The remembrance service for star German soccer player Franz Beckenbauer was held at the Allianz Arena in Munich on Friday, January 19th. Jonas Kaufmann was invited to perform three pieces: Time to say Goodbye (in the Italian version Con te partiro) as well as E più ti penso and Nessun dorma. In a personal statement, Jonas Kaufmann added: “It is an honor for me to be able to contribute to the unique memorial service for Franz Beckenbauer. I grew up in Munich and have been a fan of FC Bayern since my childhood. In my eyes, Franz Beckenbauer is the greatest personality of the club and of German soccer as a whole; he is unrivaled as a sportsman and as a person.”
The service was broadcast live on ARD, BR, ZDF, RTL and ntv; the video can be watched in the ZDF Mediathek til February 19.
Live from Vienna: “Die Fledermaus” with Diana Damrau and Jonas Kaufmann
Jonas Kaufmann who has already sung the role of Eisenstein in concert at the Semperoper in Dresden will make his stage debut in this role in the New Year's Eve performance at the Vienna State Opera, with Diana Damrau (Rosalinde), Ilia Staple (Adele), Jörg Schneider (Alfred), Adrian Eröd (Falke), Jochen Schmeckenbecher (Frank), Daria Sushkova (Orlofsky), and Michael Niavarani (Frosch); Markus Poschner will conduct. The performance will be broadcast on several channels: from 6 p.m. via live streaming by the State Opera and on Ö1 in 5.1 surround sound, as well as from 8:15 p.m. on ORF III / Erlebnis Bühne. Photo: ORF / Hans Leitner