Sunday, November 24 at 7:00 in Børsen


Linda Hedlund, violin/Robert Lehrbaumer, piano


What you will experience:

The program includes Mozart’s Sonata in E minor, Dvořák’s Sonatina, and Schubert's Grand Duo. 

Many composers of the 18th and 19th centuries traveled widely, seeking fame and fortune outside their homeland. Few, however, ventured across the Atlantic as Antonín Dvořák did in 1892 for a three-year stay in New York as director of the city’s National Conservatory.

The famous “New World” Symphony (No. 9) is the best example of Dvořák's warm response to the music he considered America’s folk heritage, but his "American" works also include this Sonatina. In all these pieces, we find music from a hospitable visitor who, inevitably, saw America through Czech-colored glasses. The Sonatina, which he dedicated to his six children “to commemorate the completion of my 100th work,” was intended, theoretically, to be within the technical reach of young musicians. It uses a melody he heard in Spillville, “an entirely Czech place in the state of Iowa, 1300 miles from New York…”

In the first movement, Dvořák indeed infuses the music with a kind of Stephen Foster-like spirit that closely aligns with his concept of American folklore. The second movement, Larghetto, is even more strikingly American in its idealization of Native American music, though Dvořák's Czech nature is rarely fully hidden. The Scherzo in the third movement dances with joy and energy, while the Finale plays powerfully and sings with tenderness.

The violin was Schubert’s first seriously studied instrument — apart from some piano lessons with his older brother Ignaz — and a family quartet. After composing several early string quartets, he wrote a duo sonata for violin and piano in 1817, a piece that reflects his maturing musical style.

This work, published posthumously, balances the influences of Beethoven and Rossini, though Schubert’s lyrical voice shines through. The opening movement feels like a sunny song, and even though the theme modulates to minor and holds Beethoven-like intensity, the melody is unmistakably Schubert.

In the scherzo, Beethoven’s influence can be felt in the strong accents, but the trio section flows harmoniously like a Rossini opera. The Andantino movement introduces a calm theme that gradually becomes dramatic and filled with tension. The Finale is lively and energetic, full of musical joy and Schubert’s charm.

Who’s on stage:

Linda Hedlund graduated from the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna in 2002 and completed her doctorate in violin performance at the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki in 2010.

Active internationally as a soloist and chamber musician, Hedlund has collaborated with, among others, principal players from the Vienna Philharmonic and pianist Professor Oliver Kern in chamber music. She has also performed as a soloist with La Tempesta Orchestra, Istanbul Milli Insurance Orchestra, Vogtland Philharmonie, Wegelius Chamber Orchestra, Ensemble Borromini, Les Solistes de Monte Carlo, the Presidential Orchestra of Northern Cyprus, the Austrian Chamber Orchestra, Lohja City Orchestra, Kauniainen City Orchestra, and the OSUEL Symphony Orchestra in Brazil. Linda Hedlund has achieved great success as a soloist and chamber musician at many prestigious festivals, including the Helsinki Festival (Finland), Musica Nova (Helsinki), Grafenegg Festival (Austria), Nancyphonies (France), Honart Festival at the Konzerthaus Wien, Teatro Bibiena in Mantova, and at Carnegie Hall in New York. Her performances have also been broadcast on radio and TV in Finland (Yle), Rai TV 3, Turkish state television, RSI/Arte in Switzerland, Radio Classic, Borusan radio, Radio Free Europe in the Czech Republic, ORF in Austria, and WFMT in the USA.

Robert Lehrbaumer began his career at the age of 9, performing as a pianist in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. Since then, concert tours have taken him, later also as conductor and organist, to almost every European country and capital, as well as to North, Central, and South America, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, Korea, and Japan. He has performed in famous venues such as Musikverein and Konzerthaus in Vienna, Carnegie Hall in New York, and Suntory Hall and Casals Hall in Tokyo.

Prizes in numerous competitions, especially in Geneva in 1985, along with scholarships from Bösendorfer and the Alban Berg Stiftung, honored the young artist’s talent.

At age 11, he made his first appearance as a soloist with orchestra and has since performed in concerts — either as a soloist, conductor, or both — with the Vienna Philharmonic, Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, Bruckner Orchestra in Linz, Mozarteum Orchestra in Salzburg, Camerata Salzburg, Vienna Chamber Orchestra.....

Where:

The Børsen building is located on Bragernes Square and was inaugurated in 1871. The Børsen Hall is a beautiful venue, providing the perfect setting for experiencing acoustic music. Børsen has long been a focal point for royal visits and major official receptions in Drammen. Kings Haakon, Olav, and Harald have all visited this venue.

The atmosphere surrounding the Børsen concerts is enchanting, and in addition to enjoying the music, guests can purchase refreshments before the concert and during the intermission. The doors to the hall open approximately 20 minutes before the concert begins.​
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