DEAR AUDIENCE,
With great enthusiasm and happy anticipation, we present the program of the 2024 Dresdner Musikfestspiele to you on the following pages. The motto is »HORIZONS«. Far too rarely, we manage to look beyond our immediate surroundings, to the horizon, where heaven and earth seem to touch. Our imagination, however, allows us to look much further, leaving all horizons behind us and traversing the universe in our thoughts. It’s not uncommon for music to transport us from our daily lives into the open spaces where we can begin our journey to the horizon.
To me, the greatest pleasure imaginable is to cross the horizons with you, our listeners, daring to offer new concert experiences in the Dresdner Musikfestspiele programs! Our upcoming season celebrates composers, their works, and performers who were farsighted enough to discover new possibilities in music. First and foremost we honor Johann Sebastian Bach, who began to compose his Mass in B minor, »the greatest work of art the world has ever seen« (Carl Friedrich Zelter), in , during a time when Saxony was in state mourning after the death of August the Strong. And when our Festspielorchester joins Concerto Köln under Kent Nagano’s baton to perform »Die Walküre« on original instruments, the visionary achievements of Richard Wagner become not merely audible, but a visceral experience. Discover the new generation of expressive musicians storming toward the horizons during our »Night of Young Stars«, a performance of the Icelandic shooting star Laufey, and the Dresden-based band Ätna. Perhaps crossing our horizons will even give us a new kind of calm, when we realize that the world just continues beyond our line of vision.
I thank the State Capital of Dresden, which provides the institutional basis for our festival, the State of Saxony, and all the sponsors, partners and supporters who make our festival possible.
I look forward to meeting you, our audience, to your curiosity, your spirit of discovery and our journey beyond the horizons.
Yours, Jan Vogler Artistic Director
BROADENING HORIZONS
Whether by the seaside or on a mountaintop, observing the horizon expands the soul and awakens feelings of yearning. Distance, unreached or unexplored territories – they are all powerfully attractive to us human beings. The sphere between heaven and earth undoubtedly has a certain magic about it – as do music and its artistic inspiration. Music is able to touch our emotions, to surprise, relax or energize us. First and foremost, it is able to connect us! Dresden and its guests look forward to the 2024 edition of the Musikfestspiele under the motto »HORIZONS«: it offers a multitude of opportunities for encounters with local and international artists. The enchantment of its performance venues and the sensuous pleasures of the season only add to the excitement. By dissolving boundaries, it will broaden our horizons – a warm welcome to the festival!
Dirk Hilbert
Mayor of the State Capital of Dresden