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„Embrace“ | Baritone Äneas Humm releases new CD
Aeneas Humm is in the middle of a lightning career. He has recorded a new CD with Deutschlandfunk, which revolves around loneliness, security and longing. The young baritone chose songs by Fanny Hensel, Grieg, Ullmann and Liszt. He found the latter particularly challenging.
Listen to the radio interview with Jonas Zerweck of Deutschlandradio here.
Embrace
Aeneas Humm, baritone
Renate Rohlfing, piano
Fanny Hensel
Nachtwanderer
Schwanenlied
Sehnsucht
Ach, die Augen sind es wieder
Franz Liszt
Ihr Glocken von Marling S 328
Wie singt die Lerche schön S 312
Es muß ein Wunderbares sein
Vergiftet sind meine Lieder S 289
Ein Fichtenbaum steht einsam S 309,1
Wandrers Nachtlied II (Über allen Gipfeln ist Ruh) S 306
Viktor Ullmann
Der Mensch und sein Tag, op. 47
Edvard Grieg
6 Lieder, op. 48
Adrienne Haan
International Musical Sensation Adrienne Haan performed for the German Forum in 2010
Hailed as “the First Lady of Cabaret” by Wolf Entertainment Guide in NYC and “an entertainer of the highest caliber” by the Huffington Post, award-winning Adrienne Haan is one of the most electrifying concert and cabaret stars at work today. A singer, writer and producer, she is constantly touring across the globe with a diverse repertoire that encompasses 1920s and 30s music, chanson to jazz, blues, swing, jazz, klezmer and Broadway, as well as Hebrew and other international songs. Visit her website to learn more!
May 8, 2021 marked the 76th anniversary of the end of World War II; hence, the end of the Holocaust and the end of Nazism. May 9th marked the 100th birthday of Germany’s most prominent freedom fighter – Sophie Scholl – who was sentenced to death by the Nazis on February 22, 1943. Sophie Scholl, a young German Christian, died under the guillotine, opposing the Nazi Regime until the end. She was 21.
To honor her memory and to commemorate the fallen, the exiled, all those who lost their lives during the Holocaust, I would like to share my staged film-noir with you: Tehorah, a musical portrait of love, hope and forgiveness. Tehorah premiered at Carnegie Hall in 2015 and has been performed around the world since then. We recorded this film-noir at the Chamber Music Hall of the Beethoven-House in Bonn, Germany, which was sponsored by the German Consulate General in Toronto for Liberation 75.
Adrienne Haan
Visit Adrienne Haan’s Bandcamp to order her albums, including: TEHORAH, Rock Le Cabaret!, Berlin, Mon Amour (English & German versions), Ich Hätt’ Getanzt Heut’ Nacht, and Born To Entertain.
Julia Küßwetter
Soprano Julia Küßwetter sang at the German Forum in November 2011
Julia Küßwetter is a qualified opera and concert singer, lecturer for singing and vocal ensemble at the vocational school for music in the district of Middle Franconia, and since 2013 lecturer for singing and vocal pedagogy at the Kaleidos University of Applied Sciences in Zurich.
[photo: Korn]
Her most notable roles include Gretel (Hansel and Gretel), Rosmene (Imeneo), Mercurio (La Didone), Titania (A Midsummer Night’s Dream), Marie (Zar und Zimmermann), Sophie (Rosenkavalier), Euridice (L’Orfeo), Susanna (Nozze di Figaro), Adele (Fledermaus), Franziska Cagliari (Viennese blood), Belinda (Dido and Aeneas), Pamina and Königin (Magic Flute), Blonde (Entführung aus dem Seraglio), which she sang in over 35 performances, as well as in the concert realm the St. Matthew Passion, the St. John Passion, the great Mass in C minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, The Creation by Joseph Haydn and A German Requiem by Johannes Brahms.
Along with the St. Matthew Passion, the St. John Passion is the only completely preserved authentic Passion by Johann Sebastian Bach. It supplements the Gospel according to John with chorales and freely composed texts, and is set for four-part choir, vocal soloists, and orchestra.
Julia’s CD, “Pauline – Songs for Richard’s Wife” is available to order online! Together with the pianist Georg Schütz, Julia Küßwetter has recorded some of the most beautiful pieces by Richard Strauss in a program that is therefore considered to be extremely musically demanding.
