Filharmonie Brno Returns to Janáček Theatre After Three Years with a Spectacular New Year’s Concert

On January 1, the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra will return to the Janáček Theater after nearly three years, following its renovation. Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony and Ullmann’s Slavic Rhapsody will be performed under the baton of Dennis Russell Davies. Title photo: Courtesy of Filharmonie Brno.

Brno, Dec 31 (BD) – “The audience has been spending a gala evening with us since 1956, that is, since our foundation, and we respect this tradition very much. This year’s concert is exceptional for us for three reasons: we are returning to the Janáček Theater, it is the beginning of our celebration of the 250th anniversary of the birth of Ludwig van Beethoven, and it is also the first year that the concert will be introduced by Chief Conductor Dennis Russell Davies,” said the director of the Filharmonie Brno, Marie Kučerová.

Dennis Russell Davies. Credit: ANDERAS H. BITESNICH / Courtesy of Filharmonie Brno.

The evening will begin with Copland’s “Fanfare for the Common Man”, followed by Viktor Ullmann’s “Slavic Rhapsody”, and in the second half will follow Beethoven’s most famous work, Symphony No. 9 in D minor, with the finale “Ode to Joy”, the anthem of the European Union since 1985. All three works share the theme of humanism and the struggle for freedom.

The solo parts from soprano Kateřina Kněžíková, altist Jana Hrochová, tenor Richard Samek and bassist Roman Janál will be accompanied by the Brno Philharmonic and the Czech Philharmonic Choir Brno.

The concert is sold out. The 2020 program and tickets can be found online at the filharmonie-brno.cz website.

Get the news first! Sign up for free to our daily newsletter here. Top stories of the day in your mailbox every morning.

Brno Daily Subscribe
Sign up for morning news in your mail