Maxim Vengerov

After being steeped in Chinese traditional culture for 30 years, CHEN went to Paris in 1984. The different cultural environments of China and France enabled him to grow into a unique figure in the field of classical music. CHEN neither seeks approval from the West, not even his advisor Olivier Messiaen, nor caters to China. Instead, he uses his personal musical language to tell Eastern stories.

Tells the story of a woman who gets involved in politics with no previous contact with world events.

Trine refuses to fly. When the 18-year-old environmental activist and trumpet talent only has a few days to travel 1500 km from Lofoten to Oslo in order to reach a crucial audition at the Opera House, she is forced to hitchhike, despite great time pressure. Suddenly, her passion for music and environmental idealism is set against each other. Å ØVE (TO PRACTICE) is a film that explores resistance in passion, a deeply intimate encounter with music and the practice of listening to oneself.

The Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France performs Ravel and Mendelssohn with conductor Pablo Heras Casado.

The annual New Year’s Eve Concert is one of the highlights in the calendar of every classical music fan in Berlin and beyond. On New Year‘s Eve, the Berliner Philharmoniker invite an exceptional soloist for a festive gala. Together, the musicians bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new. The 1996 concert was conducted by Claudio Abbado and featured Maxim Vengerov (violin) and the Swedish Radio Choir performing: Johannes Brahms: Hungarian Dance No. 1, 5, 7, 17, 10 & 21, Johannes Brahms: Gipsy Songs, Op. 103, Maurice Ravel: Tzigane, Johannes Brahms: "Es tönt ein voller Harfenklang", Johannes Brahms: Liebeslieder-Walzer, Op. 52, Maurice Ravel: La Valse, Hector Berlioz: Hungarian March.

Sibelius's solitary concerto is one of the most passionate tests for the violin virtuoso, one to which Maxim Vengerov is more than equal. He captures the work's passion and its occasional quirky patches of the spookily sublime. His performances of the "Sarabande" from the Bach Second Partita and the "Ballade" from Ysaye's Third Sonata are admirable encores demonstrating his range and his elegant control. Daniel Barenboim's piano performance of the de Falla Nights in the Gardens of Spain is equally virtuosic, bringing out the work's structure as well as its local color. Placido Domingo's conducting is solid and serviceable. Barenboim ends the concert with three de Falla orchestral showstoppers--the "Farruca" from The Three-Cornered Hat and the "Magic Circle" and "Ritual Fire Dance" from Love the Magician. The Chicago Symphony perform throughout with their usual vigor and fine orchestral color, but are particularly remarkable in these three encores