It was a deeply affecting and appropriate farewell. The spirit of Claudio Abbado, the great conductor and founder of orchestras who died in January 2014, was present in music, words, and silence. Thousands upon thousands came to the Basilica di Santo Stefano in Bologna and the Piazza della Scala in Milan to pay their last respects. In Lucerne, the members of the LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA paid tribute to this extraordinary man and friend with a deeply moving concert – “The emotional intensity was unbelievable; this could only be achieved by true musicians, by those capable of love.” (Neue Zürcher Zeitung) Friends and associates look back fondly on Claudio Abbado and speak of how they experienced these moments of grief and farewell.
Andris Nelsons
LUCERNE FESTIVAL ORCHESTRA
Isabelle Faust, violin
Bruno Ganz
Excerpt from
Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 3, Eroica
Claudio Abbado, Lucerne Festival Orchestra, August 2013
Franz Schubert
Symphony No. 7 in B minor “Unfinished”, Allegro moderato
Friedrich Hölderlin
Brot und Wein
Alban Berg
Violin Concerto – To the Memory of an Angel
Gustav Mahler
Symphony No. 3 in D minor, Adagio
“The extremely powerful images of the musicians playing through their tears, without excessive intrusion from the cameras at this moment that was theirs alone, speak for themselves.” Choc de Classica
“Paul Smaczny’s film is from start to finish a ‘Tombeau de Monsieur Abbado’, a hymn of praise addressed to the late maestro – with (Isabelle) Faust and (Wolfram) Christ as principal protagonists, the spirit of the event is preserved. This well-nigh devout homage scarcely leaves room for critical judgment.” Diapason d’Or Arte
