Following four performances in Budapest, the Budapest Festival Orchestra took Richard Strauss’s lavish ballet composition, the Josephslegende, on the road, with stops in five European cities between November 10 and 18. The tour also included performances of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto in D major, in the interpretation of Alina Ibragimova; and Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E minor, with Renaud Capuçon and Veronika Eberle taking turns as the soloist at the various venues. The tour also afforded the orchestra yet another opportunity to perform as a choir.

A critic for Die Presse had the following to say about the orchestra’s performance at the Musikverein: “Iván Fischer did not shy away from the exalted nature of the piece (Josephslegende) – he bravely tackled its grandiose and flamboyant world. The room was all but flooded with an outpouring of light and sound. It is rare to hear this piece – and perhaps even rarer to hear it in such a convincing performance. Iván Fischer’s energetic gestures as the conductor and the orchestra’s sensitive, yet still daring, playing created moments which we will remember for a long time.”

The BFO was met with similar acclaim in Hamburg, with a writer for Abendblatt saying the following of the production: “The heroically pure Joseph was celebrated with the most spectacular orchestral tutti imaginable. A wind machine, a bass drum, four harps and a major brass wind section – Iván Fischer and his orchestra maintained their control over the colossal sound throughout, and turned these 70 minutes of an extraordinary orchestral performance into a veritable delight.”

A journalist for Bachtrack was also in the audience at Hamburg, and summed up his experiences with the following: “For this program, Fischer exploited the Elbphilharmonie’s acoustics to the fullest, projecting every color and texture with remarkable clarity. Like a master driver at the wheel of a luxury sports car, he knew exactly what his orchestra could do, harnessing its full power with effortless control. The result was a concentrated, exhilarating experience, reminding the audience that great music thrives when performed with imagination, risk and a pulse that never settles into comfort.”

A critic for Kölner Stadtanzeiger said the Josephslegende was “captivating in all respects.” The review also noted that the musicians never for a moment lost their poise during the hour-long performance. “The musicians showed once again that they are a truly cohesive community,” the article added.

In Chemnitz, the BFO participated as a member of the European Capital of Culture program. In his remarks, General Director of the Chemnitz Theater Christoph Dittrich lauded Hungary as well as the friendship between Germany and Hungary, and praised the high standards of performance of the Hungarian artists. A delegation of the Hungarian Business Leaders Forum was also in attendance at the event. The audience, which included many young people, rose in a standing ovation as the orchestra played the final notes of the Josephslegende.