Aside from his only opera Fidelio, Beethoven’s general link with the theatre in Vienna came about largely with incidental music or songs to be inserted into the works of other composers – insertion arias. König Stephan was written to celebrate the politically significant opening of a new theatre in Pest, its triumphant mood honouring the ruling Austrian Emperor. Standardbearer of female heroism, Leonore Prohaska, is commemorated with a Soldier’s Chorus and a Romance with harp accompaniment. In Friedrich von Matthisson’s poem Opferlied (‘Sacrificial Song’), a young man prays to Zeus to bestow upon him beauty and goodness in youth and old age. Two of Beethoven’s four settings are heard on this wide-ranging programme.

Artists

Claus Obalski (narrator), Roland Astor (narrator), Ernst Oder (narrator), Angela Eberlein (narrator), Reetta Haavisto (soprano), Päivi Severeide (harp), Johanna Lehesvuori (soprano), Merja Mäkelä (alto), Maikki Säikkä (soprano), Kristina Raudanen (alto), Andreas Nordström (tenor), Niklas Spångberg (bass), Juha Kotilainen (bass), Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, The Key Ensemble, Chorus Cathedralis Aboensis, Leif Segerstam