With a long tradition of international touring, the legendary Vienna Philharmonic’s distinctive sound has spread far beyond Austria.
On March 5-7, the esteemed orchestra returns to Cal Performances’ Zellerbach Hall for three concerts led by guest conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin featuring works by Mozart, Mahler, Schubert, Dvorak, Beethoven and Strauss.
Daniel Froschauer, first violinist and director of the Vienna Philharmonic, fondly recalls the orchestra’s last visit to Zellerbach in 2023, its third residency there since 2011: “The Berkeley audience was very enthusiastic and very educated, open and warmhearted.”
Since 1933, the Vienna Philharmonic has selected a new guest conductor each season: Herbert von Karajan, Karl Böhm, Leonard Bernstein, Daniel Barenboim and Franz Welser-Möst are among the luminaries who took on the role.
Froschauer, who comes from a musical family—his father, Helmuth Froschauer, was the conductor and choir director of the Vienna State Opera—says, “The system of guest conductors promotes a wide spectrum of artistic encounters with the most prominent conductors of each generation.”
Noting the orchestra’s “close and fruitful artistic partnership” with Nézet-Séguin (music director of the Metropolitan Opera in New York and principal conductor of prominent groups including the Philadelphia Orchestra), Froschauer says he exemplifies genres that “make up the language of the Vienna Philharmonic” and fulfills a goal to work more with a younger generation of conductors.
Nézet-Séguin will conduct varied programs, including, on March 5, Mozart’s Symphony No. 41 in C major, K. 551, “Jupiter,” and Mahler’s Symphony No. 1 in D major on March 5. On March 6, the concert features Schubert’s Symphony No. 4 in C minor, D. 417, “Tragic,” and Dvorak’s Symphony No. 9 in E minor, Op. 95, “From the New World.” On March 7, Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op. 37, with pianist Yefim Bronfman is paired with Strauss’ autobiographical tone poem “Ein Heldenleben” (“A Hero’s Life”)” Op. 40. On March 7, Cal Performances will celebrate its 2025 Gala.
Froschauer, a former member of the Vienna Boys Choir who cites the great Austrian violinist Fritz Kreisler as the most important influence on his career, says, “We wanted to present a Viennese program with a focus on Vienna/Czechia and Germany, which is to say, our roots and key repertoire.”
He adds, “It is said that our Viennese sound is unique; it has a specific way in articulation and sound of specific instruments like the horns, oboe and timpani,” Froschauer says. “It is a tradition that goes back to Beethoven and has been given from one generation to the next.”
Vienna Philharmonic musicians are well developed before they become one of the orchestra’s 148 members, whose tenures last until mandatory retirement at 65. The process for selecting replacements for retiring players begins at the Vienna State Opera Orchestra, considered a proving ground.
“Each musician who has worked for three years at the Vienna State Opera can audition for a new position in the private association Vienna Philharmonic,” Froschauer says. “The perfect or typical skill is, on one hand, the work at the Opera House with singers, and then the work in the orchestral/symphonic field. The sound of the Opera Orchestra is very important and crucial for the sound of the Vienna Philharmonic.”
The Vienna Philharmonic, the first orchestra in the world to go on tour during the pandemic, always has been an ambassador, not just for Vienna and Austria, but for peace in the world.
Froschauer says, “The message is clear: music is a universal language without borders. We play to give hope, peace and joy to the world. We are happy that we can tour now with Yannick, who is our next New Year’s concert conductor, as this concert always tries to send those precious human values to the world.”
Cal Performances presents the Vienna Philharmonic at 7:30 p.m. March 5-6 and 7 p.m. March 7 in Zellerbach Hall, near Bancroft Way and Dana Street on the University of California, Berkeley campus. Tickets are $75 to $275 at (510) 842-9988 or calpeformances.org.
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