Few musicians in Europe today can claim a name that represents both a solid anchor in classical tradition and a credible guide in the world of contemporary music. Jörg Widmann is one of them. He is one of the greatest living clarinetists, an internationally acclaimed composer, and a sought-after conductor whose artistic career is not a series of separate roles, but different manifestations of a unified musical thinking.
Following performances in Budapest and Pannonhalma, audiences in Debrecen will have the chance to experience him on January 17, 2026, at a concert by the Budapest Festival Orchestra, organized by Filharmónia Magyarország, in the Református University Church.
Tickets for the concert are available HERE.
Widmann consciously embraces a rare artistic attitude today, in which performer, creator, and interpreter do not separate. He believes that the greatest figures in music history—Bach, Mozart, and Mendelssohn—were naturally “musical polymaths”: they composed, performed, and led ensembles. Widmann carries this legacy forward not nostalgically, but as a living practice. As he emphasizes, versatility is not a goal for him, but a consequence—arising from his view of music as an organic whole.
This sense of unity is also clearly felt in Widmann’s compositions. His music is deeply rooted in 19th-century Romanticism, especially the worlds of Mendelssohn and Schumann, without becoming a mere stylistic imitation. Tradition, for him, appears not as quotation, but as an internalized language—making his music contemporary, thought-provoking, and accessible at once. His programming consciously builds on this dialogue, where past and present do not stand opposed, but interpret each other.
The dramaturgy of the Debrecen concert reflects this thinking. The evening opens with Mendelssohn’s Hebrides Overture, which condenses the composer’s experiences of his Scottish travels into musical imagery. The sweeping melodies and the misty conclusion evoke both the rugged landscape and Mendelssohn’s delicate sensitivity. This overture serves as a frame for Widmann’s two works, which speak from the Romantic tradition in the language of the present.
A highlight of the concert is Widmann’s 2nd Violin Concerto, dedicated to his sister, the internationally prominent concert violinist Carolin Widmann. She premiered the piece in Tokyo in 2018, conducted by her brother. The concerto has a particularly personal character: in the brief opening movement, the soloist seems to search for her own voice, while the central, extended romance unfolds as a spiritual, inward journey. The finale concludes with fragmented yet light music, completing a thematically reduced but richly colorful work. Here, the sibling relationship is not just biographical detail, but an integral part of the musical thought.
After the intermission, Widmann himself takes the stage on clarinet to perform his solo work, Fantasy. The New York Times described it as “the most beautiful circus music ever written.” The piece blends innovations of Stravinsky and Weber, characters from commedia dell’arte, and klezmer and jazz elements with Romantic melodic gestures. Widmann’s goal is for the performer—himself on this occasion—to freely unleash imagination within strict structures. The clarinet solo is simultaneously virtuosic and intimate, bringing audiences close to Widmann’s creative world.
The evening concludes with Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 1 in B-flat major, “Spring”, composed during one of the composer’s happiest and most productive periods. Although Schumann eventually removed the programmatic titles, the work is suffused with the cheerfulness and energy of spring. The brass motto recurs throughout, unifying a symphony sketched in four days and completed in less than a month. The piece offers not only contrast but also resolution after Widmann’s contemporary sounds, as if the Romantic legacy casts new light on present experience.
For Jörg Widmann, musical tradition is not a closed past, but a living, identity-shaping force. For this reason, the concert is not a “contemporary music evening” in the narrow sense, but a complex musical experience in which composition and performance, personal expression and formal awareness, past and present converge naturally. Widmann’s music offers an experience even for those less familiar with contemporary works—especially for those curious to hear how European musical tradition can sound today, fresh and authentic, in Debrecen.
Date: Saturday, January 17, 2026, 7:00 PM
Venue: Református University Church, Debrecen
Performers:
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Budapest Festival Orchestra
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Carolin Widmann – violin
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Jörg Widmann – conductor and clarinet
Program:
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Mendelssohn: Hebrides Overture
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Jörg Widmann: 2nd Violin Concerto
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Jörg Widmann: Fantasy for Clarinet
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Schumann: Symphony No. 1 in B-flat major, “Spring”
Further details are available on the event’s Facebook page.
Sources: bfz.hu, filharmonia.hu
