2012 - Highlights New Year's Day Concert

Welcome to Vienna, where it is cold and damp, but the day is about to

brighten up considerably. We're here for the 12 that New Year's Day

here for the 12 that New Year's Day Concert by the Vienna Philarmonic

Orchestra, supported by Rolex. The Golden Hall is filled with tens of

thousands of flowers. To get a ticket, and hat to win the lottery,

or you had to pay enormous amounts of cash. 1,700 people have seats in

the concert hall, eagerly- anticipated ing the feast of

waltzes, polkas and marches which lies ahead, with music provided

mainly, though not entirely, by the family Strauss. Mariss Jansons will

be making his second appearance, his programme in part inspired by

his father's love of Strauss waltzes. The programme begins this

year with a not understated nationalistic March, the Fatherland

March. Mariss Jansons takes his place on the platform, bows to the

audience, and propose to open the 2012 Vienna Philharmonic New Year's

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MUSIC: "Fatherland March", by Josef Josef and Johann Strauss writing

together the Fatherland March. One of the highlights of the festive

season here in Vienna is the Christmas market outside the city

Christmas market outside the city hall. When the city hall opened in

1890, Johann Strauss junior marked the occasion with what is our first

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APPLAUSE That was Mariss Jansons conducting the Vienna Philharmonic.

The Christmas market outside is soon to be replaced by a huge ice

rink, which will be open until march. An expression which is

common in German, entweder oder, is MUSIC: "Either - Or! Fast Polka, Op.

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Strauss's Fast Polka Either Or. Always plenty of alternatives here

in sreu enia, mulled wine, sachertorte. Decisions, decisions!

It was more than 500 years ago the emperor Maximilian moved court. The

foundations were laid for the Vienna Boys' Choir. They're taking

their position in front of the organ. We are going to hear them as

they join in the Tritsch-tratsch Polka, it loosely translates as

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Tittle Tattle, a magazine published Sung by the sreuenia Boys Choir.

The boys love singing Strauss music by found it very difficult.

100 choristers in total aged between 10-14. The boys are divided

into four touring choirs. They perform about 300 concerts each

year, before almost half a million people. They'll be back in the

second half of our New Year's Day concert this morning.

We leave the Strauss family for a moment because next it's a waltz by

a military band master, Carl Ziehrer. The celebrations that

launched the banqueting hall, something of a battle that evening

between Strauss and Ziehrer. It overshadowed Strauss's contribution

to the evening. Strauss was rather bitter for sometime after what he

perceived as a very personal musical defeat.

Mariss Jansons returns to the platform.

Ziehrer prolific composer of waltzes and polkas.

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Citizens of Vienna, the most celebrated work of Carl Michael

Ziehrer. The New Year's Day Concert likes to cast an eye towards

contemporary events, including the 2012 Olympics. Back in the 1850s,

the British ambassador to the Imperial Court here was John Fane,

the 11th Earl of Westmoreland. And the Albion Polka was written for

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MUSIC: "Albion Polka, Op. 102 ", Johann Strauss's Albion Polka,

dedicated to Prince Albert. Another nod to the Olympics to end the

first part of the concert, and reflect the favourite sport of

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MUSIC: "Jockey Polka, Op. 278", by Mariss Jansons conducting the

Vienna Philarmonic Orchestra in the Jockey Polka, by Josef Strauss, who

loved horseracing. We are going to start the next part of the concert

with a piece by Joseph Hellmesberger, who succeeded Mahler

as the conductor of this orchestra. The Orchestra stands, before we

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have the Danse Diabolique, by MUSIC: "Danse Diabolique", by

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Mariss Jansons, conducting the Vienna Philarmonic Orchestra in the

Danse Diabolique, by Joseph Hellmesberger. The excitement

always cranks up a bit for the second part. Next, a popular

favourite which has made many appearances over the years, a

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MUSIC: "Artists Greeting, French Josef Strauss's French polka. This

year marks the bicentenary of the James helper, the organisation

which built this incredible music hall. It has been used for grand

balls, as well as music concerts, and for the very ball, first Johann

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MUSIC: "Enjoy Life Waltz, Op. 340", Enjoy Life, the message of that

waltz by Johann Strauss, written for the opening celebrations 140

years ago. Accompanied by ballet dancers performing live amongst the

artistic treasures of the Belvedere Palace. Now for something by father

Strauss, Johann senior, Sperl Galopp. Mariss Jansons conducts the

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MUSIC: "Sperl Galopp, Op. 42", by APPLAUSE. A mixture of Rossini and

Strauss Strauss senior in the Sperl Galopp. Making their way back to

the platform the Vienna Boys' Choir. They're going to join the

Philharmonic in Fireproof Polka, commissioned by a leading Viennese

industrialist to celebrate his company making its 20,000th

fireproof safe. The Anvile this MUSIC: "Fireproof, French Polka, Op.

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Mariss Jansons joining the percussion section of the Vienna

Philarmonic Orchestra, playing the anvil with two hammers. The Vienna

Boys' Choir, divided into four different performing choirs.

