2026 Unsung Concerts

[tpaloj]

The 1957 1-act opera "Jäiset liekit" (Les flammes gelées) by Armas Launis will be performed in Espoo, Finland, on 2 July 2026 (venue accessible via easy connections from the airport or central Helsinki). This will be its world premiere.

It was the last opera by Launis, intended for television, but never orchestrated. It tells a story of a slave longing for his northern homeland, set in time of Ancient Rome. Launis was inspired to compose the work after seeing the memorial stone of Septentrion in Antibes, near Nizza.

https://www.urkuyofestival.fi/konsertit/jaiset-liekit

[eschiss1]

Nadia Boulanger's fantasy for piano and orchestra (1912) will be performed at the Proms in the afternoon on 5 August.

Glazunov's saxophone concerto  will be performed by the Augusta Symphony (Georgia, USA) on May 9th.

The Lappeenranta City Orchestra in Finland has a few interesting concerts upcoming, e.g.  May 7 one containing works by Svendsen, Gipps, Bartók and Roussel.

[tpaloj]

The Lappeenranta City Orchestra in Finland has a few interesting concerts upcoming, e.g.  May 7 one containing works by Svendsen, Gipps, Bartók and Roussel.

Thank you for the tip! Interesting, enterprising programming. It takes over 2 hours by train to get there from Helsinki, so it's not that convenient to reach.

[eschiss1]

More interesting stuff from the schedule of the Hungarian National Philharmonic. On 30 May, several works including Dohnányi's Concertstück. On 26 November, A concert of Ries' 1st and Spohr's 3rd...

[Wheesht]

Heilbronn, Germany, 9 June, 19.00 CET:

Chamber music concert:

JOACHIM RAFF
Klaviertrio G-Dur op. 112

BENJAMIN GODARD
6 Duettini op. 18

IWAN KNORR
Klavierquartett Es-Dur op. 3

Ingmar Lazar, piano
Zohar Lerner, violin
Götz Engelhardt, violine & viola
Adriana Schubert, cello

[scarpia]

Nadia Boulanger's fantasy for piano and orchestra (1912) will be performed at the Proms in the afternoon on 5 August.

Glazunov's saxophone concerto  will be performed by the Augusta Symphony (Georgia, USA) on May 9th.

The Lappeenranta City Orchestra in Finland has a few interesting concerts upcoming, e.g.  May 7 one containing works by Svendsen, Gipps, Bartók and Roussel.

I just heard the Glazunov saxophone concerto in Brattleboro VT a few weeks ago. Coming up in Ottawa this weekend is Coleridge Taylor and Farrenc. I will have to pick one or the other. The Ottawa Chamber Orchestra is playing Farrenc's Symphony no. 3. At the same time a group called The Ewashko Singers is performing the Ottawa premiere of the Te Deum in F and Endymion's Dream  by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.

[Ilja]

This year's Langgaard Festival in Ribe, Denmark will include a number of unsung performances. Among the more interesting are:

- Langgaard's 2nd (and, in my opinion, best) symphony Vaarbrud, on 3 September in St. Catherine's Church in Ribe. The performance is for chamber orchestra, accordion(!) and soprano.

- The 10th and 12th symphonies, together with Ture Rangström's symphonic poem Dithyramb (1909) and some of his songs to texts by Bo Bergman, and Elfrida Andrée's orchestral song Forgive Me from the opera Fritiofs saga, all played by the Helsingborg Orchestra, conducted by Tobias Ringborg, in Ribe Cathedral (4 September).

Over the last few years the festival seemed to have wound down a bit, but this year's programme is genuinely exciting, and also contains choral, organ and chamber music. The website gives information about all the performances; it's mostly also in English, but buying tickets will require you to chew through some Danish nonetheless.

[Jonathan]

Some obscure repertoire is getting an airing next Saturday (21st June) at the Wensleydale Music Festival.  The wonderful Mark Viner is playing Chaminade, Godowsky and several rare works by Liszt (as well as Beethoven's Appassionata)

Unfortunately, we already had plans so can't go 😕

[tuatara442442]

On July 11th, the Aperto Piano Quartet will play in the 425th Wartburg Concert Theodor Kirchner's Piano Quartet in C Minor, Op. 84, alongside piano quartet no. 2s by Dvorak and Brahms. This concert will be recorded and broadcasted on July 21th by Deutschlandfunk Kultur

[Ilja]

On July 12th (coming Sunday), Max Bruch's Oratorio Odysseus will be performed in Stuttgart; tickets are still available in the cheaper tiers. Last weekend I was present at the performance in Cologne, and I can very, very much recommend it.

[scottevan]

Friedrich Gernsheim receives his own mini-festival at Bard College, upstate New York from September 18-20.

September 18, "Zu einem Drama," the 3rd Symphony ("Song of Miriam") and Brahms first Piano Concerto

September 19, the Piano Quartet #3 and Piano Quintet #2  preceded by a panel discussion, "The Life and Legacy of Friedrich Gernsheim"

September 20, the String Quartet #2 and String Quintet #2

There is a charge for the September 18th orchestral concert (repeated the following day) but the chamber music performances are *free*, RSVP required.

https://ton.bard.edu/gernsheim/

[Wheesht]

In Museum Blumenstein, the history museum of Solothurn, on 11 October, a memorial concert to mark the 130th birthday of Solothurn composer Richard Flury will feature his Piano Quintet performed by Timon Altwegg, piano, Georg Jacobi, violin, Sergey Chesnokov, violin, Ulrike Lachner, viola, Eva Simmen, cello.

[terry martyn]

The Gernsheim news is very welcome.  I wonder whether it will lead to anything.

[Ilja]

For those interested and unable/unwilling to attend, there's also a free (upon registration) livestream (select September 18 or 19).

[terry martyn]

Not sure that link is working, Ilja