Three dogs joined the Danish Chamber Orchestra to perform Leopold Mozart’s “Hunting Symphony” earlier in September. Photo from video by the Danish Chamber Orchestra.
In Tuesday’s (9/12) Washington Post, Cathy Free writes, “Members of the Danish Chamber Orchestra performing Leopold Mozart’s little-known Hunting Symphony began to smile as the third movement began. Three dogs pranced onstage with their humans before the audience of 750 people in Copenhagen—and on cue, the pups began to bark along with the instruments. Cookie, Sophus, and Sica were all selected to be part of the performance for their woofing skills. The symphony features barking dogs, hunting calls and simulated gunshots by a percussionist. Most orchestras that perform the piece choose to use recordings of dogs barking, but conductor Adam Fischer decided to showcase live expert baying in the piece. ‘I immediately had the idea that I should try to perform it once in the original version,’ he said, explaining that the composer—the father of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart—included what he called ‘naturalism’ in several of his works. The audience gave a howling ovation after the Sept. 3 performance, Fischer said…. The dog handlers waved their arms like conductors to encourage their dogs to bark whenever Fischer gave them the nod. They kept plenty of snacks in their pockets so they could reward their dogs.”
