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Guest baritone: Japanese guest baritone Katsunori Kono will perform with the VNSO at Ha Noi Opera House. — File Photo |
HA NOI — The Viet Nam National Symphony and Orchestra will premiere Austrian composer Gustav Mahler's works with guest baritone Katsunori Kono from Japan.
The concert, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the death of Mahler, will be held at the Ha Noi Opera House today and tomorrow. Two Mahler masterpieces, Songs of a Wayfarer and Symphony No1, will be performed under the baton of Tetsuji Honna.
Both works are the earliest compositions of Mahler in this genre and among his most famous works. Both are the legacy of music materials from each other and previous works.
Songs of a Wayfarer includes four poems inspired by Mahler's romantic love. This work will be performed by Kono.
Kono studied at Hochschule fur Musik in Munich on a German Academic Exchange Service scholarship and became a member of the Vienna State Opera Theatre.
He took second prize in the vocal music division of the 43rd International Competition of Music in Geneva (no first prize was awarded in this division) and first prize in the 37th International Competition of Vocal Music in Hertogenbosch, and an encouragement award from the city of Salzburg in Austria.
He has given recitals at the Rhine Music Festival, the Salzburg Music Festival, the Amsterdam Concertgebau and numerous other cities in Europe, and he has appeared in a great number of operas, orchestra concerts and religious music concerts.
Kono sang the Mahler's Songs of a Wayfarer for a regular subscription concert of Japan's NHK Symphony Orchestra.
The Viet Nam orchestra will, in co-operation with the Austrian Embassy, set up a picture exhibition on Mahler's life and works at the two concerts.
The concerts will kick off at 8pm at Ha Noi Opera House. — VNS