Jörg Widmann - Octet | WDR Symphony Orchestra

Jörg Widmann's "Octet for clarinet, bassoon, horn, string quartet and double bass" played by members of the WDR Sinfonieorchester. Recorded live at the WDR Funkhaus Wallrafplatz on Sept. 26, 2021.
Jörg Widmann
Octet for clarinet, horn, bassoon, two violins, viola, violoncello and double bass
00:00:00 I. Intrada
00:06:38 II. Menuetto
00:08:22 III. song without words
00:16:24 IV. Intermezzo
00:17:28 V. Finale
Irvin Venyš, clarinet (guest)
Mathis Stier, bassoon
Přemysl Vojta, horn
Slava Chestiglazov, violin
Pierre-Alain Chamot, violin
Stephan Blaumer, viola
Christine Penckwitt, violoncello
Raimund Adamsky, double bass
(Members of the WDR Symphony Orchestra)
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○ Introduction to the work
Jörg Widmann, "Artist in Residence" of the WDR Symphony Orchestra now in his third season, is an internationally highly sought-after composer, conductor and clarinettist - as a soloist as well as a chamber musician. Widmann chose the clarinet as his favorite instrument at the age of seven. The musician has remained fascinated by it and tirelessly explores its undreamed-of sound potential. Widmann's compositions to be heard in the first half of the concert - from solo pieces to eight-part works - show him as an actor who loves and seeks extremes. Again and again he is able to surprise the audience with unleashed emotions. Technical limits are tested and exceeded: "The sweating of the virtuosos does not leave me cold. I even want to highlight it," says the composer. The fact that in all this a musical fire burns in his works sufficiently explains Widmann's reputation as a frequently performed contemporary composer.
...
The Octet, commissioned in 2004 for the chamber music festival "Spannungen" in Heimbach/Eifel, is a prominent example of Widmann's approach to tradition, which he sees as a source of constant debate. The wind/strings instrumentation is not only based on Franz Schubert's famous Octet D 803; Widmann also evokes associations with classical models in tone and emotional gesture, whose richness he values - and immediately denies them again. In this way, the composer plays with the audience's listening expectations and leads the "fabulous trace" of the music of past centuries right into the present.
Text: Tilla Clüsserath

[@FranzKaernBiederstedt]

Wow, ich bin amazed. Widmann ist ein so virtuoser Komponist, der auf absolut geistreiche, lebendige, mitreißende Art alle Register ziehen kann. So voller Details, so vielfarbig, so sinnlich, so intelligent, so spaßig, so abgründig, so musikantisch (im besten Sinne), so hochprofessionell... Die Bezüge zur Tradition sind so organisch gesetzt, ihre Verfremdungen und Zersetzungen sind so zwingend. Ich ziehe meinen Hut, auch vor den Musiker*innen des WDR-Sinfonieorchesters, die das tolle, aber schwere Stück so engagiert spielen.

[@WDRKlassik]

Vielen lieben dank für dieses ausführliche Feedback. ❤
Das bedeutet uns sehr viel!
Es freut uns, dass Ihnen unsere Musik gefällt.

[@notaire2]

Es ist meine erste Gelegenheit, dieses moderne und einzigartige Oktett anzuhören. Erstaunlich fein komponiert und wunderschön aufgeführt in verschiedenen Tempi mit gut vereinigten und perfekt entsprechenden Tönen achter technisch fehlerlosen Instrumente. Wahrlich ausgezeichnete Mitglieder des WDR Sinfonieorchesters!

[@WDRKlassik]

Vielen Dank! ❤

[@machida5114]

so good...

[@Woolookologie]

...so good!

[@maxreger91]

sounds kinda amateurish, no?

[@canal-9389]

Liest sich irgendwie kindisch, dieses Kommentaerchen