Meeting Austrian conductor Alfred Eschwé before the concert he is to conduct at the Manoel Theatre today week was rather difficult. He is a very busy musician and as he happened to be in the US, and this feature had to be submitted by midweek, the only way to interview him was on the internet.
He was invited by the prestigious Wiener Akademie Orchester to conduct the Manoel concert. He said that members of this orchestra know him pretty well as they worked on a DVD together, one which featured music by Johann Strauss.Incidentally, there is a somewhat uncanny resemblance between the Waltz King and Mro Eschwé.
What is definitely certain is that one is as decisively Austrian as the other. Interest in music began very early for Mro Eschwé, whose music studies began at age six (piano) and at the age of 10 he took up the violin. At 18 he studied under the famous Hans Swarowsky.
Asking him whether he takes his profession as a vocation and with passion, he agreed that there has to be lots of passion and dedication. “I really like my profession and cannot imagine doing anything different,” were his exact words.
As could be expected, there was more reference to the Wiener Akademie Orchester, which regularly performs every season at that famed temple to music – Vienna’s Musikverein. One special characteristic of this orchestra is that they perform on period instruments. This brings an added touch of authenticity to the performance of the programmes they present, which are mainly focused on the classical period. Asked if he attaches any special importance to period instrument performances he said that he does not.
“These musicians are very familiar with this style and so it will be a nice experience for me,” was his retort.
Asking Mro Eschwé about his busy work schedule revealed a varied mix. His name is a familiar one to me because of his frequent conducting at Vienna’s Staatsoper, and with his appearances in the same city’s Volksoper he clocks about 40 engagements a year. In fact, this season he has already conducted performances of La Traviata and will continue with Turandot, Tosca and Hänsel and Gretel.
I was not surprised that his professed predilection as opera conductor is for Verdi and Puccini. So far this year he has conducted concerts in Italy, Estonia, Denmark and the US. He adds: “I have never been to Malta and I am looking forward to conducting at the Manoel Theatre, which I hear has excellent acoustics.”
One could add that with such acoustics, authentic baroque venue and period instruments the programme should be a memorable one.Apart from several other DVDs and CDs, also to Mro Eschwé’s credit is a DVD of Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore, with two great opera stars, Russian soprano Anna Netrebko and Mexican tenor Rolando Villazón. Just last summer he recorded a CD with Sony featuring soprano Angelika Kirschlager and tenor Simon Keenlyside.
Wondering whether he finds time to relax Mr Eschwé does find it… “I have two particular hobbies, which are cooking and biking. I like Italian cooking but Austrian cooking is also part of my culinary repertoire. My bike is foldable and so I can take it with me when I am travelling.”
I cannot help remarking that this is a very sensible way of balancing these particular hobbies!
The concert at the Manoel Theatre is being presented by the Austrian Embassy on Saturday at 8 p.m. More information may be obtained by phone on 2124 6389, by fax on 2124 7451 or online: www.teatrumanoel.com.mt