Hommage an Clara – a Unique Concept by Lisa Larsson

“Hommage an Clara” is based on a concept by Swedish soprano Lisa Larsson and orchestrated by Rolf Martinsson. Lisa Larsson writes:

During lockdown in 2020, I came across Clara’s own statement regarding withdrawing from composing: I once believed that I possessed creative talent, but have given up this idea; a woman must not desire to compose - there has never yet been one able to do it. Should I expect to be the one?. This left me with a feeling of sorrow, that a great female talent was stopped by conventions of her time.

Read Lisa Larsson’s complete concept description.

These are the premiere orchestrations of Lieder by Clara Schumann, interwoven with fragments of music by Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms. The orchestrations, commissioned by Malmö Symphony Orchestra (MSO), were magnificently premiered by Lisa Larsson and MSO/Juraj Valčuha at Malmö Live in September 2021.

The longstanding successful orchestral collaboration with Lisa Larsson includes three performances of Hommage an Clara the coming season:

• Tapiola Sinfonietta/Antonello Manacorda
• Balearic Symphony Orchestra/Pablo Mielgo
• Jönköping Sinfonietta/Malin Broman

…and furthermore the world premiere of the German version of “St. Luke Passion” with Bach Collegium Zürich/Bernhard Hunziker, a performance of St. Luke Passion at Umeå stads kyrka/Jonas Östlund and a collaboration with Sinfonietta Riga/Normunds Šnē including “Garden of Devotion”, dedicated to Lisa Larsson, and Martinsson’s orchestration of Felix Mendelssohn’s “Infelice” in version for soprano, solo violin and strings.