The event will be held mainly in English.A summary from original text in German | Read the original
Keywords: Artist in Residence
| Braimah Kanneh-Mason | Violin |
| Sheku Kanneh-Mason | Gespräch, Cello |
| Dorothee Kalbhenn | Concept, Moderator |
Information not provided |
These events are similar in terms of concept, place, musicians or the program.
What's even more beautiful than a cello? Ten cellos! Chamber music is one of the great joys of life for our orchestra musicians. Here, seven members of our cello group and our orchestra academy come together with their colleague Sheku Kanneh-Mason, who is our current artist in residence, for a musically diverse programme.
Our Artist in Residence, cellist Sheku, and his sister, pianist Isata, are the best-known of the musically highly gifted seven children of the British Kanneh-Mason family. Somebody who has grown up playing instruments together like these two will be more familiar with the other person's playing than almost anyone else - an excellent prerequisite for a top-class duo recital! In Francis Poulenc's cello sonata from 1948, “romanticism, neoclassicism and modernism join hands”. This is followed by the first of Gabriel Fauré's two cello sonatas. It was composed in 1917 during the highly productive late phase of the 72-year-old composer and director of the Paris Conservatoire, whom Debussy called “maître de charme” and whom d'Indy envied for his compositional freshness even a few years later. This is followed by a short piece by British composer, violinist and Menuhin pupil Natalie Klouda (*1984) and Felix Mendelssohn's first cello sonata, which Robert Schumann (presciently?) described as “the purest music...suitable for the finest family circles”.
»It could only be Shostakovich!« commented the BBC presenter when Sheku Kanneh-Mason entered the final of the »BBC Young Musician« in 2016 with Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto. Naturally, he emerged as the winner of the competition, in which he performed a different work by Shostakovich from round to round. His power composer! And there is no doubt that the now 25-year-old musician is one of the greatest talents on the cello. In ProArte’s »International Soloists« series, Kanneh-Mason juxtaposes the cello concerto dedicated to Rostropovich from 1959 with Ravel’s Hebrew melody Kaddish – an elegiac song that unfolds a particularly intense power in the version for cello and strings. And to mark the Ravel Year 2025, the Camerata Salzburg also contributes »Le tombeau de Couperin«, his very personal and highly artistic exploration of French Baroque music.
Following a brilliant Elbphilharmonie debut in 2019 with »his« Bamberg Symphony, conductor Jakub Hrůša has become a popular regular visitor to the Elbphilharmonie. From his Czech homeland, he not only brings undoubtedly its best orchestra, but also provides a wonderful programme. This evening’s soloist is the young talented star Sheku Kanneh-Mason performing an all-time favourite cello concerto. Dvořák’s Cello Concerto is one of the most frequently performed cello concertos of all, although Dvořák apparently considered the instrument no more than »a piece of wood that screeches at the top and drones at the bottom«. Yet, the composer must have secretly loved the cello because this composition is captivating with enchanting songlike melodies, great dramatic progressions and delicately lyrical passages. This evening’s soloist is 24-year-old British rising star Sheku Kanneh-Mason, winner of the 2016 BBC Young Musician award. This piece with its virtuoso leaps and technical intricacies offers him many possibilities to demonstrate the qualities of this instrument. »The music saved me!« writes Josef Suk, who dedicated the »Asrael« Symphony to two dear relatives, who had recently passed away. The work is named after the archangel who, in Islam, guides the souls of the dead to paradise. It is a work of magnificent beauty; despair and grief meet poetically transfiguring memory. Funeral March, Dance of Death, tender portrait of his wife – the music is so emotionally powerful that one wonders why Suk has not (yet) achieved the popularity of his contemporary Gustav Mahler or his father-in-law Antonín Dvořák!
The Concertgebouw’s famous Main Hall is one of the best concert halls in the world, well-known for its exceptional acoustics and special atmosphere. In the Main Hall, you will feel history. Here, Gustav Mahler conducted his own compositions, as did Richard Strauss and Igor Stravinsky. Sergei Rachmaninoff played his own piano concertos in the Main Hall. This is also where musicians such as Leonard Bernstein, Vladimir Horowitz and Yehudi Menuhin gave legendary performances. Right up to now, the Main Hall offers a stage to the world’s best orchestras and musicians. Buy your tickets now and experience the magic of the Main Hall for yourself!
Seong-Jin Cho, the Berliner Philharmoniker’s Artist in Residence for the 2024/25 season, is considered a poet at the piano, but also has a penchant for black humour. This is demonstrated not least by the work he has chosen for this programme: Dmitri Shostakovich’s Concerto for Piano and Trumpet, which brilliantly parodies the piano concerto genre. Anton Bruckner’s First Symphony provides a counterpart to this with its tonal opulence, solemnity and spirituality. The concert is conducted by Estonian Paavo Järvi, who opens the evening with an overture by compatriot Veljo Tormis.
Seong-Jin Cho, the Berliner Philharmoniker’s Artist in Residence for the 2024/25 season, is considered a poet at the piano, but also has a penchant for black humour. This is demonstrated not least by the work he has chosen for this programme: Dmitri Shostakovich’s Concerto for Piano and Trumpet, which brilliantly parodies the piano concerto genre. Anton Bruckner’s First Symphony provides a counterpart to this with its tonal opulence, solemnity and spirituality. The concert is conducted by Estonian Paavo Järvi, who opens the evening with an overture by compatriot Veljo Tormis.
Seong-Jin Cho, the Berliner Philharmoniker’s Artist in Residence for the 2024/25 season, is considered a poet at the piano, but also has a penchant for black humour. This is demonstrated not least by the work he has chosen for this programme: Dmitri Shostakovich’s Concerto for Piano and Trumpet, which brilliantly parodies the piano concerto genre. Anton Bruckner’s First Symphony provides a counterpart to this with its tonal opulence, solemnity and spirituality. The concert is conducted by Estonian Paavo Järvi, who opens the evening with an overture by compatriot Veljo Tormis.
For lovers of chamber music the Recital Hall is the venue of choice. You can hear the musicians breathe and you can practically touch them. This hall is also cherished by musicians for its beautiful acoustics and direct contact with the audience. In the Recital Hall you can hear the best musicians of our time. Buy your tickets now and experience the magic of the Recital Hall for yourself!
Joana Mallwitz leads the Konzerthausorchester Berlin into her second season as Chief Conductor with a programme of dance music, which for her is ‘perfect’ for the opening of the season. What's more, our new Artist in Residence Sheku Kanneh-Mason is making his first appearance - with Antonín Dvorak's Cello Concerto, which ‘adds a particularly festive element thanks to its familiarity and elegance,’ says our chief conductor. ‘Apart from that, it goes very well with John Adams’ ‘The Chairman Dances’ and Sergei Rachmaninov's Symphonic Dances: We have three composers from three eras who went to America and dealt with issues of exile, flight and home. While abroad, they incorporated musical elements from their homeland into their works.’ We are very much looking forward to starting a 2024/25 season with you that is as full of musical energy and excitement as this opening!
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