When Andris Nelsons was five years old, his parents took him to see a production of Wagner’s Tannhäuser.
The Latvian conductor recalls that his parents prepared him for the occasion by playing an LP of the opera at home. He was also introduced to the story, based on German medieval legend, of a knight who is pulled between the pleasures of earthly love and lust and the redemptive love of sacred devotion. According to Nelsons, present in the opera, are “important qualities of human nature,” with love and sacrifice triumphing in the end.
Perhaps it is fitting that, on September 27, 2014, Andris Nelsons opened his inaugural concert as the 15th Music Director of the Boston Symphony Orchestra with the Overture to Tannhäuser. (Visit this previous post for more background on the piece).
Here is the performance, recorded live at Symphony Hall. Nelsons and the BSO went on to earn six Grammy Awards for repertoire which includes Shostakovich symphonies and, most recently, Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie.
Recordings
- Wagner: Overture to Tannhäuser, Andris Nelsons, Boston Symphony Orchestra andrisnelsons.com