Midsummer Night's Dream

Programme:

• Carl Maria von Weber: Overture Oberon
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Concertante Symfonie in Es
• Felix Mendelssohn: A Midsummer Night's Dream 

Oberon (1826) is a romantic opera by Carl Maria Von Weber (1786-1826), set in the dream world of the elf king Oberon. Of the complete opera, it is mainly the overture that gained fame: from the very first notes, the work's fairy-like, enchanting character is palpable, although it is hardly just a frivolous fairy tale. Von Weber succeeds in setting a profound theme that strongly echoes his earlier opera, Der Freischütz. 
Also based on a libretto that evokes the elf world in all its mythical glory is A Midsummer Nights's Dream (1842) by Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847). Again, a magical setting is created with a story based on William Shakespeare's comedy of the same name. The overture opens stately, with a few chords immediately setting the tone and opening the magical forest to the listener. The strings then give the impetus to the first theme in all their volatility. 
The Concertante Symphony in E-flat (1770) for violin and viola by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), contains genre characteristics of both the symphony and the concerto. Like no other, Mozart knows how to juxtapose the clear sounds of the violin with the rather soft, often dark timbre of the viola. In the eighteenth century, the viola was often still considered secondary to the violin, but Mozart changes this first with his quartets, and later also with this double concerto. The work contains three movements: Allegro Maestoso, Andante and Presto.