Claudio Abbado Brahms: 21 Hungarian Dances, Wo O 1: No. 5 in G Minor. Allegro

Watch Gala from Berlin 1997: A Salute to Carmen in full on STAGE+, the new streaming service by Deutsche Grammophon: It s a cliché to call a gala concert starstudded, but sometimes nothing else will do. On New Year s Eve 1997, Claudio Abbado and the Berliner Philharmoniker welcomed five operatic stars, each at the youthful pinnacle of their career. Billed as a salute to Carmen, the concert opens with a mouthwatering selection of highlights from Bizet s muchloved opera. But the wonders don t stop there, as Mikhail Pletnev plays Rachmaninoff s Paganini Rhapsody and Gil Shaham lavishes all his matchless artistry on Sarasate s Carmen Fantasy. It ends with a flourish, as Abbado conducts Ravel s Rapsodie espagnole a great orchestra and a muchmissed conductor, striking sparks off each other. Claudio Abbado Berliner Philharmoniker Brahms: 21 Hungarian Dances, WoO 1: No. 5 in G Minor. Allegro