West Side Sinfonietta will open its new season with a programme including works by seven composers. The culture of the Alps has a special place in the music of most of them, so some decided to include in their compositions an alphorn part.

The first is The Hebrides by Felix Mendelssohn. Its creation was inspired by a sea trip to Staffa Island and the famous Fingal’s Cave, which the composer saw from a boat. According to Mendelssohn, the main opening theme of this work, filled with violent emotions, was written down by him immediately, even before he went ashore. We will also listen to a masterpiece representing the era of Classicism – completed in 1779, full of energy and charm, Serenade No. 9 in D major KV 320 ‘Posthorn’ by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. It consists of seven movement, the most interesting of which is the sixth, the second minuet. There is a place for a piccolo solo and an extensive and effective post horn solo, which gave the piece its name. Next, the West Side Sinfonietta will present a composition by Leopold Mozart. The light and carefree Sinfonia Pastorella is intended for strings and alphorn. Contemporary composer Rainer Bartesch referenced the music of Classicism in his pastiche Touched by Mozart, also written for alphorn and strings. The mood of hiking in the Alps will be evoked by two compositions by Hans-Jürg Sommer, who specializes in writing for alphorn. These will be A Bout de Souffle op. 228 and The Spirit of Alphorn op. 202.

Giovanni Bottesini was an Italian artist of the Romantic era who gained great fame and recognition as a double bass virtuoso. We will hear Gran duo concertante for violin, double bass and string orchestra, a brilliant composition, in which the author gracefully brought out the character of both instruments, so different from each other. The programme of the evening will also include two pieces by Johann Strauss II. The first one is the waltz Gedanken auf den Alpen written during the artist’s vacation in Bad Gastein. Strauss was so fascinated by the culture of the local highlanders that he even planned to use alphorns in this work. However, he changed his mind, and alphorns are symbolised by the calls of the clarinets. The whole concert will end with a performance of the dizzyingly fast-paced polka Unter Donner und Blitz – a humorous image of a violent storm.