We can say, without fear of exaggeration, that 2025 was a particularly fertile year for classical music in Spain. Not so much because of the accumulation of isolated milestones, but because of the coherence of a program which has brought together big names on the international circuit, … the strengthening of new generations of performers and directors and the consolidation of cycles which are already part of the cultural pulse of the country. The truth is that the season showed an active, diverse and increasingly attentive ecosystem both to the repertoire and to the artistic processes that make it possible.
Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia are once again positioned as the main centers of this activity, with the National Music Auditorium and Palau de la Música as recurring scenarios of major symphonic and vocal events. In this context, cycles like Ibermusica, Impacta, Scherzo or the institutions’ own programming articulated a season which made it possible to observe trends such as the pre-eminence of the great orchestras of Central Europe and the growing presence of young performers already fully established in the international elite.
Sticks, orchestras and work processes
One of the names of the year was that of the Finnish director Klaus Mäkelä, whose debut on Ibermúsica marked one of the most watched moments of the season. In front of the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestrafuture property of the teacher, the program offered a broad overview of aesthetics and eras, from Purcell to Richard Strausspassing through BrittenDowland, Schumann, Unsuk Chin and Wagner at the National Auditorium, the Palau de la Música Catalana and in Oviedo.
ABC had the opportunity to support Mäkelä during his rehearsals at the National Auditorium and discuss with him both the mystery and technique of conducting, and with the musicians themselves about their experience working with the maestro, an unusual approach that allowed us to observe first-hand the precision, structural clarity and collaborative climate that define his leadership. This is how ABC’s music critic defined it: Alberto González Lapuentehis concert: “Among the different meanings of genius, the one that stands out is that which is capable of imagining and executing admirable things. An immediate example is that of the Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä whose prodigious ability is beyond doubt, even for those who feel a certain dizziness in the face of his rapid rise to the most aristocratic musical elite (…) This performance is an extraordinary event, because it has an undeniable technical association, undoubtedly one of the unmissable events of this season.“.
Ibermúsica was also the setting for the intense passage of Gustavo Dudamel for Madrid. His debut in the cycle with Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra opened the year, followed by two particularly significant events with the London Symphony Orchestraone of them with the soprano Marina Rebeka and another to close the 55th anniversary of the cycle. Dudamel’s journey through Mozart and Mahler, among others, verified the conductor’s versatility and ability to adapt to very different orchestral traditions, as well as his growing presence in the European symphonic panorama beyond his historical association with the Venezuelan project.
THE Milan Scala Philharmonic, led by Lorenzo Viottirecently appointed conductor of the Zurich Opera from 2028, also passed through Madrid. The program combined Berio, with the four original versions of Boccherini’s Ritirata Notturna di Madrid, the Cello Concerto by Dvořák and a wide selection of Romeo and Juliet from Prokofievhighlighting the versatile profile of an orchestra historically associated with the lyrical repertoire. The recent visit of SymphonyOrchestra of the Bayerischen Rundfunkunder the direction of its owner Sir Simon Hochetwas another focus of the season. Programs focused on Schumann, StravinskyJanáček and Bruckner offered a broad overview of the Central European repertoire, with particular attention to the balance between performance tradition and contemporary reading.
Soloists: trajectories and new generations
Another highlight of the year was the passage of international soloists through Spain. The violinist from Granada Maria Dueñas performed in one of the most anticipated events with the Philharmonia Orchestra, performing the Korngold Violin Concerto. After his performance in the Impacta cycle and his subsequent performance at the Nobel Prize ceremony in Stockholm, the performer recently had the opportunity to speak with ABC, addressing questions related to his approach to the 20th century repertoire, to the balance between virtuosity and musical discourse, and to the moment of his career, marked by rapid international consolidation: “There are things that they offer me that have a very great emotional value for me, not just musical. It’s complicated, I wish I could multiply and do everything, but I have to think about the quality of my work and also how I feel personally; “I also have to take care of my body, that has to be my priority.”
In the field of piano, Javier Perianés returns to the National Auditorium with Concerto No. 5 by Saint-Saëns, while Lang Lang and Arcadi Volodos offered recitals as part of the Impacta cycle, covering respectively Schumann, Fauré and Chopin, and SchubertSchumann and Liszt-Volodos. Two different proposals which show the diversity of approaches within the great romantic repertoire. The pianist Jan Lisiecki He recently visited Spain accompanied by the Scherzo Foundation, offering a recital focused on the Preludes and other works from the piano repertoire.
Brothers deserve special attention Lucas and Arthur Jussen, that next to the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra They performed works by Mahler, Mendelssohn and Dvořák. This newspaper also had the opportunity to meet them and discuss with them what lies behind the journey of two young musicians who began their artistic journey from a common love for football, which they themselves identify as key in their relationship to teamwork and mutual listening. “We started playing piano because it was just a hobby, just like people play football. Without football, we would not have reached the piano. We climbed little by little and now we are there. We now try to see it also as a “hobby” because sometimes when you start a career there is a lot of pressure. In a way, we also try to treat it like life itself.
Among the soloists, the Swedish violinist also stood out Daniel Lozakovich, which was one of the most notable events of the season for the National Orchestra of Spain, accompanied by Alondra de la Parra. The program included his performance of Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, as well as Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7.
Little Singers of Vienna and Gatti
From Barcelona, Pep Gorgori cites Gardiner’s return with The Constellations Orchestraafter his brief withdrawal following the assault of one of his musicians. And in the year of Cantoría, this year they made their debut at the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, they returned to the Wigmore Hall in London, they received the Leonardo grant for the recovery of the music of the forgotten José de San Juan and their concert a week ago at the Marche with Ensaladas de Flecha was broadcast for the entire EBU as part of an international marathon of concerts organized by the stations that are part of the network.
At the Palau de la Música in Valencia, the season has increased its visibility with the presence of orchestras such as the Munich Philharmonicdirected by Lahav Shani; THE Staatskapelle Dresden, who offered the complete symphonies of Schumann under the direction of Daniele Gatti, which also passed through Madrid; and the Wiener Symphoniker, with Petr Popelka and Renaud Capuçon.
The year also had a notable symbolic dimension with the celebration of the 525th anniversary of the Little Vienna Singerswho performed in Madrid and Valencia under the direction of Oliver Stech. Beyond the historical value of the anniversary, the concerts made it possible to confirm the merits of an institution which has been able to adapt to its times without losing its sonic identity.
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