OSTERFESTSPIELE SALZBURG 2013

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Music Friends,
I still remember Easter time 1981 with joy and gratitude, when i had the
honour of assisting herbert von karajan in salzburg with his production of
richard Wagner’s Parsifal. the impressions and experiences gained at that
salzburg easter Festival have influenced me ever since.
that is why i felt we were coming full circle when my future orchestra, the
staatskapelle Dresden and i, were asked to assume the artistic direction and
programming of this important and traditional festival from 2013 onwards.
the Berliner philharmoniker and their chief conductors, most recently
sir simon rattle, have always ensured that the salzburg easter Festival
represented the highest artistic quality, and thus the changeover is a great
honour and a special stimulus, both for my Dresden musicians and myself.
as both an outstanding concert and opera orchestra, the staatskapelle
Dresden, which has always made its home in the semperoper Dresden, is
particularly predestined for the concentrated diversity of events which
salzburg offers at easter time. Of course, i am especially delighted that
Parsifal will once again take centre-stage in Wagner year 2013 – with
the orchestra which Wagner himself led as music director and which he
called his “Wunderharfe” or “Wonderharp” – in the pit.
i am looking forward both to salzburg and to you – may the festival
continue to justify its reputation for the extraordinary!
Yours
Christian thielemann