NEW YEAR'S CONCERT 2014

Daniel Barenboim

Vienna Philharmonic

£17

Every year hundreds of thousands of people apply to attend the Vienna Philharmonic’s New Year’s Concert – but only a few hundred are successful, spending between €35 and €1,090 per ticket. The live broadcasts attract millions of viewers around the world, who return year after year for the traditional mixture of works by the Strauss dynasty, particularly the two concluding numbers: Johann Strauss II’s The Blue Danube waltz and Johann Strauss I’s Radetzky March.

But the concerts are not the same every year: 2014 was of course the 100th anniversary of the outbreak of World War I and the orchestra specially invited Daniel Barenboim back because of his work towards peace and reconciliation, most prominently with the West–Eastern Divan Orchestra, which brings together musicians from Israeli, Arab and Iranian territories. The theme of rapprochement permeates the first half of the concert with works such as Josef Strauss’s Palms of Peace waltz and Johann Strauss I’s Caroline Galop, named after the bridge over the river dividing inner and outer Vienna during the Biedermeier period.

These two works are among nine pieces in the programme which have never previously been performed at the New Year’s Concerts. Notable among the other premieres are the ‘Moonlight Interlude’ from Capriccio by Richard Strauss – no relation of the Viennese Strausses but an honorary member of the Viennese Philharmonic – and the Pizzicati by Delibes (best known for the ‘Flower Duet’ from his opera Lakmé), inspired by the famous Pizzicato Polka by Johann Strauss II and his brother Josef.

And as ever, there are ballet sequences performed by the Vienna State Ballet, this time in fantastic costumes by Vivienne Westwood.

Don’t forget to tune in for the next concert on 1 January 2017 at 11:15am on BBC2, and if you want to try your luck in the ballot for tickets to 2018’s concert, you can register between 2 January and 28 February 2017 via the Vienna Philharmonic's website.

But if you want to enjoy the magic of the Strauss family and friends on any other day of the year, 2014 is an excellent vintage: as The Sunday Times put it, "Recent New Year’s Day concerts have been flat affairs, but the champagne spirit flows freely in Daniel Barenboim’s second stint on the podium."

Read more & buy online