BABORÁK ENSEMBLE’S NEW MOZART ALBUM AND TOUR OF JAPAN

Precious few horn players are more adept when it comes to Mozart’s horn concertos than Radek Baborák, the most distinguished of Czech horn players, who performed for many years as a soloist with the Berliner Phiharmoniker. On a new Supraphon recording (SU 4207–2), he plays the horn concertos with a string quartet.

“I liked the idea of presenting the concertos in the form they may have been heard when Mr. Leutgeb would visit the Mozarts’ home, get together with Michael Haydn and Mr. Süssmayr, and make music,” says Radek Baborák with regard to the inspiration for the album, adding: “Mozart’s music has been part and parcel of the Baborák Ensemble’s re­pertoire, and I wanted the horn concertos to be heard in different – more chamber-like – versions, to approach them from a different viewpoint.”

During Mozart’s time, such arrangements were common, and they served to emphasise the dialogue between the virtuoso first violin and horn parts. According to the period sources, Mozart himself tried his hand at the horn, and by all accounts he found it highly amusing. He mainly wrote the horn pieces for his older friend, the renowned virtuoso Joseph Leutgeb. The composer’s mocking notes in the score (“Wolfgang Amadé Mozart takes pity on Leutgeb, ass, ox, and simpleton.”), as well as the inks of four colours in the manuscript of the fourth concerto, bear witness to the two men’s close friendship and the playfulness they shared. And playfulness and joy at making music together are also evident in the inspiring new recording made by Radek Baborák and his Baborák Ensemble, which was released on CD on Friday 23 September 2016 and is also available for download.

Following the album’s release, the Baborák Ensemble will be setting out on an extensive autumn tour of Japan. Radek Baborák says: “We’re really looking forward to visiting Japan, it will be our second trip to this musicians’ paradise. The local audiences are very attentive, there will certainly be in attendance a number of my fans, who will be listening carefully to every single note I will play. Yet that which I am looking forward to the most is the complete naturalness with which the Japanese music promoters, be they directors of concert halls, producers or managers, accept the fact that we have come to perform something unique, and how they are able to appreciate it by affording us the necessary scope and respect for our artistry and personalities. Besides playing with the Baborák Ensemble, this year I will also conduct the Tokyo Philharmonic, the New Japan Philharmonic and the Yamagata Chamber Orchestra. Moreover, I will be giving a few solo recitals and appearing at the special concert marking the 100th performance of the Mito Chamber Orchestra, along with Seiji Ozawa. Then, in January, the Kyushu Symphony Orchestra and I will celebrate W. A. Mozart’s birthday. Performing in Japan is a sheer joy!”

BABORÁK ENSEMBLE – TOUR OF JAPAN, 2016
19th November – L.O.C. Hall (Hyogo-prefecture)
20th November – Hibiki Hall (Fukuoka-prefecture)
21st November – Munetsugu Hall (Aichi-prefecture)
22nd November – Hogaku Hall (Ishikawa-prefecture)
23rd November – Yatsugatake Kogen Hall (Nagano-prefecture)
26th November – Dai-Ichi Seimei Hall Tokyo