Raiding: A tremendous finale sound cosmos

‘Alles Vergängliche ist nur ein Gleichnis’: Supported by a wonderfully colourful orchestra sound, the men’s choir sang the Verse of the the chorus mysticus from Faust II with magical quality in intonatiom and in the subtlest of pianos. As the tenor joined the ensemble for ‘Das ewig Weibliche zieht uns hinan’ the sound rose into tremendous solemnity. Chorus Sine Nomine gave its best to the final choir part of Franz Liszt’s Faust Symphony with a very homogenous and strong voiced performance. Herbert Lippert added his soft timbre and assured high pitch to this interpretation. This concert represented the achievement of a goal set by Martin Haselböck back in 2010: to play all of Liszt’s symphonic works in the composer’s hometown, Raiding.

The composition considered bold for its creation date and place -from 1854 to 1857 in Weimar – was reproduced in its full and complex cosmos of sound by an orchestra which played in the original Weimar cast. Sometimes quite loud, it sill maintained a suspense full of colours and nuances thanks to the conducter’s energetic input. Excited applause coursed through the audience (which, by the way, included hollywood star John Malcovitch) in a full house that night.