An extraordinary concert in an extraordinary place: With “Fendrich Symphonie” Rainhard Fendrich returned to the stage after 30 years with a large orchestra. Christian Kolonovits dressed the lieder in philharmonic opulence, just as if it had always been like that. The first concert on Saturday in the Festspielhaus Salzburg was celebrated, but left the impression of a dress rehearsal.
Because the script was undoubtedly written for the city of Vienna, where the almost 100 artists will be guests in a few weeks in front of Schönbrunn Palace: When the evening begins with “Have you seen Vienna by night” and – before the second helping – with “Forever a Viennese” ends and even the secret Austrian anthem “I am from Austria” begins with the intro of the waltz “On the beautiful blue Danube”, then the more than 2,000 guests in the sold-out Salzburg Festival Hall could quickly feel in the wrong place. Courtesy towards the host looks different.
Musically, the evening left nothing to be desired. It became obvious that Kolonovits and Fendrich “understand each other blindly”, as they had stated in the run-up to the project. The composer, conductor and arranger knows exactly at which points he brings the musicians of the Salzburg Philharmonic into the gentle accompaniment and where he can really lay it on thick. The samba of the “Midlife Crisis”, for example, exuded South American fire that could also be burned down at the Rio Carnival. And Fendrich’s ballads probably never sounded better than with this line-up. Of course, this is also due to the singer himself, who is still vocally up-to-date even after many years in the business.
In the process, Fendrich and the musicians stuck to the “script” and score without exception from entering the stage to leaving. Even the announcements in between – with a wink and a dash of irony – did not come spontaneously and can probably also be heard on the other two evenings with more or less the same choice of words. So there was a big show, there was no dialogue with the audience. There is a hint of arrogance in the air. Maybe that’s why it took until the end of the program for the sparks to jump into the hall and “Between one and four” finally ignited.
Fendrich fans shouldn’t miss this rare opportunity, because “Fendrich Symphonie” isn’t a sham, but a full three hours of great concert pleasure. The dress rehearsal on Saturday was a success.
(SERVICE – “Fendrich Symphony” with the large symphony orchestra of the Salzburg Philharmonic under Christian Kolonovits; further concerts on June 12 in the Large Festival Hall in Salzburg and on July 3 at Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna (open air); www.oeticket.com/artist /rainhard-fendrich/; www.fendrich.at/)