Vara Konserthus Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra in Vara Concert Hall

A dear child has many names: Pulcinella, Punch, Kasper... but it is the same figure from the 17th century Italian commedia dell'arte we are talking about, the cheeky and sly joker with the sharp voice and black mask who pranks those around him and woos his dearest Pimpinella. The idea for the ballet came from the founder and director of the Russian Ballet, the charismatic and colorful Sergei Diaghilev. His idea was to set the story to music by Pergolesi (1710-1736), the composer who received education and income in Naples during his short career. He died aged 26 and is today best remembered for his Stabat Mater. Stravinsky was initially not particularly interested, but changed his mind when he got to look at the sheet music: here was basic material that could be spiced up with modern rhythms and new harmonies. This ballet music from 1920 is usually referred to as Stravinsky's first neoclassical work, and it had many successors in the same style. The music - a pack of notes Diaghilev found in Naples and London - was attributed to Pergolesi at the time, but later research has shown that several unknown Italian composers were also involved, as well as the slightly more familiar Dutchman Unico Wilhelm van Wassenaer. Some numbers were arias, so soprano, tenor and baritone were also included in the cast for chamber orchestra. When Stravinsky composed the suite in 1922, orchestral instruments were allowed to take over the vocal parts. Another revision was made in 1949. And the story? Yes, it is of course about courtship, rivalry and jealousy. Pulcinella gets into a fight after amorous escapades and is apparently stabbed, but it is only a ploy to arouse Pimpinella's sympathy. And he gets it: it ends with marriage. STEFAN NÄVERMYR

With a talent for writing lustful stage music with satirical bite, Jacques Offenbach succeeded in elevating operetta to an international art form. He composed over 90 operettas, such as La belle Hélène, La Grande-Duchesse de Gérolstein and Orpheus in the Underworld (which gave the world the can-can), earning with fame and success the nickname "Mozart of the Champs-Élysées". In 1938, conductor Manuel Rosenthal was commissioned by the Russian Ballet in Monte Carlo to write a ballet score based on Offenbach's operettas, a collaboration he made with the composer's nephew, Jacques Brindejonc-Offenbach. The work was initially rejected by the theater management, but finally received its premiere thanks to the intervention of Stravinsky, who saw the ballet's potential. The music was taken from, among others, La Vie parisienne, La belle Hélène, La Périchole and the only opera, The Tales of Hoffmann, and the result was Gaîté Parisienne. The one-act ballet has no actual plot, but instead depicts amorous flirtations, the happy dancing and exuberant party mood of a group of guests in a fashionable Parisian cafe. The charming piece is like an exclusive pearl necklace, filled with sparkling musical pearls. ANDREAS KONVICKA

Kurt Weill originally wrote the musical piece Youkali during his exile in Paris as an interlude to the French play Marie Galante (1934) by Jacques Deval. The melancholic and gloomy atmosphere of the music inspired Roger Bertrand (alias Roger Fernay) to write the text Youkali for this tango habanera the following year. It describes an idyllic island "almost at the end of the world", and the syncopated rhythm at the beginning of the accompaniment reflects the emigrant's wanderings and uncertainty about his awaiting fate. The monotone chorus suggests an ideal that does not exist, as the island of Youkali ultimately turns out to be a dream. The song Lost in the Stars (1943) was written in the US, and became a hit that has been recorded by a range of artists, from Mahalia Jackson to Nils Landgren. The title also gave name to a musical by Kurt Weill, which came out in 1949 and was based on a short story by Alan Paton. It is a social realist depiction of poor black workers in South Africa's gold mines, depicting a murder and the emotional crisis that later befalls the perpetrator's father. "Once God held all the stars in his hand... and they ran through his fingers like grains of sand, and one little star fell alone". God sought and found the little lost star and "promised that it would never be lost again", a promise that the interpreter questions and doubts. ANDREAS KONVICKA

The Gothenburg Symphony, called "one of the world's most formidable orchestras" by the Guardian, has toured the USA, Europe, Japan and the Far East and performed at major music centres and festivals throughout the world. Chief conductor is Santtu-Matias Rouvali who started his tenure in 2017. Barbara Hannigan and Christoph Eschenbach are principal guest conductors since 2019. Already at the orchestra's very first years, the great Swedish composer Wilhelm Stenhammar was appointed principal conductor, contributing strongly to the Nordic profile of the orchestra by inviting his colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to conduct their own works. Subsequent holders of the post include Sergiu Comissiona, Sixten Ehrling and Charles Dutoit. During Neeme Järvi's tenure (1982-2004), the orchestra became a major international force. In 1997 it was appointed the National Orchestra of Sweden. During his celebrated tenure as music director (2007-2012), Gustavo Dudamel took the Orchestra to major music centres and festivals in Europe, making acclaimed appearances at BBC Proms and Vienna Musikverein. The list of prominent guest conductors has included Wilhelm Furtwängler, Pierre Monteux, Herbert von Karajan, Myung-Whun Chung, Herbert Blomstedt and Sir Simon Rattle. The orchestra also runs extensive concert projects for children, and regularly releases digital live concerts free on gsoplay.se. The orchestra has been involved in many prestigious recording projects, the latest one the complete Sibelius Symphonies with Santtu-Matias Rouvali for Alpha Classics. Earlier, the orchestra has issued over 100 recordings on BIS, Deutsche Grammophon, Chandos, Farao Classics and several other labels. The Gothenburg Symphony is owned by the Region Västra Götaland.

