This concert sketches a remarkable chapter in the lives of Johannes Brahms and Pauline Viardot: their time in Baden-Baden during the 1860s. In this glittering spa town nestled in the heart of the Black Forest, the paths of these two exceptional artists crossed, sparking a friendship that left a lasting imprint on both music and letters. Brahms was still an emerging figure, shaping his creative identity through song and chamber music. Viardot, twelve years his senior, had recently retired from the international stage and was devoting herself with renewed intensity to composition. These two very different individuals – the young, provincial German pianist-composer and the cosmopolitan, celebrated singer-composer –cultivated a deep and fruitful connection. Their friendship was abruptly disrupted by the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War. This concert weaves together music and words to evoke the spirit of that extraordinary time.