Outdoor Event - Classic at Odeonsplatz cancelled due to bad weather
The Open-Air event "Klassik am Odeonsplatz" was cancelled due to an approaching storm. After the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, under its chief conductor Simon Rattle, played passages from Richard Wagner's "Walküre", the performance ended. The planned second half featuring Johannes Brahms was cancelled - due to a storm approaching from Lake Ammersee. Thousands of spectators had to leave their seats in Munich's city centre earlier than planned after the performance of soprano Anja Kampe and bariton Michael Volle.
According to a spokesperson, the event had to be cancelled completely due to bad weather only once in its 23-year history. She could not exclude partial cancellations. In any case, the intermission was frequently shortened to avoid the storm.
On Saturday, the Munich Philharmonics, with their future chief conductor Lahav Shani, are on the schedule. They will present, among other things, film music by John Williams, together with star violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter.
"I'm drawn to the Odeonsplatz because we have a wonderful new chief with the Philharmonics, and it's almost like his debut concert," said the 61-year-old German Press Agency quoted Anne-Sophie Mutter. "Moreover, open-air events have broken through this traditional concert audience many times. There's a very mixed crowd here."
"I love an audience that isn't shy about clapping at the wrong time - for instance, after a sentence - and that isn't afraid to make room for their joy and give voice to it, because I know how much that pleases the artists," said the star violinist. "The audience is in a very positive party mood. I appreciate this cheerful openness."
Overall, it's important to dispel fears, emphasized the violinist: "I believe the difficulty classical music faces more and more is rooted in our lack of familiarity with it. It's simply foreign to most of us. Classical music doesn't exist for many people."
8000 people can attend "Klassik am Odeonsplatz" per evening. In recent years, the event, which takes place every July weekend since 2000, has always been sold out.
The cancellation of "Klassik am Odeonsplatz" due to bad weather was a rare occurrence for Michael Volle and Anja Kampe, who had expected a music spectacle in Munich's culture-rich city center. The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, led by Simon Rattle, had performed beautifully, but their rendition of Richard Wagner's "Walküre" was cut short due to the approaching storm from Lake Ammersee. Despite the disruption, Anne-Sophie Mutter remained optimistic about the upcoming performance by the Munich Philharmonics, expressing excitement for their future chief conductor Lahav Shani and the mixed crowd that classic music events often attract. She appreciated the enthusiasm of the audience, recognizing how important it was to dispel fears and make classical music more accessible to the public.
