Travelling to Austria, Europe and China - and the sounds of spring in Trieste

At home in Vienna, the Wiener Symphoniker open their ears and listen to the soundtrack of their city. They then regularly pack it into their instrument cases and go on tour with this typical sound. The first tour in his first year as chief conductor takes Petr Popelka from Bratislava via Verona to Merano. With him: Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1 and his composer idol Béla Bartók. In Popelka's suitcase on the big European tour in May and June are Beethoven (Piano Concerto No. 3 with Jan Bartoš), Korngold (Violin Concerto in D major with Renaud Capuçon) and Mendelssohn Bartholdy (E minor Concerto). All of this will be accompanied by Strauss' Rosenkavalier Suite and Josef Strauss' Dynamides Waltz.

Popelka will also establish a new tradition: The Wiener Symphoniker will celebrate spring at the Austrians' favourite travel destination, Trieste on the Adriatic. Finally, the chief conductor will accompany his orchestra to China for a residency at the National Centre for Performing Arts in Beijing. Principal Guest Conductor Marie Jacquot will be travelling through Germany with the Symphony Orchestra in November. She will be joined by violinist María Duenas and pianist Bruce Liu, whose programme includes the moving Adagio from Bruckner's 7th Symphony in an arrangement by Ferdinand Löwe. Patrick Hahn and cellist Kian Soltani will be travelling through Austria with the orchestra, presenting Tchaikovsky's 5th Symphony and an exciting world premiere by Marcus Nigsch, whose music combines the popular with high art.