The Franz Schubert Filharmonia has everything ready to inaugurate the new 2026-27 season. The ensemble starts the new season facing one of the great monuments of the universal romantic repertoire: the Piano Concerto No. 1 in B-flat minor, Op. 23 by Tchaikovsky. The orchestra will once again feature Russian pianist Yulianna Avdeeva, one of the most acclaimed artists of contemporary piano and who has made history by becoming the first woman in more than four decades to win the International Frédéric Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw.
The pianist returns to the Catalan public after the great reception of her debut with the Franz Schubert Filharmonia last season. This time, the pianist will share the stage with Romanian conductor Gabriel Bebeșelea, who debuts at the helm of the orchestra as one of the most sought-after European conductors of his generation.
Between Russian virtuosity and Strauss's orchestral genius
The first part of the concert will be dedicated to Tchaikovsky's piece, famous for its majestic and powerful introduction. It is one of those beginnings that everyone has in mind: a piano and brass hit that you recognize in the first second. Curiously, this beginning (inspired by Ukrainian folk songs that the composer collected on his travels) does not reappear throughout the rest of the work. Tchaikovsky conceived it as a kind of calling card to open the mouth and test the pianist's technique from the first minute.
In the second half of the concert, the focus will shift to the musical universe of Richard Strauss through two of his most applauded symphonic poems: Don Juan, Op. 20 and Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche, Op. 28 (Till Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks). Strauss had a special talent for telling stories through the orchestra and managed to make the music describe characters and scenes almost as if it were a film.
Both scores belong to the same stage of the composer and take as their starting point characters from European literature and folklore, although with radically opposite tones: while Don Juan is pure passion, seduction and orchestral force, Till Eulenspiegel opts for humor and satire to portray a mischievous character who laughs at power. Despite their differences, both protagonists share a rebellious spirit, contempt for social conventions, and a passion for freedom without concessions.
The choice of these two pieces also holds a special historical complicity with the public of the city of Barcelona: Richard Strauss himself was in charge of personally conducting them from the podium of the Palau de la Música Catalana during his visit to the Catalan capital in 1925.
The return of Yulianna Avdeeva
International critics usually highlight Avdeeva's ability to combine an impeccable technique with a very lucid reading of scores. Reference media such as The Guardian have stated that "her rhythm is born of intelligent feeling and great clarity of thought, with an ability to bring out the inner voices of scores that leaves audiences astonished."
Avdeeva is a regular artist in the seasons of the Warsaw Philharmonic, the Rudolfinum in Prague, the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin, the Wiener Konzerthaus or the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. Her recent activity includes collaborations with ensembles such as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, the WDR Cologne or the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra and National Orchestra of Catalonia (OBC).
Beyond the stage, in 2023 she released the album Resilience under the Pentatone label, a project dedicated to works by composers such as Władysław Szpilman, Mieczysław Weinberg, Dmitri Shostakovich and Sergei Prokofiev who created their music in contexts of extreme political instability and conflict. As the core of this initiative, the pianist had the opportunity to play and record directly on Szpilman's personal piano (the Jew immortalized in Roman Polanski's film The Pianist).
Gabriel Bebeșelea, a conductor in full international projection
For his part, the Romanian conductor Gabriel Bebeșelea makes his debut at the helm of the Franz Schubert Filharmonia at a moment of full artistic maturity. Bebeșelea currently holds the position of principal conductor of the George Enescu Philharmonic of Bucharest and is the founder and artistic director of Musica Ricercata, a project dedicated to the research and recovery of forgotten historical scores.
Trained by masters of the stature of Bernard Haitink and Kurt Masur, Bebeșelea holds a summa cum laude doctorate from the University of Bucharest and made history by becoming the youngest principal conductor of the National Operas of Iași and Cluj-Napoca. His career regularly leads him to collaborate with orchestras such as the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of London, the Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra or the Antwerp Symphony Orchestra, as well as to perform in venues such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam or the Kölner Philharmonie.
The Franz Schubert Filharmonia bets on young excellence
The new season confirms that the Franz Schubert Filharmonia continues in a very sweet moment. Under the direction of Tomàs Grau, this group of young performers has shown from day one that it can compete at the highest level and share the stage with great soloists from around the world.
Throughout its history, the ensemble has shared the stage with artists of the stature of Anne-Sophie Mutter, Maria João Pires, Joshua Bell, Mischa Maisky, Maxim Vengerov, Lisa Batiashvili, Gautier Capuçon or Rudolf Buchbinder, as well as with prestigious guest conductors such as Christoph Eschenbach, Leonard Slatkin or Josep Pons. They have also performed on stages such as Carnegie Hall in New York, the Dubai Opera or the Palau de les Arts in Valencia. In addition, the ensemble has a strong commitment to the territory and is the resident orchestra of El Vendrell (Pau Casals' hometown) since 2009.
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