CD:
Helden – Leben – Lied

Heroism in music: Hrůša and the Bamberger Symphoniker unite Strauss, Dvořák, and Glazunov in a powerful orchestral tribute.

In their new album, the Bamberg Symphony and chief conductor Jakub Hrůša explore the essence of heroism in music. Majestic, introspective, and emotionally nuanced, the program reflects on heroism – from Strauss’ swaggering self-portrait, to Dvořák’s resilience, to Glazunov’s tender remembrance.

The album opens with Antonín Dvořák’s A Hero’s Song, a rarely performed yet personal work. It is his last orchestral piece without voices and the final of his symphonic poems. Though Dvořák seldom wrote autobiographically, this score seems an exception. His notes trace a path through conflict, sorrow, renewal, and triumph – suggesting a symbolic self-portrait.

In contrast, Alexander Glazunov’s To the Memory of a Hero offers restraint and dignity. Composed at age 20, the elegy avoids theatricality, unfolding as a solemn musical tribute.

The program culminates in Richard Strauss’ Ein Heldenleben, an iconic late-Romantic tone poem. Conceived as a grand self-portrait, it follows a hero from conflict and love to acts of bravery and retreat. Both provocative and masterful, it fuses Strauss’ orchestral brilliance with a complex, often ironic narrative.

Bamberger Symphoniker
Jakub Hrůša, conductor

Antonín Dvořák
A Hero’s Song, Op. 111

Aleksandr Konstantinovič Glazunov
To the Memory of a Hero
Symphonic Elegy, Op. 8

Richard Strauss
Ein Heldenleben, Op. 40

CD: ACC30646
EAN: 42 6023483 341 6

Available worldwide from September 26, 2025.

A co-production with BR-Klassik.