolute shooting stars of the international scene, requested it for his debut with the Beethoven Orchestra Bonn. Guggeis is the newly appointed head conductor at the Frankfurt Opera, and that at the youthful age of just 30. Guggeis had a sensational breakthrough in 2018 when he stood in for Christoph von Dohnányi in the dress rehearsal of Richard Strauss’s Salome at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden. We look forward to performing Elgar’s magnificent oratorio with him, the Karthäuserkantorei and the Philharmonic Choir!