Christian Thielemann Conducts Staatskapelle Berlin

Why it is worth going

The programme is Richard Strauss alone: the Four Last Songs with the Finnish soprano Camilla Nylund, then An Alpine Symphony, which Thielemann asked for in place of the Ein Heldenleben first announced.¹² It is the orchestra's first visit to Japan in four years and its first with Thielemann as general music director, a post he took up at the Staatsoper Unter den Linden in the 2024-25 season after twelve years as principal conductor in Dresden.²³⁴ Staatskapelle Berlin traces itself to 1570, first came to Japan in 1977, and played complete Schumann, Bruckner and Brahms symphony cycles in Japan in 2005, 2016 and 2022.² The two nights form part of Suntory Hall's 40th anniversary season; the tour's other Tokyo programme, Mozart with Rudolf Buchbinder and Bruckner's Fourth Symphony, is at Tokyo Opera City on 19 November 2026.¹² On 19 October 2026, S, A and B seats were still on sale for both nights through Pia's English-language site, which sells by category; to choose particular seats, call the number the site gives.⁵⁶ The hall has no dress code, and its English-speaking staff wear an ENGLISH badge.⁷