In 1821, a 12-year-old Mendelssohn attended the premiere of Weber’s Der Freischütz and was blown away. Der Freischütz, an overnight sensation, took the world by storm. Today a cornerstone of romantic opera, its overture is one of Weber’s most popular – foreshadowing, in symphonic terms, the drama to come. Mendelssohn’s Second Symphony stands as his most ambitious symphonic work. Immensely popular during his lifetime and in the hands of Jörg Widmann, this "symphony-cantata on words from the Holy Bible” (Mendelssohn’s description) can again be experienced in all its magnificent glory! Celebrating the 400th anniversary of Gutenberg’s printing press, it sought to break down the barriers between concert and church music, and pays homage to another of Leipzig’s great sons: J.S. Bach. Featuring three magnificent soloists and chorus, these performances brings Widmann’s tribute to Mendelssohn to a rousing conclusion.