Correspondances at La Monnaie

The three composers in this programme gave the best of themselves in their instrumental and symphonic music. For his Schicksalslied, Brahms took inspiration from the poetry of Hölderlin, which tells of the easy lives of the gods in contrast to the fate of immortals, who ‘are cast blindly from rock to rock like water.’ This sombre tone is countered by the serene mood of Dvorák’s Eighth Symphony, in which we hear man’s poetic wonder at the creation. Correspondances, a cycle of songs for soprano and orchestra, based on poems and extracts from letters, illustrates the mastery of the recently deceased Dutilleux, and has been received with enthusiasm everywhere since it was first performed in 2003. Impressed by Barbara Hannigan’s voice, the composer rewrote certain parts and modified the ending for her. This!whole programme will be a feast of timbres and tones.