Andris Nelson goes on tour with his third orchestra

Andris Nelson goes on tour with his third orchestra

News

norman lebrecht

June 03, 2022

Not Boston.

Not Leipzig.

Why?

Message from Vienna Phil:
Impressions from our rehearsals at the Musikverein Wien for the upcoming European Tour with Andris Nelsons!
We look forward to performing compositions by Sofia Gubaidulina, Dmitri Schostakowitsch, and Antonín Dvořák on our first stop in Prague tonight!

photo (c) Filip Waldmann/VPO

Comments

  • Gustavo says:

    It’s possibly the Gergiev gap being filled?

    Besides, he’s just been with Leipzig in London.

    Boston stayed in Boston due to Covid, so they said.

    Why Munich in Hamburg?

    With that poor acoustics of the Elphi even Muti noticed.

  • Tamino says:

    You got to cut him some slack, that he is only operating on two continents, while there are others who fly between three major engagements on three different continents and then perform mediocre on each. But as long as the agencies are happy…

  • nimitta says:

    “Not Boston. Not Leipzig. Why?”

    Is this a problem, or even a serious question?

    Neither the BSO nor GHO is touring at the moment, and they’re fine with their MD playing with other bands.

    Andris Nelsons has a warm relationship with the VPO, and they want to make beautiful music together for different audiences.

    It’s what they do.

    • music lover says:

      Spot on.The BSO season is over already,the majority of the players playing the Pops season now.Which is Keith Lockhart´s domain.

  • MacroV says:

    What do you mean by “Why?” He doesn’t spent ALL of his time just in Boston and Leipzig. He’s one of the A-list conductors the VPO works with. So he’s doing a tour, starting at Prague Spring, it appears. At least we know there’s no “Nelsons on the Vienna shortlist?” speculation.

  • music lover says:

    Why not?

  • Pianofortissimo says:

    Mr Nelsons works so hard and he is still so fat. Impressive. 🙂

    • music lover says:

      When your musical appreciation level ,knowledge,and education(also on a social level) is so poor that all you have to say is some bodyshaming.Deplorable…Comments like this wouldn´t have appeared on SD 5-10 years ago,and i again strongly urge Mr.Lebrecht to remove them…They are annoying,primitive,and uncivilized.

  • Alan says:

    Except, of course, The VPO are no one’s orchestra. But you already know that!

  • Achim Mentzel says:

    Because they love being conducted by Bud Spencer?

  • Clyde Blair says:

    Can’t stand Nelson’s gaping histrionics, and frankly his performances aren’t so great. There’s ALOT of competition, living and dead.

    • David Goulden says:

      Glad that I’m not alone in my aversion to him. The world of conducting must be in a sorry state if the VPO invites him to take them on tour.

  • Heini says:

    8 different European cities in 9 days, ending in Paris. I wonder if if there was ever a thought of including London on this tour.

  • Pedro says:

    Judging from this week two Paris concerts, where he had the Gewandhaus at his disposal, I fear the worst. The orchestra played very well but his Strauss was loud instead of deep and legato was absent. Vulgarity filled the Philharmonie in both evenings. Luckily, two days after this disgrace, Thielemann and the Dresden Staatskapelle put things in order at the Théâtre des Champs Elysées with a superb performance of Bruckner 9. Everything was in the right place.

  • Gareth Jones says:

    But has he actually opened the scores this time…? Tired of watching this guy sight read his way through symphonies

    • Amos says:

      Given that he seems to do the same with Shostakovich I honestly wonder if he has memory lapses. The last few BSO performances I’ve seen on video are remarkable for how focused he seems to be on the score rather than the musicians.

    • Dabonkadonk says:

      Yup. He doesn’t prepare at all. He did a Gubaidulina piece in Boston recently that he clearly didn’t have the first clue about. All of the tempos were wrong. I thought he’d never seen it before the first rehearsal but then we found out he’d already recorded it with Leipzig.

  • Axl says:

    I think that the reason is quite simple – everybody likes Andris Nelsons and that’s why he is so busy and recalled with the top orchestras

  • Raf Bazzo says:

    Although all hype at that time, Nelson’s career went far beyond the so called “The Messiah of classical music” around 13 years ago. It’s seems justice happens at some point.

  • Barry Guerrero says:

    I saw Andris Nelsons/Vienna Phil. give a great performance of the Bruckner 6th Symphony in Berkeley, Ca about five or six years ago. Nelsons was flown in as a substitute for somebody (Maazel, maybe?). I also have a DVD of an expansive but very powerful performance of the Mahler “Resurrection” Symphony with these same people, filmed at Salzburg. That’s on the C-Major label.

    • Derek H says:

      I have that DVD and agree with your comment.

      I saw Mahler 3 with Andris Nelsons and the Boston Symphony Orchestra about 4 years ago and it was outstanding. I was hoping to see a DVD of that symphony issued – with Nelsons.

  • music lover says:

    Why?…The answer is actually very easy.The VPO doesn´t have a music director,by its statutes…They select the conductors conducting their tours from the pool of conductors who conduct their concerts .Usually ,those whom they like most.Nelsons is one of them,having worked with them extensively over years.Others include Barenboim,FWM,Dudamel,Blomstedt,Muti,Salonen,Metzmacher,Mehta,Harding etc…..In the past,there were Jansons,Pretre,Bernstein,Gergiev,et al….

  • Anthony says:

    Why not?? He is in great demand and the V.P. doesn’t have a music director. I don’t see the problem here.

  • Taras Bulba says:

    Money and ego.

  • Meal says:

    The title seems nonsensical to me. The Vienna Philharmonic is by no means Andris Nelsons’ third orchestra. The Vienna Philharmonic belongs first and foremost to itself. Nelsons is a welcome guest conductor there, as are Franz Welser-Möst and Christian Thielemann and some others. Anyway, I hope to take the opportunity to attend one of the touring concerts.

    • MacroV says:

      To cut Norman a little slack, I think the use of “his” in this case is not meant to suggest a third orchestra of which he is director, rather that it’s the third orchestra with which he is touring in a fairly short period (though that’s probably inaccurate since the BSO hasn’t to my knowledge toured of late). English can be funny that way.

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