MMM | The Four Seasons Recomposed by Max Richter

21 JUNE 2025: To rekindle his love for the Four Seasons, Max Richter created Recomposed in 2012. No one expected the global enthusiasm that his version triggered.

Turning old into new - a tried and tested principle, but can you do the same with Vivaldi's legendary Four Seasons? Organist Anna Lapwood's answer is clear: “Nothing is untouchable!”

After the release of his album Recomposed, the composer Max Richter initially expected to receive fierce criticism. But the opposite happened - he hit a nerve: Over 450 million streams, concerts in classical halls as well as in clubs such as Berghain Berlin or Poisson Rouge in New York, and the distribution of individual tracks in the Bridgerton series testify to the success of the reinterpretation.

What touches people when they listen to Recomposed? In this Magic Moment of Music, prominent artists and contemporary witnesses embark on a journey through the music, recall personal highlights and explain how the British composer Max Richter put his hand to the 300-year-old work.

“For me, there is no greater music than Vivaldi's Four Seasons,” says violinist Daniel Hope, ”but when I held Max's score in my hand, I realised why he had to do it.”

Richter's new composition fascinates hardcore Vivaldi fan and mandolinist Avi Avital just as much as techno producer Stimming, who has no connection to classical music: A new sound experience for him, too.

For violinist Esther Abrami, Recomposed means above all: freedom. Strict expectations of baroque playing styles no longer apply.
 

Duration 43 / 52 min
English series title Magic Moments of Music
Director Isabel Hahn
Producer Lily Küntzle
Co-Producer Christopher Janssen
Production Company ZDF/Arte, sounding images
English title of music work Recomposed by Max Richter: Vivaldi - The Four Seasons
Executive Producer Claus Wischmann