Earlier, one of them sang mass in the Hofburg Chapel, a tradition

unbroken since 1498. In 1918, they gave up their old imperial uniform,

which included a sword, to be replaced with the blue and white

sailor suits which they are wearing today. They soon became regarded as

Austria's singing ambassadors. This morning's conductor comes from a

distinguished musical line. His father for decades conducted the

Leningrad Philharmonic, and would lead the orchestra in the annual

New Year's programme, which sowed the seeds for Mariss Jansons'

interest in the Strauss family. We will hear several works written for

Pavlovsk as the morning progresses. But now, were going to hear a work

by their third sibling, Eduard Strauss, with the work called the

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MUSIC: "Carmen - Quadrille, Start MUSIC: "Carmen - Quadrille, Start

Eduard Strauss's Carmen Quadrille. Next we move to the ballet, and we

had to St Petersburg. There, 112 years ago, Tchaikovsky's Sleeping

Beauty was premiered at the Maryinsky Theatre. First, the

Panorama, where the Prince approaches the palace by moonlight

and awakes the Sleeping Princess with a kiss. Josef and Johann

Strauss had a long residence there. Also, it will change the mood of

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MUSIC: "Panorama from Sleeping MUSIC: "Panorama from Sleeping

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The waltz and before it the Panorama from Sleeping Beauty,

first performed in St Petersburg. A short train side stands the grand

residence built by Tsar Paul I and a concert hall there there drew

artists from across Europe, including the Strausses, who

returned season after season. This is a piece they wrote together

while working at Pavlovsk, the MUSIC: "Pizzicato Polka, Op. 25",

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Played no less than nine times the evening it was introduced to the

public in Russia where it was premiered the Pizzicato Polka. The

New Year's Day concert often includes one of the many works

Johann Strauss wrote celebrating heads of state around the globe.

This year a march he composed for the Shah of Persia. He composed

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this after being awarded the MUSIC: "Persian March, Op. 289", by

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The Persian March by Johann Strauss. Egypt, Spain and Russia amongst the

other nations that Strauss honoured with marches, very proud of that,

particularly the snatch of the then parsian -- Persian anthem he

managed to include. A change of mood, a polka Strauss wrote in

Russia, far from home, lonely and desperately missing his beloved

wife, Carolina. Brennende Liebe, or as it's loosely translated, Burning

Love. Mariss Jansons conducting the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra in

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Mariss Jansons's conducting the philharmonic, Brennende Liebe and

Burning Passion. Inspiring the dancers at the Belvedere Palace.

Strauss inspired by burning passion for his wife. She was hundreds of

miles away in Vienna. One of the finest waltzes next, work that

seems to reflect his complicated personality, someone who was both

melancholy but also able to conjure up fluff and glitter required by

dances. The Tee leer yum -- Delirium Waltz. Mariss Jansons is

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MUSIC: "Delirium Waltz, Op. 212", MUSIC: "Delirium Waltz, Op. 212",

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The Delirium Waltz, by Josef Strauss, a great inventor as a

composer. A horse-drawn street sweeping machine, amongst his

creations. That brings us nearly to the end of this 2012 New Year's Day

Concert, officially anyway, not that anyone is in any doubt about

the encores still to come. But the last piece on the programme puts

the percussion section to work, perhaps the loudest of all

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MUSIC: "Thunder & Lightning Polka, Thunder and Lightning, Mariss

Jansons conducting the Vienna Philarmonic Orchestra. Music by

Johann Strauss II, the most successful member of the musical

dynasty. There was a Johann Strauss III, and he it was who made the

first recordings of Strauss waltzes in 1903. He died in Berlin in

January 1939, the start of the year that saw the very first Vienna

Philarmonic Orchestra New Year's Day Concert. Mariss Jansons,

presented with a bouquet of flowers, which he presents to the leader of

the Vienna Philarmonic Orchestra. Well, according to the programme,

that's it. Oh, know it is not. The tradition is that there are encores

aplenty. There are certain rituals associated with the encores in the

New Year's Day Concert. The first one is perhaps a little bit of a

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MUSIC: "Tik Tak, Fast Polka, Op. Mariss Jansons is being handed a

giant alarm clock by the leader of the second violins of the Vienna

Philarmonic Orchestra, which he rang the bell of at the end of the

Tik-Tak Polka. It was a reworking of tunes from Die Fledermaus, which

is a seasonal highlight just across the street from here. Mariss

Jansons leaves the stage again. He must be remembering those concerts

of Strauss waltzes and polkas which his father conducted in St

Petersburg, or Leningrad as it was, year after year after year, with

the Leningrad Philharmonic. More than 30,000 flowers from San Remo,

in Italy. It is a little overcast in Vienna today, so no sun shining

through the windows, but gold everywhere, reflected by the

television lights. Lasts of the great composers, the ceiling lined

with paintings of Apollo. Mariss Jansons is back on the rostrum.

This place was described by one critic as a place without anything

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MUSIC: "The Blue Danube Waltz, Op. The Blue Danube Waltz, the second

Viennese national anthem, performed with the traditional false start.

The ballet dancers performing this morning at the Belvedere Palace.

Mariss Jansons conducting with that traditional false start during

which they bid us all a happy new year. Blue Danube came out of a

bleak time for the imperial empire, composed in the wake of an Austrian

defeat in prussian forces. One critic noted that this charming

waltz with its catchy rhythms ought soon to be the most popular by this

prolific dance composer. How right that critic was.

If that's one fixed part of the New Year's Day Consefrt, -- concert,

the other is the moment the audience are asked to clap along,

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APPLAUSE AND CHEERING. The Radetsky March with full

audience par -- participation, conned this year by January skwrpb

January -- Mariss Jansons. That is it. For audience and orchestra,