Bamberg Symphony, Jakub Hrůša, conductor 

Lukáš Vondráček, piano

Jakub Hrůša, a “serious, thoughtful conductor” (ArtsDesk) whose star is on the rise around the world, leads the Bamberg Symphony in this all-German, all-Romantic program. Hrůša makes his Celebrity Series debut, and the orchestra has appeared on the Series once before, in the 1983/84 season. It’s a rare treat to welcome them back to Boston.  

The Bamberg Symphony celebrates its Bohemian roots and touts its unique quality: the “Bamberg sound.” It’s at once dark and lustrous, with rich lower strings and distinctive horns. The orchestra lends its might and expressiveness to two works by Wagner that open and close the program: the Lohengrin prelude and the Tannhäuser overture.  

The orchestra recorded Brahms’ Third Symphony in 2019, with Hrůša drawing praise from Gramophone for the “suppleness and warm intimacy” of his account. 

Pianist Lukáš Vondráček joins the orchestra for Schumann’s Piano Concerto in A minor. In his most recent Boston appearance in 2022 with the BSO, also under Hrůša’s baton, The Boston Globe praised his “glittering, featherweight passagework” and “overall command of the work’s dark, rhetorical drama.” 

This performance is made possible in part by support from Celebrity Series' LIVE PERFORMANCE! Arts for All Endowment and Innovation Funds, with generous leadership support from Susan & Michael Thonis.