Latvian soprano Marina Rebeka, Artist of the Year at the International Classical Music Awards (ICMA), just released her CD Elle on the Prima Classics label. Remy Franck made the following interview with the singer.
Marina Rebeka
(c) Jānis Deinats
Your repertoire is mainly Italian, though you sang already several French roles. Why did you decide to dedicate one entire CD to this repertoire?
I always loved singing the French repertoire. The text has such a big importance, and the instrumental colors in the orchestra portray the inner emotional world of the singer, which you deliver in words. This incredibly colorful palette of sounds in an orchestra requires a rich arsenal in the human voice. It is a good challenge for me. Also, the French language with all its nasal sounds adds a specific charm to it. Read More →
Der sechzehnjährige deutsche Cellist Philipp Schupelius ist Gewinner des Discovery Award der International Classical Music Awards 2020. Der in Berlin aufgewachsene Musiker studiert zurzeit bei Prof. Wolfgang-Emmanuel Schmidt am Julius-Stern-Institut der Universität der Künste Berlin, einer der größten und renommiertesten Einrichtungen der musikalischen Nachwuchsförderung in Deutschland. Am Rande von Konzerten beim VP Bank Classic Festival in Bad Ragaz (Schweiz) haben Isabel Roth, Martin Hoffmeister (MDR) und Remy Franck (Pizzicato) das folgende Interview mit Philipp Schupelius gemacht.
Philipp Schupelius
(c) Andreas Domjanic
Philipp, was bedeutet es für Dich als jungen Musiker, den Discovery Award der ICMA gewonnen zu haben?
Es ist eine sehr große Ehre! Ich freue mich, weil der Preis für junge Musiker so wichtig und hilfreich ist, und weil ich weiß, was aus früheren Preisträgern geworden ist. Read More →
The recording of French composer Pascal Dusapin's opera Penthesilea won an ICMA award in the category Contemporary Music. Olivier Vrins, contributor of the ICMA Jury member Crescendo made the following interview with the composer.
Pascal Dusapin
Your opera Penthesilea has been unanimously acclaimed, notably at the last ICMA and the Belgian Caecilia Awards. It is considered by some to be the most accomplished and powerful opera you have composed so far. The music is so strong that it can perfectly do without the image. To what do you attribute the success of this work?
I’m obviously very happy with the success of this opera. By a happy combination of circumstances, the Penthesilea disc was released just as I was rehearsing my latest opera, Macbeth Underworld, which was staged here at La Monnaie a few months ago. I was immersed in Macbeth every day, and one evening I listened to Penthesilea in the apartment where I lived, in the centre of Brussels. Read More →
For the first recording made with his ensemble Jupiter (created in 2018), Thomas Dunford has not stopped collecting praise and awards, among them the ICMA of 2020 in the Assorted Programs section. Eduardo Torrico from the ICMA Jury member Scherzo (Spain) made an interview with the musician, one of the most sought-after lutenists. The recording released by Alpha includes arias from operas and oratorios as well as concertos by Antonio Vivaldi. Dunford is surrounded by two of his best friends and collaborators: mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre and the harpsichordist Jean Rondeau.
Thomas Dunford
How does it feel to receive a distinction like the ICMA award?
Joy and satisfaction in equal parts. We are also delighted with the acceptance the album has had in France, where it has been one of the best-selling albums in recent months. Our intention is to bring music to as many people as possible, and this kind of recognition confirms that we are on the right track. Read More →
Das Voyager Quartet hat für Solo Musica Schuberts Winterreise in eienr Bearbeitung für Streichquartett aufgenommen. Stefan Pieper sprach mit dem Bratschisten Andreas Höricht, der für die Arrangements und komponierten Zwischenspiele verantwortlich zeichnet.
Voyager Quartet
Man nehme sich Zeit für das Hören dieser instrumentalen Winterreise – und lese die abgedruckten Texte im Booklet! Verstärkt durch den eindringlichen Streichersound des Voyager-Quartets erschließt sich die ergreifende Dimension von Wilhelm Müllers Texten über Verlassensein, Liebeskummer und Todessehnsucht in einer neuen Unmittelbarkeit. Die neue CD, in hervorragender Qualität beim Solo Musica-Label erschienen (Pizzicato Rezension), polarisiert die Meinungen. Read More →
Alain Steffen hat sich mit dem Dirigenten Marek Janowski unterhalten.
