Sunday, August 9, 2026
To my friends

Edward Elgar dedicated his "Enigma Variations," first performed in 1899, to his friends. The 14 variations on a lyrical theme are musical portraits depicting not only Elgar's wife, but also his publisher, members of his orchestra, and ultimately even himself. He inscribed their names only as initials above the individual movements – a composition as an enigma, a riddle. This final concert of Klosters Music is also David Whelton's farewell concert as the festival's artistic director. The Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, an orchestra close to his heart and responsible for many memorable Klosters Music performances in recent years, will perform. Edward Gardner, chief conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, a fellow countryman whom David Whelton greatly admires, will conduct. And violinist Veronika Eberle, a longtime musical friend, will perform Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's "Sinfonia Concertante" together with British violist Timothy Ridout. All friends of Klosters Music can look forward to a particularly moving evening.

Program:
Richard Wagner (1813–1883)
Overture to the opera "Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg"

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791)
Sinfonia concertante for violin, viola and orchestra in E-flat major

– Intermission –

Edward Elgar (1857–1934)
"Enigma Variations", Op. 36