Chamber music: Wagner and Enescu

Richard Wagners music dramas are given a central place in the concert season. But did you know that he also wrote works for smaller ensembles? Zijn Siegfried Idyll with birdsong and a lullaby was a birthday gift for his wife Cosima. The heaviness of his great dramas is not present there. Nevertheless, Wagner later incorporated some themes into his Ring cycle. Ook George Enescu wrote his Octet as a late-romantic work with rich harmony. Enescu uses this unusual instrumentation in the best possible way: the eight strings possess great power, yet maintain the intimacy of chamber music.