Bruch och Brahms Uppsala Kammarorkester

About the Performance

Participants

Conductor: Jascha van der Goltz
Soloist: Anna Agafia, violin (replacing the previously announced soloist Hans Christian Aavik)
Uppsala Chamber Orchestra

Concert Introduction 6:20 PM – 6:40 PM

Program

Otto Nicolai (1810-1849): Overture to The Merry Wives of Windsor
Max Bruch (1838-1920): Violin Concerto No. 1 in G minor op. 26
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897): Symphony No. 4 in E minor op. 98

Following last season’s success, the young German conductor Jascha van der Goltz is returning. The program features Bruch’s lyrical violin concerto with a young and acclaimed violinist, Anna Agafia, a comic opera overture, and Brahms’s final symphony. The award-winning violinist replaces Hans Christian Aavik, who was previously announced.

Immortal symphony

Brahms’ fourth and final symphony was premiered in Germany in 1885 with the composer himself conducting, a monumental work in which the first movement goes from simple to full power. Brahms brings together gravity, beauty, darkness and light, and there is also inspiration from both Beethoven and Bach.

A lyrical work

Max Bruch wrote his first violin concerto in 1866, since when it has become one of classical music’s most beloved concertos and his most famous works. The three-movement concerto offers lyrical, beautiful and dramatic melodies.

Made his debut at age 11

To describe her as an acclaimed violinist is almost an understatement when it comes to tonight’s soloist, the Danish-Ukrainian Anna Agafia. She made her debut as a concert soloist with the Danish Radio Symphony Orchestra at the age of just 11. After winning every possible soloist and violin prize in Denmark before turning 20, she went on to win prizes at prestigious international competitions such as the Carl Nielsen International Competition and the Singapore International Violin Competition.

Agafia has been praised for both her performances and her playing, “…which reveals both seductive boldness and thrilling dramatic intelligence” (from *Le Monde*). In 2026, the violinist will be the resident soloist with the Copenhagen Philharmonic. She is now making her debut with the Uppsala Chamber Orchestra.

Successful storytelling

The evening opens with an overture to ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’. German composer Otto Nicolai never lived to see the success of his comic opera based on Shakespeare’s play, which premiered eight weeks before his death in 1849.

A fond reunion

Young German conductor Jascha von der Goltz recently made his international breakthrough. Jascha started his musical life as a cellist and percussionist and has performed with many major orchestras around Europe. He made a success when he visited Uppsala Chamber Orchestra for the first time in the fall of 2025 with Eldfågeln and now he is welcomed back to Uppsala.

Uppsala Chamber Orchestra

With a range of styles spanning from grand symphonies to more intimate chamber music works, Uppsala Chamber Orchestra has performed live music for the county’s residents for over 50 years. The orchestra, considered by many to be one of Sweden’s finest, consists of professional musicians and is renowned for its warm and full orchestral sound. Since 2007, the home stage has been Uppsala Konsert & Kongress, where they also hold family concerts and invite school classes for study visits. In recent years, the orchestra has made appreciated guest appearances in Estonia, at concert halls in Gothenburg, Vara, and Norrköping, as well as Artipelag on Värmdö. Uppsala Chamber Orchestra is part of the foundation Musik i Uppland, a regional music organization in Uppsala with Region Uppsala as the principal.

The concert is organized by Musik i Uppland and is part of the Orchestra Series – Big Subscription and Small Subscription