Great Performances Season 47 Episode 10 From Vienna: The New Year's Celebration 2020
- January 1, 2020
From Vienna: The New Year's Celebration 2020 is a musical extravaganza that celebrates the arrival of the new year in style. This episode of Great Performances, which is the 10th and final episode of the 47th season, captures the magic of the world-famous Viennese New Year's concert and brings it to audiences across the globe.
Hosted by Hugh Bonneville, the show features the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Andris Nelsons. The concert, which was recorded live from the Golden Hall of the Musikverein in Vienna, showcases some of the most beloved waltzes, polkas, and marches of the Strauss family, as well as pieces by other great composers such as Franz Lehár and Emmerich Kálmán.
From the opening notes of Johann Strauss II's Frühlingsstimmenwalzer (Voices of Spring Waltz), the concert sets a joyful tone that carries throughout the evening. As the orchestra plays Strauss's famous Radetzky March, the audience can be seen clapping and dancing along, swept up in the festive atmosphere.
Throughout the concert, viewers are treated to a variety of solo performances, including sopranos Golda Schultz and Aida Garifullina, who dazzle with their vocal range and expressive delivery. Schultz delivers a stunning rendition of Franz Lehár's Vilja Song from The Merry Widow, while Garifullina performs a selection of beloved operatic arias.
One of the highlights of the concert is the appearance of ballet dancers from the Vienna State Ballet, who perform a choreographed routine to accompany Carl Michael Ziehrer's Wiener Bürger (Viennese Citizens) Waltz. The dancers, dressed in colorful costumes, twirl and leap across the stage with graceful abandon, adding a visual element to the already dazzling musical performance.
As the concert reaches its climax, the orchestra performs the beloved Blue Danube Waltz, one of the most recognizable pieces of classical music in the world. The audience sways to the rhythm, caught up in the beauty of the moment. Nelsons and the orchestra then launch into a rousing rendition of Johann Strauss I's Radetzky March, which brings the concert to a triumphant and celebratory close.
From Vienna: The New Year's Celebration 2020 is a delightful way to ring in the new year. The concert captures the joy, excitement, and elegance of the Viennese New Year's tradition, showcasing the incredible musicianship of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and some of the most talented soloists and dancers in the world. Whether you're a lover of classical music or simply someone who enjoys a good party, this episode of Great Performances is not to be missed.
