Ruth Reinhardt & Vivi Vassileva

Ruth Reinhardt, Marius Urba

»I love conducting so much that I absolutely have to do it.« Ruth Reinhardt realised this when she was 16 and her career today proves her right. Born in Saarbrücken, she completed her studies in Zurich, Leipzig and New York – and is now one of the up-and-coming female conductors who regularly perform with orchestras around the world. The young artist is especially praised for her versatility, her dynamic performances, her musical intelligence and her unorthodox choice of works. Her Bamberg debut is also a proof of this, as she leads us through some exciting repertoire: two pieces by Paul Hindemith – a modern composer who is particularly favoured by our guest conductor – set the scene. His provocative Ragtime from 1921 combines a Bach fugue with jazz elements, while the symphony »Mathis der Maler« portrays the inner and outer struggles of an eminent Renaissance artist in a colourful way. In between, the musical journey goes back 150 years to the Viennese classical period: to the time of Haydn, who liked to combine the highest standards with humour and popular elements in his symphonies. At the request of our solo cellist Marius Urba, a concerto for cello and wind orchestra composed in 1980 will also be performed, a wild ride through various genres: it was written by Friedrich Gulda, who was regarded as an enfant terrible in the classical music business. The audience is in for a colourful concert with a wide variety of ingredients and flavours. But as Ruth Reinhardt once said about her musical experiments, which might just come from a hot and sizzling witch’s kitchen – and have become her trademark: »I always like concert programmes that have contrasts!«