Mezzo

Rivalry in Music – Furtwängler vs. Toscanini Two men without whom the profession of conductor would not be what it is today. Two men who couldn't be more different from each other: Arturo Toscanini and Wilhelm Furtwängler. The former was rigorously faithful to the musical score, the latter conducted with radical subjectivity. In 1931 they both conducted at the Bayreuth Festival – for the first and last time. Soon the polite rivalry turned into bitter enmity. Both men were forced to take a stand on the regimes in their respective countries – and chose radically different paths. Toscanini, "the dictator", bravely challenged Mussolini; Furtwängler, a conservative, meanwhile proclaimed that art is always apolitical and reluctantly made a pact with the Nazis. The documentary not only opens up the different musical universes of the two great conductors by retracing their careers in Milan, Bayreuth and New York, but also raises a question that is more topical than ever: what has art to do with politics? Directed by Thomas von Steinaecker 2020

Wagner´s Jews Richard Wagner was notoriously anti-Semitic, and his writings on Jews were later embraced by Hitler and the Nazis. But for years, many of Wagner‘s closest associates were Jews - young musicians who became personally devoted to him, and provided crucial help to his work and career. Why were they drawn to him? And how could Wagner even accept their embrace? These questions are at the heart of ‘Wagner‘s Jews’, the first film to focus on Wagner‘s complex personal relationships with Jews. Filmed on location in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy, ‘Wagner‘s Jews’ reveals this remarkable story through archival sources, re-enactments, interviews, and performances of original musical works by Wagner‘s Jewish colleagues. Featuring Zubin Mehta and Leon Botstein among others, the film also explores the ongoing controversy over performing Wagner‘s music in Israel. The same questions asked in Wagner‘s time still resonate today: is it possible to separate the art from its creator? Can sublime music transcend prejudice and bigotry, and the weight of history? Directed by Hilan Warshaw 2013

Vox Luminis XL, {oh!} Orkiestra Historyczna, Lionel Meunier (artistic director of vocal parts), Martyna Pastuszka (conductor, artistic direction) Sophie Karthäuser (soprano), Fanie Antonelou (soprano), Benjamin Hulett (tenor) Niccolò Jommelli (1714 – 1774) Miserere in G minor (HocJ C1.23) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 – 1791) Symphony No. 40 in G minor K. 550 Davidde penitente K. 469 Kraków, Misteria Paschalia Festival, 13 April 2022

Tamerlano Opera in three acts by George Frideric Handel Libretto de Nicola Francesco Haym London, King's Theatre, 31 October 1724 National Symphony Orchestra of Uzbekistan Honoured Choir of the Republic of Uzbekistan Alibek Kabdurakhmanov Direction Veronica Cangemi (Soprano) Jenisbek Piyazov (Bariton) Juan Sancho (Ténor) Versailles, Royal Opera, June 30, 2026