Marek Janowski
(c) Philharmonie/Eric Devillet
Was bedeutet das Dirigieren und Interpretieren für Sie, sowohl als Künstler wie auch als Mensch?
Ich gehöre natürlich noch zu der alten Generation an, die den hauptsächlichen Sinn des Dirigierens darin sieht, das Orchester zu dirigieren und mit der Gestik zu helfen und zu führen. Früher mussten wir Dirigenten ja mit den Orchestern noch wirklich die Werke erarbeiten. Aber heute kann fast jedes Orchester das ganze Repertoire von Beethoven bis Shostakovich, so dass der Dirigent eigentlich nur noch den reibungslosen Ablauf zu garantieren braucht. Read More →
The young cellist Erica Piccotti, born in Rome in 1999, is a talent with an already well-established career. Nicola Cattò, ICMA Jury member for the Italian magazine Musica and ICMA Secretary General met the Young Artist who won this year's ICMA Young Artist of the Year Award.
Erica Piccotti
(c) Laure Jacquemin
How did you come to study the cello? Which are the main steps of your training?
It was a natural path, because at home I have ‘breathed’ music since I was little, my mother plays the piano, my brother the violin. After having ‘played’ with these two instruments, one day a cello came home. I was four and a half years old, and here I am! My first teacher was Francesco Storino, cellist of the Orchestra di Santa Cecilia in Rome, whom I was lucky enough to meet when I was part of the JuniOrchestra of the same Academy. He took me by the hand as a child and with passion and dedication made me grow, the same passion that I then transmitted in my music. Read More →
At the International Classical Music Awards (ICMA) 2020, Pianist Cédric Tiberghien has won an award in the chamber music category for an album with violinist Alina Ibragimova, his long-time musical partner. It is an amazing French album, focussing on the sonatas by César Franck and Louis Vierne. Jury member Pierre-Jean Tribot from the Belgian magazine Crescendo has made an interviews with this major pianist of our time.
Cédric Tiberghien
(c) Jean-Baptiste Millot
With Alina Ibragimova, you have already recorded the great works of the chamber repertoire, but not yet the Sonata by César Franck. How was this project born?
César Franck’s Sonata is a work that we missed for many years. We’ve been playing together for 15 years and we’ve gone through the great classics of the repertoire: the sonatas by Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms…. Curiously, we only played this work at our debut, for a studio recording for the BBC, without ever playing it in concert. Read More →
Als Gewinner zahlreicher renommierter Klavierwettbewerbe hat sich der 1993 geborene ukrainische Pianist Dmytro Choni als Konzertpianist bereits auf internationaler Ebene einen Namen gemacht. Er war 1. Preisträger und Gewinner der Goldmedaille beim Santander Paloma O’Shea Klavierwettbewerb 2018 sowie Preisträger bei einem Dutzend anderer Wettbewerbe. Als Stipendiat der Internationalen Musikakademie in Liechtenstein ist er dieses Jahr Artist in Residence beim VP Bank Classic Festival im Grand Resort Bad Ragaz (7.-15. Februar). Remy Franck hat sich mit dem jungen Musiker unterhalten.
Dmytro Choni
Dmytro, Sie sind dieses Jahr Artist in Residence beim VP Bank Classic Festival. Sie sind schon mehrmals bei diesem Festival aufgetreten. Welche Bedeutung hat die Veranstaltung für Sie?
Ich kam 2013 zum ersten Mal nach Bad Ragaz. Damals lebte ich noch in der Ukraine, und der Auftritt beim Festival Next Generation – so hieß das VP Bank Classic Festival damals noch – war für mich eine der ersten Erfahrungen bei einem internationalen Festival. Seitdem habe ich mehrmals in Bad Ragaz gespielt, daher hat der Ort in meinem künstlerischen Leben eine große Bedeutung. Read More →
Elisabeth Leonskaja
(c) Jo Schwartz
Elisabeth Leonskaja has been awarded the ICMA Lifetime Achievement Award. Jury member Radio Romania Muzical has published an interview with the pianist, in which she is talking about her career. Read More →
