Description

A monumental season opening.<div> Driven by the unprecedented power of a double orchestra, Beethoven breaks the rules: from imperial brilliance to heroic epic, music becomes revolution.</div><div> Beethoven to open the season – and not just any Beethoven. The Emperor's spirit and heroic drive resonate here within the powerful framework of a double orchestra performance. The first half features the Piano Concerto No. 5, known as the "Emperor," composed in 1809 while Vienna was being bombarded by Napoleon's troops. The piano emerges immediately, without waiting for the orchestra, establishing a new relationship: no longer confrontation, but a dialogue between soloist and orchestra. David Fray is performing it here for the first time.</div><div><br></div><div> With the Third Symphony, the "Eroica", the individual impulse expands into a vast collective epic, carried by the combined power of Insula orchestra and Insula camerata – the period instrument orchestra founded by Laurence Equilbey and his academy of young musicians, brought together for the occasion in a double orchestra setup of rare scale.</div><div><br></div><div> At their head is Laurence Equilbey, whose commitment to Beethoven on period instruments has been at the heart of Insula orchestra's artistic project since its founding – and who approaches this program here with the strength and conviction of a conductor at the peak of her art.</div>