At the heart of this profound program is Falling, a compelling work by Calliope Tsoupaki — former Composer Laureate of the Netherlands and a close artistic partner of the Residentie Orkest. In this compact, thirteen-minute masterpiece, Tsoupaki confrontingly explores our search for meaning and stability within an increasingly fragile world. Though brief, Falling delivers an incredibly intense, fluid, and kinetic experience that sets a powerful emotional tone for the afternoon.

Following Tsoupaki’s evocative opening, the perspective shifts inward with Gustav Mahler’s celebrated Rückert-Lieder. Performed by mezzo-soprano Barbara Kozelj, these five miniature musical mirrors capture longing, serenity, and introspection with sublime restraint. The program concludes with the sunlit, dancing warmth of Antonín Dvořák’s Symphony No. 5.

Conductor Antony Hermus masterfully guides the orchestra, weaving a breathtaking, breathing dialogue between Tsoupaki’s ethereal air and Dvořák’s vivid earth.

Program:

Tsoupaki: Falling

Mahler: Rückert-Lieder

Dvořák: Symphony No. 5