Christoph Koncz tells us what makes Mozarts Requiem and the special sound of Vienna different from others. He will conduct Requiem at Mikkelin Musiikkijuhlat on August 10, 2025.
Mozart has always excelled in portraying human emotions in a very profound and honest way. For me, the most important thing about Requiem is the depth of emotion it evokes, and how it can still touch people today.
Christoph Koncz
The Mikkeli Music Festival culminates on 10th of August with the iconic W. A. Mozart Requiem. The Requiem was unfinished when Mozart died, but over the centuries, several complete versions of the manuscript have been written. In Mikkeli shall be performed Robert Levin's completion that is aiming to be faithful to the composer's style and is inspired by Viennese musical culture. The artists on stage will bring their own Viennese flavour to this Philharmonia Orchestra performance.
The concert will be conducted by the Austrian conductor Christoph Koncz. Koncz played with the Vienna Philharmonic for 15 years before his career as a conductor. Koncz travelled from the USA for an interview at the Music Festival.
- My father was a conductor, I grew up surrounded by music. I played the Requiem for the first time when I was 13 and of course we performed it with the Vienna Philharmonic. But this is the first time I have conducted the work," says Koncz enthusiastically.
In addition to Koncz, other performers include tenor Michael Laurenz, who as soloist of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra has sung Mozart roles, and soprano Aurora Marthens, who since 2020 has sung with the Vienna State Opera in the opera studio and as a member of the soloist ensemble.
Robert Levinin Requiem
Requiems are often performed in versions based on a manuscript completed by Mozart's pupil Süssmayer, but Koncz has chosen the version by Robert Levin that was premiered in 1993. It is based only on the manuscript left by the composer himself and aims to follow Mozart's traditions and orchestral tones as closely as possible.
- I have known Robert Levin for some time. He played Mozart's C minor piano concerto under my direction at the Estates Theatre in Prague, where Mozart himself conducted the premiere of Don Giovanni in 1787," says Koncz.
- Levin is phenomenal with this music! He has such a comprehensive knowledge of Mozart's compositions in his brain that he can improvise even the cadenzas in the composer's style. Levin's version answers some questions that Süssmayer leaves open. Levin has, among other things, followed Mozart's typical tonal relationships and has added a typical Mozart Amen fugue to the Requiem.
The special sound of Vienna
- Vienna is an exceptional city, when the history of music is considered. For example, my apartment is part of the church where Beethoven's funeral was held. On my way to visit friends, I pass Schubert's birthplace," says Koncz, "In Vienna, music is still an important part of people's everyday lives.
- As for the Viennese ideal of sound, the Vienna Philharmonic, for example, has developed a distinctive sound over the centuries. The way of playing always imitates as closely as possible the human singing voice. This is especially true of Mozart, who was such a cantabile composer," says Koncz.
Incredible Mozart Requiem
- What is amazing about Mozart's Requiem is his ability to create very different, incredibly strong emotional states by simply changing the colours that he uses for the same thematic material. For example, in Requiem he combines basset horns and bassoons, and creates a timbre that doesn’t appear anywhere else in Mozart's compositions. It's an incredible, moving moment in the history of music," says Koncz.
- Mozart has always excelled at portraying human emotions in a very profound and honest way. By combining the same themes with changing timbres, Mozart is able to create incredibly powerful emotional states. For me, the most important thing about the Requiem is the depth of emotion it evokes, and how the work can still touch people in the present day.
When asked, what is most important to him when he is conducting this music, Koncz takes a moment to reflect and says:
- We have a unique international ensemble: an English orchestra, a Finnish choir and soloists, and visitors from Vienna. The most important thing is to ensure that our audience can also identify with this music in a powerful way, as audiences have done throughout history. This music with this audience, in this church, on this particular day in Mikkeli.
Requiem 10.8. at 6 pm Mikkeli Parish Church
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