Springtime in Berlin

The overture "Springtime in Berlin" by Kees Vlak was written around the turn of the millennium. He writes them in an atmosphere in which the word "Millenium" always and everywhere appeared. Vlak also expressly notes that he does not mean "spring" literally, but in a figurative sense, as "departure" or "new beginning". His intention was to record in music that after a century that was more often marked by dark sections, spring is now dawning.

The first part of the overture portrays musically the youth of the 21st century, a youth full of hope and confidence. In the quiet middle section the oboe and the clarinets perform a nostalgic melody. This melody seems to look back into the past, like a grandfather who remembers the old days. A slow waltz concludes this passage with thoughts of the elegant Kurfürstendamm in a summer night. In a short melody fragment you hear an American band - a reminder of the time of the occupation and America's growing influence in the city. Finally, a popular hymn takes up the most important event in Berlin's recent history: reunification. The music flows into a majestic Glorioso and symbolizes the magnificent Brandenburg Gate. The Da Capo then takes up again the spring idea presented at the beginning and the overture finally ends in an exciting finale, with a joyful view of the future.