Felix Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, composed over an extended period and in collaboration with its dedicatee Ferdinand David, was an instant success at its premiere. The concerto’s glorious melodic invention and innovative character have made it one of the most beloved works in the classical canon. Dramatic in mood and troubled in its history, Robert Schumann’s Violin Concerto is regarded by soloist Albrecht Menzel as revealing the composer’s inner world, from the deepest anguish to the heights of exhilaration.

Violinist Albrecht Menzel has won Grand Prix and First Prize at the International Lipiński Violin Competition in Poland and was a top prize winner at the renowned Premio Paganini Competition in Genoa and the David Oistrakh Competition in Moscow. Menzel has performed widely as a soloist and chamber musician in prestigious venues and with internationally acclaimed orchestras and conductors throughout Europe, the US and beyond.

Robbert van Steijn has been chief conductor and general music director of the Leipzig Symphony Orchestra since September 2021, directing them in symphony concerts as well as operas, operettas and film music performances. The Leipzig Symphony Orchestra is Saxony’s cultural ambassador, and has a significant impact on the music scene through its subscription series in the Leipzig area and partnerships with the region’s major concert halls and festivals.