Sydneysiders have an opportunity to hear one of the world’s rarest and most sought-after instruments this December, played by an equally sought-after musician and backed by the might of the Sydney Symphony.
German violinist, Frank Peter Zimmermann, is the proud owner of a Stradivarius ‘golden period’ (1700-1720) violin, handcrafted by the legendary Antonio Stradivari, the most significant violin maker ever to live. To this day, 300 years later, the reason for the unmatched quality of sound produced by Stradivarius creations continues to baffle instrument makers and elude modern science.
Fewer than 700 Stradivarius instruments remain in the world, their value commonly reaching into the millions of dollars. Zimmermann’s violin is generously sponsored by German bank, WestLB AG, allowing this remarkable instrument to be heard around the world in the hands of one of the globe’s most gifted violinists.
Zimmermann took up the violin at a mere five years old and made his debut with an orchestra at only age 10. More than 30 years later, his remarkable talent has seen him take the stage with the most prestigious orchestras in the world including the London and Boston Symphony Orchestras, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and the Berlin Philharmonic.
Zimmermann will perform with the Sydney Symphony under the baton of its Chief Conductor and Artistic Director, Maestro Gianluigi Gelmetti, who is returning to Sydney for the final programs of the 2007 season. This will not be the first time that the pair have performed together. Zimmermann was the guest artist for Maestro Gelmetti’s first ever performance with the Sydney Symphony in 1993.
For his Sydney Symphony performances, Zimmermann will bring to life Alban Berg’s most highly acclaimed work, the Violin Concerto, a piece that Zimmermann recorded with Maestro Gelmetti over a decade ago and which is recognised as a keystone of twentieth-century music. The concerts will also feature Schubert’s Great C Major Symphony and Wagner’s symphonic poem, Siegfried Idyll, a rhapsodic collage on themes from his Ring Cycle. The Idyll was composed as a birthday surprise for Wagner’s wife who woke to the sound of it being performed outside her bedroom door.
Gelmetti and Zimmermann will take to the stage with the Sydney Symphony from 5–8 December in the Concert Hall of the Sydney Opera House. -- www.sydneysymphony.com
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