Berliner Konzert
When: Tuesday Nov 24, 2009 at 8:00 pm
Where: The Jane Mallett Theatre
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One of Germany's premiere ensembles, the young and dynamic Württemberg Chamber Orchestra is paired with a Canadian musical treasure the Gryphon Trio, in a passionate evening of music, for both string orchestra and string orchestra with piano trio soloists. Sparks will fly as these vibrant musicians take on masterpieces by Shostakovich, Martinu and more, conducted by rising young Armenian star Ruben Gazarian. We celebrate the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall in memorable world premieres by prize-winning Canadian composer Paul Frehner and German composer Karsten Gundermann.
The Württemberg Chamber Orchestra
The WCO was funded in November of 1960. Heilbronn was completely destroyed during the second world war and the city was busy with rebuilding. There was no longer any funding for the big symphonic orchestra which had played in Heilbronn from 1948 until 1960.
Jörg Fearber, the founder of the WCO was asked to write an overview about the orchestra situation in Heilbronn, and reported to the city that an orchestra body of 13 -15 players would be good and flexible enough to enrich the cultural scene in Heilbronn.
After the formation of the ensemble the WCO was quickly granted opportunities to play with famous artists and proved that funding a chamber orchestra was the right thing to do.
Today, the orchestra has played more the 4,200 concerts all over the world and continues playing with some of the world's greatest artists.
Ruben GazarianRuben Gazarian - Conductor
With the beginning of the season 2002/2003 Ruben Gazarian became the principal conductor of the "Württemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn". He succeeded in expanding the standard repertoire in a remarkable way by growing to symphonic scale and choosing compositions of Romantic and Modern Era as well as avant-garde compositions.
At the age of four Gazarian received his first violin lesson from his father. Subsequently, he was educated at the "P.I. Tchaikovsky Special Music School" and later at the "Yerevan State Conservatory" by the first violinist of the famous Borodin Quartet. His active concert career started in 1983. During his studies he was contracted as a soloist by the National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia. At the same time he was violinist of the National Armenian Piano Trio.
In 1992 Ruben Gazarian went to Leipzig for post degree studies at the "Leipzig Music Academy Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy". In the winter of 1995, Gazarian completed his education as a violinist by passing the concert exam. In the same year he began his conductor's education at the Leipzig Music Academy which he completed with the highest possible grade in a public final concert in May 1998. From 1993 until 1998 Ruben Gazarian was First Concertmaster of the "West Saxon Symphony Orchestra" and from January 1999 until August 2002 he was principal conductor of this orchestra. In this position he was the youngest conductor in Germany at the time.
In September 2002 Ruben Gazarian became laureate of the 1st International Conducting Competition "Sir Georg Solti" in Frankfurt Main. In the same month he became the new principal conductor and artistic director of the "Württemberg Chamber Orchestra Heilbronn". He has been appointed to this position on the basis of unanimous recommendations by the orchestra and the appointment board.
Ruben Gazarian was guest conductor of the the Stuttgart Radio Symphony Orchestra, WDR (West German Broadcast) Symphony Orchestra Cologne, the Radio Symphony Orchestra Frankfurt (Main), the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, the Frankfurter Museumsorchestra, the Orchestre national de Lyon, the Strasbourg Philharmonic Orchestra, the Stuttgart Philharmonic Orchestra, the Zurich Chamber Orchestra, and others. He has made numerous concert broadcasts by the Hessen Radio (HR), the Southwest German Radio (SWR), the West German Radio (WDR), Deutschlandradio, the Middle German Radio (MDR) and Radio Svizzera Italiana.
Ruben Gazarian works successfully with such famous soloists including Gautier and Renaud Capuçon, Julia Fischer, Hilary Hahn, Katia & Marielle Labèque, Elisabeth Leonskaja, Sabine Meyer, Viktoria Mullova, Sergei Nakariakov, Gerhard Oppitz, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Frank Peter Zimmermann, Beaux Arts Trio and many others.
Karsten Gundermann
(born 1966) studied composition in Dresden, classical
Chinese opera in Beijing and film and theatre music at New York University. With THE NIGHTINGALE (premiere in 1993) he created one of the most important Beijing Operas of the past decade. As a composer and cultural manager, he develops projects of cultural exchange and international understanding and promotes German folklore tradition. He
composes for film, tv, theatre and symphonic orchestra, among his works are FAUST II (opera, 2007), ABENDLAND (symphony, 2007) as well as various concerts for solo instruments and orchestra.
Karsten Gundermann (pictured above)
The Gryphon Trio - Photo by Shin Sugino
Annalee Patipatanakoon, violin
Roman Borys, cello
Jamie Parker, piano
Formed in 1993, the Gryphon Trio continues to delight audiences around the globe with their highly refined and dynamic performances. Based in Toronto, the Trio tours regularly throughout Canada, the United States, and Europe. Their celebrated recordings include works by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Dvorak, Lalo and Shostakovich. With a strong commitment to expanding the piano trio repertoire, the Trio has commissioned and premiered over 50 works. Their 2004 recording, Canadian Premieres, features the work of leading Canadian composers and was awarded a Juno. Their most recent recording, Tango Nuevo, features the music of Astor Piazzolla and Hilario Duran, and represents their tenth CD for the Analekta label.
As Canada's pre-eminent ensemble, the Trio continues to be actively involved in teaching and nurturing future generations of both classical musicians and audiences. In addition to master classes at schools and universities across North America, the Gryphon Trio members are Artists-in-Residence at the University of Toronto's Faculty of Music, where Dr. Parker is the Rupert E. Edwards Chair in Piano Performance and violinist Annalee Patipatanakoon is an Assistant Professor. The Trio has also collaborated with composer Gary Kulesha and music commentator Rob Kapilow in presenting enriching lecture-demonstrations.
Strongly dedicated to pushing the boundaries of chamber music, the Trio has collaborated on special projects with clarinetist James Campbell, actor Colin Fox, choreographer David Earle, and a host of jazz luminaries at Toronto's Lula Lounge. Their most ambitious undertaking has been the groundbreaking multimedia production of Christos Hatzis' Constantinople, which has been performed in Canada, the United States, and was presented by the Royal Opera House at Covent Garden in England in 2006.
Cellist Roman Borys has taken the lead with the Trio's responsibilities as Artistic Directors of the Ottawa International Chamber Music Festival, a position they have held for two seasons. The Gryphon Trio has been a mainstay at the OICMF since its inception, the Festival of the Sound in Parry Sound, and many other chamber music festivals.
Concert Repertoire
1. Karsten Gundermann The Fall of the Berlin Wall 12'
2. Edwarard Elgar Serenade for Strings 10'
3. Paul Frehner Berliner Konzert 25'
Intermission
4. Bohuslav Martinu Concerto for Piano Trio and String Orchestra 20'
5. Dmitri Shostakovich Chamber Symphony op.110a 20'
This concert is supported by the Ministry of Science, Research and the Arts of Baden-Württemberg.
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