Symphony concert 2

»The night is far spent, [...] let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.« The invention of the printing press was for Felix Mendelssohn the beginning of the Reformation, and he composed his 2ndsymphony »Hymn of Praise« using Luther’s Bible translation rendered in the context of Gutenberg’s media revolution. Letterpress printing was also a cornerstone for the adoption and diffusion of the Reformation, the 500thanniversary commemoration of which this concert will usher in with an ecumenical festive programme with numerous Cologne choirs, led by a hand-picked young ensemble of soloists conducted by Hartmut Haenchen: »Let every thing that hath breath praise the Lord.« Georg Friedrich Händel’s »Music for the Royal Fireworks« and Bernd Alois Zimmermann’s »Symphony in one movement« each also celebrate the beginning of a new age: Händel wrote his work for King George II’s celebrations of the end of the War of the Austrian Succession, which substantially influenced peace in later Europe. Zimmermann’s »Symphony in one movement« is still marked by the catastrophic experiences of the Second World War, and yet also the expression of a new beginning: »That’s the way it is, and you can’t get away from it, whether you want to or not.«