Richard Wagner | Tristan und Isolde (Overture)

Tristan und Isolde (Tristan and Isolde), WWV 90, is a music drama in three acts by Richard Wagner set to a German libretto by the composer, loosely based on the medieval 12th-century romance Tristan and Iseult by Gottfried von Strassburg.

First conceived in 1854, the music was composed between 1857-1859 and premiered at the Königliches Hoftheater und Nationaltheater in Munich on 10 June 1865 with Hans von Bülow conducting.

Gustav Klimt | The Kiss, 1908 | Österreichische Galerie Belvedere

Johann Strauss | By the Beautiful Blue Danube

"The Blue Danube" is the common English title of "An der schönen blauen Donau", Op. 314 / German for "By the Beautiful Blue Danube", a waltz by the Austrian composer Johann Strauss II (1825-1899), composed in 1866.

Originally performed on 15 February 1867 at a concert of the Wiener Männergesang-Verein (Vienna Men's Choral Association), it has been one of the most consistently popular pieces of music in the classical repertoire.

Its initial performance was considered only a mild success, however, and Strauss is reputed to have said:

"The devil take the waltz, my only regret is for the coda - I wish that had been a success!"

Mihály Zichy | Ball in the Concert Hall of the Winter Palace during the Official Visit of Nasir al-Din Shah in May 1873-1874 | State Hermitage, St. Petersburg

Aziz Sulaymanov, 1986 | Garden by the Sea

Born in the picturesque region of Osh in the Kyrgyz Republic-Uzbekistan, Aziz Sulaymanov discovered his passion for painting at a young age, laying the foundation for a lifelong pursuit of artistic excellence.

Aziz Sulaymanov's artistic journey took flight as he honed his skills at a tailored art academy before venturing to Saint-Petersburg, Russia, to refine his craft under the mentorship of esteemed Russian artists Nikolay Evdokimov and Tuman Jumanaev.

With a keen eye for detail and a distinctive style, Aziz's paintings captivate viewers with their depth, beauty, and emotional resonance.

Czárdás - Hungarian Dance

Inscribed in 2024 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, the Csárdás is a Hungarian dance that is performed by couples consisting of a man and a woman, or, in some regions, of two women.

Multiple couples participate in the dance at the same time, forming one large or several smaller circles.

Each region has its own themes, gestures and figures, which are improvised according to well-known, established rules and patterns.

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner | Czardas dancers, 1908 | Gemeentemuseum Den Haag

Adolf von Becker | Genre painter

Adolf von Becker (1831-1909) was a Finnish genre painter and art professor of German descent.

He was one of the first Finnish artists to study in Paris, who taught many of the young artists of the Golden Age of Finnish Art.

Becker was born in Helsinki, where he began his artistic studies at the newly founded Finnish Art Society Drawing School; he also studied law.