She has been called "an artist who aims straight for the heart and never misses". Since 2019, Canadian Barbara Hannigan has been the first guest conductor for the Gothenburg Symphony, a contract she extended in September 2022 through the summer of 2025. She performed her first concert with the Gothenburg Symphony in 2013 – already a success – and was the orchestra's Artist in Residence in the 2015-2016 season. As a singer and conductor, she collaborates with leading orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, the French Radio Philharmonic where she is Première Artiste Invitée, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Philharmonic and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. Barbara Hannigan's debut album as a singer and conductor, Crazy Girl Crazy, was released in 2017 and received both a Grammy and a Juno for Best Vocal Album. In 2021, Barbara Hannigan was appointed an honorary scholarship holder by the Stenastiftelsen and received a scholarship amounting to SEK 300,000. In September 2022, Barbara Hannigan performed the acclaimed La Voix Humaine by Poulenc together with the Gothenburg Symphony. Her commitment to the younger generation of musicians led her to create the mentor initiative Equilibrium Young Artists 2017.

Singaporean-British mezzo-soprano Fleur Barron was awarded the 2022 Schubert Prize alongside Brigitte Fassbender. She has been chosen by the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam as a "Hemelsbestormer" (Skystormer) for the 2022-2023 season and has been designated an Artistic Partner of the Orquesta Sinfonica del Principado de Asturias in Oviedo for several seasons beginning in 2022-2023, for which she will curate/perform multiple projects each year. A passionate interpreter of opera, chamber music, and concert works ranging from the baroque to the contemporary, Fleur Barron is mentored by Barbara Hannigan. In the 2022-2023 season, Fleur Barron has a string of exciting orchestral debuts: Debussy's La Damoiselle Elue with Esa-Pekka Salonen and the Orchestre de Paris, Berio's Folksongs with Sir Mark Elder on tour with the Junge Deutsche Philharmonie, Bruckner's Te Deum with Vasily Petrenko and the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra as well as Stravinsky's Pulcinella with Barbara Hannigan.

French-cuban singer Antoin HL Kessel’s debut in Europe was with Francesco Filidei’s opera Giordano Bruno; T&M Paris and Ensemble Intercontemporain’s production in 2016 – 2017. He has also participated at residence programs of Festival d’Aix en Provence, Aldeburgh Festival and the Biennale di Venezia for the 63rd International Festival of Contemporary Music. Since 2017 Antoin HL Kessel is part of Equilibrium Mentoring for Young Professional Artist, an initiative created by the soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan.

Brittish tenor James Way is a laureate of William Christie's Les Arts Florissants 'Jardin des Voix' and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment's Rising Stars young artist programmes. James Way's recent successes span from the concert platform to the opera stage, performing with ensembles such as BBC Symphony Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Handel and Haydn Society Boston, RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, Copenhagen Philharmonic, Fondazione Orchestra Sinfonica di Milano and L'Orchestre de Chambre de Paris. He has worked with conductors such as René Jacobs, Jakub Hruša, Thibault Noally, Mark Wigglesworth, Alpesh Chauhan, Harry Bicket and Robin Ticciati. Since being selected for the Equilibrium Young Artists programme, he has worked closely with Barbara Hannigan and has been widely praised for performances including Sellem in a worldwide tour of The Rake's Progress.

She has been called "an artist who aims straight for the heart and never misses". Since 2019, Canadian Barbara Hannigan has been the first guest conductor for the Gothenburg Symphony, a contract she extended in September 2022 through the summer of 2025. She performed her first concert with the Gothenburg Symphony in 2013 – already a success – and was the orchestra's Artist in Residence in the 2015-2016 season. As a singer and conductor, she collaborates with leading orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, the French Radio Philharmonic where she is Première Artiste Invitée, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Philharmonic and the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra. Barbara Hannigan's debut album as a singer and conductor, Crazy Girl Crazy, was released in 2017 and received both a Grammy and a Juno for Best Vocal Album. In 2021, Barbara Hannigan was appointed an honorary scholarship holder by the Stenastiftelsen and received a scholarship amounting to SEK 300,000. In September 2022, Barbara Hannigan performed the acclaimed La Voix Humaine by Poulenc together with the Gothenburg Symphony. Her commitment to the younger generation of musicians led her to create the mentor initiative Equilibrium Young Artists 2017.