Christoph von Weitzel
Ulrich Pakusch
Sunday, May 10, 2026
ore 18.00
Medicean Villa of Coltano
Via Palazzi 21
Coltano
PISA
Christoph von Weitzel
Baritone
GERMANY
Ulrich Pakusch
Piano
GERMANY
PROGRAM
WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756-1791)
from Don Giovanni
Leporello's aria “Madamina, il catalogo”
from Le nozze di Figaro
Figaro's cavatina “Se vuol ballare”
GIUSEPPE VERDI (1813–1901)
form Rigoletto
Rigoletto's aria “Cortigiani, vil razza dannata”
JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750)
Cantata “Lasset uns mit Jesu ziehen”
CHRISTOPH VON WIETZEL - ULRICH PAKUSCH
“Schläft ein Lied in allen Dingen”
ROBERT SCHUMANN (1810-1856)
Frühlingsfahrt
Traditional german song:
“Geh aus mein Herz”
RICHARD WAGNER (1813–1883)
from Tannhäuser
Lied an den Abendstern
FRANZ SCHUBERT (1797-1828)
Lied eines Schiffers an die Dioskuren
JOSH GROBAN (1981)
You rise me up
FRANK SINATRA (1915-1998)
My way
Prima del concerto aperitivo
offerto dalla Proloco di Coltano
e visita guidata alla mostra all’interno della villa
Christoph von Weitzel
Baritone
GERMANY
“Weitzel’s interpretation of the song penetrates the existential. It is not only the bel canto that is of interest, but the meaning of the words, intensified by the music, through which fundamental emotional situations are described.” What Gerhard Rohde wrote in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reflects Christoph von Weitzel’s primary focus: starting from the word to plumb the depths of the music, engaging intensely with meaning to rediscover truth and beauty. He completed his vocal studies with Professor John Lester (USA) and Barry Mora at the Frankfurt Opera. His participation in Elisabeth Schwarzkopf’s Lied masterclass and his work with Kammersänger Walter Berry shaped his artistic development. Engagements have taken him to the Salzburger Landestheater, the Vogtland Theater Plauen, and the Mainfranken Theater Würzburg as a permanent member, and as a guest to the Frankfurt Opera, Nuremberg Opera, the theaters of Zwickau and Regensburg, and the Alte Oper Frankfurt. He has performed in opera festivals and recitals in Austria, Italy, England, Spain, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Poland, New Zealand, and South Africa. His repertoire spans four centuries of European music, including contemporary composers. He has distinguished himself through staged versions of Schubert’s song cycles and the development of new recital formats, which have taken him to major venues and festivals such as the Alte Oper (Frankfurt), Gasteig (Munich), Palais am Festungsgraben (Berlin), Haddo House (Aberdeen), Laeiszhalle (Hamburg), Mozartfest Würzburg, Mosel Musikfestival, Hohenloher Kultursommer, Fränkischer Sommer, Schubertiade Roskilde, as well as to Italy, New Zealand, and South Africa. He has recorded for radio (including M. Duruflé’s Requiem), television, and CD. Former Federal Chancellor Helmut Schmidt and former Federal President Christian Wulff, among others, support his project “Opera for the Homeless – Winterreise – Songs Become Grand Opera,” in which the staged version of the work raises awareness of the growing issue of homelessness and the work of those who assist them. Through this project, he has made a name for himself well beyond the music world in Western Germany.
Ulrich Pakusch
Piano
GERMANY
He studied conducting, piano, and organ. From 2004 to 2011, Ulrich Pakusch served as Head of Music and conductor at the Mainfranken Theater in Würzburg. In addition to the Classical-Romantic repertoire, he has conducted numerous works from the 20th and 21st centuries, including operas and world premieres by Magret Wolf, Michael Obst, Manfred Trojahn, and Gerhard Stäbler. Alongside his academic work, Ulrich Pakusch conducted the Berlin Symphony Orchestra for an opera production at the Israel Festival in Jerusalem. As an organist, guest performances have taken him to the organs of the Berlin Philharmonie and the Konzerthaus am Gendarmenmarkt, St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, Calgary, Auckland, Nazareth, Bethlehem, and Jerusalem.