News

Esa-Pekka Salonen and his Philharmonia Orchestra have announced their 2012/13 season at their London home base, Southbank Centre.

In 2013 they will celebrate the centenary of the birth of Witold Lutosławski with Woven Words: “Music begins where words end” – a major series, including orchestral and chamber concerts, related events and extensive online resources. As his teacher and mentor, Lutosławski’s work is of particular importance to Salonen:

“Lutosławski is quite simply one of the most important voices of the 20th century. This retrospective of his life, in what would have been his 100th birthday year, brings his absorbing, rich, intensely atmospheric music to new audiences, and our digital resources will create a lasting legacy that ensures that this anniversary lasts well beyond its 12 month duration, and the three months of our project. Our partnership with the Adam Mickiewicz Institute is allowing us to access source material, archive and historical material that has never been seen before outside Poland and illuminates Lutosławski’s life and work in unprecedented ways. I can’t wait to show the world everything that we are discovering.” (Esa-Pekka Salonen)

Another highlight is the European premiere of “Orango” – the Prologue of Shostakovich’s recently re-discovered opera in May 2013.

Also in May 2013 Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Philharmonia Orchestra celebrate the centenary of the first performance of Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” with a fortnight of special events featuring the return of the Philharmonia’s award-winning digital installation RE-RITE.

The orchestra opens their season on 27 September 2012 with Beethoven’s 9th Symphony. The concert continues Salonen’s 2012 pan-European exploration of Beethoven’s symphonies.