News Archive for 2012: << Newer items (2013) | Older Items (2011) >> 
Message uploaded on December 18, 2012, 11:15. Concert preview: Blitzingen 2012 to take place on December 30 at 17:00 - World premiere of the "Top Gun Variations" - We hope for another full church just like last years! Same musicians like before: Silvia Nowak at the harpsichord, tenor Bernard Maillard, violinist Paula Novoa and myself playing the cello. Besides a beautiful program with opera arias from Mozart's masterpieces "Don Giovanni" and "Magic Flute" there will be a harpsichord solo piece, a piece from a solo partita for violin by Bach and above all the world premiere of my latest composition called "Top Gun Variations" for cello solo. Since my youth I enjoyed listening to the anthem of blockbuster "Top Gun" sporting a very nice melody on the electric guitar, accompanying synthesizer sounds and the airy drum playing typical for the eighties pop music. In my composition I adapted that melody for the cello and wrote a handful of variations on the theme ranging from classical to pop, rock and jazz. Totaling 8 minutes the little piece has become a virtuosic easy listener which shows the possibilities of the cello beyond the usual classical stuff. Hopefully we meet in Blitzingen. (Entrance free, donations at the end).
Message uploaded on July 29, 2012, 23:45. Concert Preview: As "tchaikovsky" as it gets       
22.8.2012, 18h15, Basel, Mueseum Kleines Klingenthal
Boccherini quintet
Tschaikowsky sextet "Souvenir de Florence"
Akiko Hasegawa & Veronika Durkina, violins; Hannes Bärtschi & Maria Wolf Schabenberger, violas; Judith Gerster & Sebastian Diezig, cellos During my youth days I did enjoy the occasional listen to Tschaikovsky's "Rococo Variations", the beautiful cello solo of the Adagio Cantabile from one of his string quartets (I don't remember the number, sorry) and the first movement of his violin concerto. His other works though had too many diminished chords for me. Those diminished chords didn't fit with my taste back then and I also avoided them in my piano improvisations. Today, 15 years and some memorable great Tchaikovsky-Symphony-Performances later, I have recognized the greatness of this music. I also noticed that diminished chords beautifully enrich music. Anyways: Tchaikovsky is in my opinion boundless, emotional and sometimes very repetitive but absolutely genius. I can imagine how some of his contemporary colleagues may have considered him too much of a conformist and a traditionalist. But today it looks like there is no other composer just like him. My father once said that nowadays Tchaikovsky would probably be a Hollywood composer and he could be right because of the sheer talent and the expressive musical ideas which would come in handy in many a movie. It's no wonder that I was very happy when I got to know Tchaikovsky's sextet "Souvenir de Florence" because despite of the smaller formation the piece has the same energy, intensity and boundless generosity of his symphonies. Violinists Akiko Hasegawa and Veronika Durkina, violists Hannes Bärtschi and Maria Wolff Schabenberger and the cellists Judith Gerster and me will play the beautiful work in Basel, Museum Kleines Klingenthal on August 22, 2012 at 18h15. The other piece on the program is a quintet by early classical composer Luigi Boccherini. It would be great to see you there!
Message uploaded on April 21, 2012, 12:45. New Video: Spontaneous Cello Impro 
Message uploaded on March 11, 2012, 17:05. New Video: Bach Allemande from Suite No. IV 
   Message uploaded on March 7, 2012,, 17:15.
Concert: Haendel, Bach & Corelli in Gerzensee BE On Sunday, March 25 at 8pm in Gerzensee's church (canton Berne) I will play a baroque concert with recorder player Silvia Nowak and harpsichord player Jacqueline Toussaint. On the programme: C-Major and a-minor sonatas for recorder and basso continuo by G.-F. Haendel, the G-Major Viola-da-Gamba-Sonata and the Italian Concerto for harpsichord by J.-S. Bach as well as the famous Follia Variations by A. Corelli. We hope for lots of audience - everybody should come for this beautiful event! Message uploaded on February 17, 2012, 23:00. New Video: Brahms' Lullaby for "Pirate" 
Message uploaded on February 10, 2012, 23:55. This was Blitzingen 2011 During the christmas concert in Blitzingen last december with Silvia Nowak, Paula Novoa and Bernard Maillard we enjoyed a packed audience as the church was filled with listeners up to the tribune. The atmosphere was wonderful and a tasty "Raclette" for all concert-goers and musicians alike offered by the village of Blitzingen after the concert made the evening even more pleasant. We hope to meet you in Blitzingen at the end of 2012! 
Message uploaded on January 15, 2012, 11:00. Kodaly Duo with Paula Novoa in Fribourg I will play the amazing Kodaly Duet for violin and cello with violonist Paula Novoa. The concert will take place on Friday the 17th of February at 12h15 (Centre le Phénix, Rue des alpes 7, Fribourg). This duet is one of the most important works for the combination violin/cello and is equally a masterpiece as the duet by Maurice Ravel (who wrote the other "Uber-Work" for violin and cello). The underlying hungarian folk music tunes and hungarian composer Kodaly's (1882-1967) unlimited fantasy and skillful composing technique created a piece of music which will fascinate any listener. Highly recommendable. I am lucky to count on Paula as a partner not only in my musical life but also in "real life" since we are a happy couple since 2004. Setting up a rehearsal is therefore very simple, spontaneous and straight-forward as we are living together. By the way it was the well-known Fribourg-based conductor Théophanis Kapsopoulos who gave us the sheet music for this duet as a present at our marriage in 2008. | 
