After last year was marked by stagnation, the opening concert with conductor Oksana Lyniv was a real breath of fresh air. Although we were not allowed to receive an audience in May either, we were very happy about the digital »Fest Spiel Overture«, whose programme captured the current situation and our cultural vacuum. On the silence that is part of that standstill, John Cage's »4'33''« opens a reflection that gets under the skin, especially at this time. The landscape idyll of Ludwig van Beethoven's »Pastorale« symphony shatters against the striking reflection of the present captured by the photographer and environmental activist J Henry Fair in the film »Das Lied von der Erde for the 21st Century«. Finally, the immense beauty of the world resounds in Gustav Mahler's »Das Lied von der Erde« and is both a consolation and a downer.

The »Fest Spiel Ouvertüre« was Oksana Lyniv's debut at the Ludwigsburg Festival. In this premiere with the mezzo-soprano Anna Larsson and the tenor Christian Elsner as soloists, she explored the balance between man and nature - a substantial theme that could not be more fitting as a prelude to a »Festival of the Arts, Democracy and sustainability«.

The concert was broadcast live from the Forum im Schlosspark on our Digital Stage and on ARTE Concert . The opening concert is now available on-demand until the beginning of November.