Mozart did not write the Requiem as despairing funeral music for his impending death. Rather, the piece proclaims eternal light and redemption. Together with a first-class quartet of soloists, the choirs of the Bavarian and Swedish radios and the distinguished musicians of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, Claudio Abbado uncovers this more hopeful and forgiving essence of the Requiem.

Mozart did not write the Requiem as despairing funeral music for his impending death. Rather, the piece proclaims eternal light and redemption. Together with a first-class quartet of soloists, the choirs of the Bavarian and Swedish radios and the distinguished musicians of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, Claudio Abbado uncovers this more hopeful and forgiving essence of the Requiem

This was recorded over three nights at the Philharmonie in Berlin. It does, however, provide a fitting close to the career of Claudio Abbado, conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic from 1990 until May of 2013, when the music here was recorded.

Shot over a two-year period observing Abbado: a) Rossini, Overture to 'll Barbiere di Siviglia' b) Schubert, Symphony no. 2 B-Major, D. 125 c) Arnold Schonberg, Kammersinfonie no. 1 E-Major op. 9 (Filmed in Venice, Gran Teatro La Fenice, in February 1995, Chamber Orchestra of Europe). a) Richard Strauss, Elektra (Deborah Polaski, Karita Mattila, Marjana Lipovsek, Ferrucio Furlanetto) b) Beethoven, Symphony no 6 F-Major, op. 68, 'Pastorale' (Filmed in the Festspielhaus Salzburg on the occasion of the Easter Festival, April 1995, Berlin Philharmonic). a) Beethoven, Concerto for piano and orchestra no. 3 C-MINOR, OP. 37 (Maria Joao Pires) b) Bruckner, Symphony no. 9 D-Minor (Filmed in Paris, Cite de la Musique, in August 1995, Gustav Mahler Youth Orchestra).

World-renowned maestro Claudio Abbado opens up about his life and work in this profile that effectively combines images of the conductor in rehearsal and in concert and interviews with friends, colleagues and Abbado himself. The video includes footage of Bruno Ganz, Daniel Harding, Marcel Prawy, Albrecht Mayer, Wolfram Christ, Kolja Blacher, the Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics, the Lucerne Festival Orchestra and more.

Claudio Abbado & Lucerne Festival Orchestra - Bruckner 5

Get an insider's glimpse of the preparation of Claudio Abbado's arresting performance of Verdi's "Missa da Requiem" in this behind-the-scenes documentary showcasing the acclaimed conductor as he rehearses with the production's various performers. Featuring the Orchestra and Chorus of La Scala Milan, this revealing program compiles rehearsal footage captured at the Chiesa di San Marco in Milan and the Teatro alla Scala opera house.

Symphony No. 8 is as different musically from the Seventh Symphony as it is close in time since it was finished only five months later. It appears to be caught between the Dionysian scale of the Seventh Symphony and the titanic universality of the Ninth Symphony. The carefree nature of the "little symphony", as the composer called it himself, should not make one forget its welcome smile.

Concert Hall of the Culture and Convention Centre Lucerne, 18-19 August 2004

With the Fifth Symphony, the Symphony No. 9 is the most famous piece. Its unusual length, the adjunction of soloists and of choruses, the choice of the Ode to Joy by Schiller, all of this concurs to its fame. The Ninth Symphony is a "Big Bang" in symphonic terms. A grandiose apotheosis, sublimating all of Beethoven's work by being the most universal and immediately understood piece ever written.

Claudio Abbado conducts the Mozart Orchestra, a formation of young talented musicians. The new founded Orchestra Mozart is supposed to give young, talented musicians a possibility to play in a world-class orchestra being conducted by one of the outstanding conductors of our time. Claudio Abbado, the artistic director, is responsible for its profile, inviting musicians and chamber ensembles of international reputation, e.g Reinhold Friedrich (trumpet), Michala Petri (recorder) or Jacques Zoon (flute). The orchestra Mozart with their leader Giuliano Carmignola is playing Johann Sebastian Bach's 6 Brandeburg Concertos.

Concert Hall of the Culture and Convention Centre Lucerne, 2009

Claudio Abbado New Year’s Eve Concerts 96-97-98

Beethoven - Egmont, Mozart - Symphony 35 - Claudio Abbado, Lucerne Festival Orchestra (2015)

Claudio Abbado conducts Brahms, Schoenberg & Beethoven - Lucerne Festival Opening Concert (2013)

As most Verdi mavens are aware, the original version of Simon Boccanegra (1857) was a failure. With the help of librettist Arrigo Boito, himself a first-rate composer, Verdi reworked the opera, turning out a new rendition in 1881 substantially different from, and better-crafted than, the original. As the headnote above indicates, this is the 1881 Simon, the version one almost always encounters in opera houses or on recordings. Indeed, the original was only first staged outside Italy in 1995, when it was given at Covent Garden during a Verdi festival.

Memorial Concert for Claudio Abbado - Andris Nelsons, Lucerne Festival Orchestra, Isabelle Faust (2015)

During two Bartok evenings at the Verbier Festival, Martha Argerich demonstrated once again her charisma. The first evening, with her accomplice Nelson Freire, and with the percussionists Gregory Zuber and Michael Israelievitch, she transports us with the Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussions. A few days later, with violinist Renaud Capuçon she tackles the First Sonata for Violin and Piano.

Claudio Abbado, Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra Of Venezuela, Anna Prohaska – Lucerne Festival At Easter