Since 1925 the Danish National Symphony Orchestra has been the cultural flagship of DR, the Danish Broadcasting Corporation. With Maestro Fabio Luisi as its new Chief Conductor and a succession of prominent guest artists each season, the Danish National Symphony Orchestra is today among Europe’s leading symphony orchestras.

The distinctive sound of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra has been moulded over the years by Chief Conductors like Nicolai Malko, Herbert Blomstedt, Thomas Dausgaard and Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos.

Today the Orchestra offers everything from Classical sounds through Roman­tic tone-poems and modern masterpieces to new creations by the com­posers of tomorrow. At the same time, the Orchestra has a special feeling for Danish music – from classics like Carl Nielsen and Niels W. Gade to the very young Danish composing talents.

 

The Italian conductor, Fabio Luisi, suffered as a child from asthma and began piano studies at the age of 4. He received his diploma in piano from the Conservatorio Nicolò Paganini in 1978 and was a student of Memi Schiavina. Luisi developed an interest in conducting while working as a piano accompanist, and he studied conducting at the conservatory in Graz with Milan Horvat. His first conducting appearance was in Italy in 1984. From 1990 to 1995, he was principal conductor of the Graz Symphony Orchestra. From 1995 to 2000, he served as Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the Tonkünstlerorchester in Vienna.

 

In the United States, Luisi made his Metropolitan Opera conducting debut in March 2005, with Giuseppe Verdi's Don Carlo. In April 2010, Luisi was named the Met's principal guest conductor, for an initial contract of three years, effective with the 2010-2011 season. Luisi is the second conductor to be named to this post at the Metropolitan Opera, after Valery Gergiev. He was elevated to the post of Principal Conductor in September 2011, when Music Director James Levine withdrew from his scheduled fall 2011 performances. Luisi stood down from his Metropolitan Opera post at the close of the 2016-2017 season.

 

Born in Nanjing, China, he began his musical studies at the age of five and soon was discovered as one of the most talented children in China. At the age of seven, Li already performed as soloist representing China in many countries. 

 

As a soloist, Li has performed various music pieces from different periods. He has also inspired many accomplished composers to write solo percussion works to emphasize his unique style. All these pieces have been performed during a specific tour with tremendous success. Li masters more than 50 to 60 different kinds of percussion instruments which come from Africa, America, Europe and Asia.

 

Wilhelm Richard Wagner: Der Fliegender Holländer - Overture
Carl August Nielsen: Symphony No.5

- Intermission -

Guo Wenjing: The Rite of Mountains: Concerto for percussion and orchestra
(Percussion solo: Li Biao)
Richard Georg Strauss: Don Juan