Heidelberg Spring (I): An orchestra is defined by its tone color, and here we have an entire concert dedicated to the theme.

Those colors are painted by the Southwest German Radio Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden and Freiburg under the vigorous baton of guest conductor Anu Tali. The Estonian conductor stood in for this event on short notice, but the resulting performance sounded more like an ideal marriage of musical forces than a stopgap solution.

Felix Mendelssohn’s vivid musical depiction of a deadly becalmed sea followed by a fortuitous wind is based on the poem by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe that also inspired pieces by Beethoven and Schubert. Mendelssohn was only nineteen when he wrote the piece, but he hung on to it and performed it throughout his life on occasions that were important to him.

A prominent German music critic described pianist Till Fellner’s performance of Mozart as "always unobtrusive, nuanced playing up to the realm of perfection." Many performing artists have said that when it comes to Mozart, the most difficult thing is making it sound simple. Adds Fellner:

It’s certainly difficult, but simplicity is a difficult concept. It shouldn’t sound naive or simplistic. The difficult part is creating a kind of distilled simplicity, a very rich simplicity – you could put it in those words. And of course there’s that unbelievable transparence, the concentrated quality of this music. There are very few notes, but each one carries a lot of weight.

• Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847): Overture Meeresstille und glückliche Fahrt (Calm Sea and Prosperous Voyage), op. 27 (1828)
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791): Piano Concerto No. 18 in B-flat Major, K. 456 (1784)

Performed by the Till Fellner (piano) and the Southwest German Radio Symphony Orchestra, Baden-Baden and Freiburg; conductor: Anu Tali on March 29, 2008 in the Heidelberg City Hall. Recorded by Southwest German Radio, Baden-Baden (SWR)

• Harrison Birtwhistle (1934-): Song for Cello and Piano

Performed by Adrian Brendel (cello) and Till Fellner (piano) on 15080 CAvi-music 553067

Rebroadcasting Rights: one broadcast no later than September 24, 2009