25.10.2025

NIKOLA HILLEBRAND | Debut with the Vienna Philharmonic in the Musikverein

After a summer filled with the music of Johann Strauß, soprano Nikola Hillebrand returns to Vienna to perform the composer’s virtuosic “Voices of Spring” (Frühlingsstimmen) in her debut with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra under maestro Tugan Sokhiev. The concert is part of the 100th anniversary of Johann Strauß.

Nikola Hillebrand has demonstrated time and again her captivating stage presence internationally, be it Mahler Symphonies, gala concerts, Mozart choral works or in the more intimate recital stage setting. Her light, agile and expressive soprano is a perfect fit for the buoyant spirit and technical sparkle required for this challenging coloratura work.

Voices of Spring (Frühlingsstimmen) features a text created by the German conductor, librettist, and composer Richard Genée, and is both an expectant and yet melancholy work. The text itself is a celebration around the return of the birds in springtime, starting with the lark, then to the evening bird and nightingale. The waltz was originally composed for a performance by the soprano Bianca Bianchini at the Theater an der Wien in 1883.

Catch up with Nikola Hillebrand ahead of her return to the Musikverein in the upcoming interview with Austrian classical radio Ö1 in their programme “Klassik Treffpunkt” on the morning of the concert this 25 October 2025.

Performers:

Nikola Hillebrand, soprano
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra
Singverein der Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in Wien
Tugan Sokhiev, musical director
Johannes Prinz, choir director