Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin

Those expecting to hear a typically lush romantic Tchaikovian orchestral sound in the “Rococo Variations”, composed in homage to the music of Mozart, will be disappointed. It is the cello which, following an elegant orchestral introduction, establishes an unpretentious and elegant theme. The variations which follow are indeed virtuoso without, however, abandoning linear and lithe 18th-century melodiousness.

Inspired by Alfred Jarry’s play “Ubu roi”, Bernd Alois Zimmermann composed with his ballet music, which he called “Musique pour les soupers de Roi Ubu”, a dazzling satire in which he unashamedly drew on music from across all periods and styles, ranging from Bach to the Radetzky March and his own contemporaries. Zimmermann skilfully juxtaposes, superimposes and overlays these quotations and melds everything into an absurd musical extravaganza, taking his audience on a kaleidoscopic and multifaceted parodistic escapade.

Olly Wilson drew inspiration from the Yoruba deity Shango when composing his “Shango Memory” in 1995. The piece, dedicated to the thunder god and king of the gods, reflects the American composer’s stylistic plurality. Wilson was a jazz musician who composed both electronic music and music for a large orchestra. His influences ranged from Luciano Berio to Miles Davis, although African and Afro-American music always had a central position in his work. “Shango Memory” combines rhythmics and harmonics reminiscent of Stravinsky with jazz elements.