The songs are dedicated to Strauss’s greatest muse: his wife Pauline. The 21 pieces come from all phases of their known “stormy but scandal-free” relationship. The last track “Malven” is the last song composed by Strauss, and was only premiered in 1985. Listen to samples from the album here!
Lysander Piano Trio
ITAMAR ZORMAN | LIZA STEPANOVA | MICHAEL KATZ
Praised by The New York Times for her “thoughtful musicality” and “fleet-fingered panache,” pianist Liza Stepanova has performed for the German Forum several times. She is a member of the Lysander Piano Trio, who performed for the German Forum in 2013. In 2014, they performed at the “Alma Mahler’s Salon” at Bruno Walter Auditorium at Lincoln Center.
…incredible ensemble, passionate playing, articulate and imaginative ideas and wide palette of colours. Performed with sensitivity, panache and emotional depth, it perfectly displayed the Lysander Trio’s enormous potential.
The Strad
“mirrors celebrates the trio’s tenth anniversary with six world premiere recordings of 21st century American piano trios. Four of the trios, by Jakub Ciupinski, Reinaldo Moya, Gilad Cohen, and, Sofia Belimova, were commissioned by and written specifically for the Lysander, while the works by Jennifer Higdon and William David Cooper were premiered by members of the ensemble.
Over the past decade, the Lysander Piano Trio has shown a strong commitment to working with living composers and building new repertoire for the piano trio, yielding a great variety of musical styles from artists of multiple generations, diverse international backgrounds – Moya is Venezulean-American, Ciupinski is Polish-American, Belimova is Russian-American and Cohen is Israeli-American – and a broad range of interests. All of the compositions featured on mirrors are inspired by other art forms such as theatre, literature, and visual arts.” Read more about mirrors on the Lysander Piano Trio website!
Ulrich Roman Murtfeld, pianist
Ulrich Murtfeld gave a concert for the German Forum in 2017, and we are excited to share two more performances with you here, as well as promote his album American Recital, volumes I and II.
Ulrich Roman Murtfeld’s repertoire ranges from Bach to New Music. Characteristic of his concert programs is an innovative and unusual selection of works. His interpretations centre on the classical-romantic heritage (Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms, Schumann, Liszt) and also on contemporary works.
Interested in hearing more? Purchase volumes I and II of Ulrich Murtfeld’s “American Recital” album here.
This SACD with compositions by Louis Moreau Gottschalk, George Gershwin, Samuel Barber, Frederic Rzewski and Philip Glass presents a cross-section of North American piano music from 1850 to 1980. It offers the listener the possibility to become immersed in a fascinating musical cosmos which is, above all, notable for its stylistic variety.
American Recital
Ulrich Roman Murtfeld now presents a second CD showcasing the boundless wealth of this repertoire. The pieces presented here span 150 years
American Recital, volume II
Learn more about Ulrich Murtfeld on his website!
Spotlight: Flutist Tatjana Ruhland, who performed at the German Forum in March 2015
Once called the ‘Paganini of the flute’ by a critic, OPUS KLASSIK winner Tatjana Ruhland has numbered among the most acclaimed performers of her instrument at least since her Carnegie Hall début. In December 2018, she performed Debussy’s “Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune” with the Berlin Philharmonic, described as “a fabulous faun” by Berlin’s leading newspaper and highly acclaimed by the audience.
After her CD recording of romantic works by Carl Reinecke the critics called Tatjana Ruhland “on the top of her class” and praised her “virtuosity as well as her warm sound.” This album was awarded the music award OPUS KLASSIK 2018.
In a review of her CD recording of Krzysztof Penderecki’s Flute Concerto, Fono-Forum wrote: “Here Ruhland, with the valiant orchestra at her side, indulges herself to the hilt in virtuosity, transitions and contrasts.” The said recording also contains works by J. S. Bach (including the virtuosic Second Orchestral Suite).
Her musical expertise and inspiring stage presence are employed to full advantage in well-conceived programmes and challenging projects. Recently, for example, she was again invited by the Heidelberg Spring Festival to give the première of a newly commissioned work: a flute concerto by David Philip Hefti (2019). She has also appeared in recent years at such leading festivals as the Bonn Beethovenfest, the Lucerne Festival, the Würzburg Mozart Festival, the Musikfest Stuttgart, the Ansbach Bach Week, the Prague Spring and the Festival de Radio France, not to mention playing in the orchestra of the Bayreuth Festival. Being the solo flutist of the SWR Symphony Orchestra (chief conductor Teodor Currentzis) since 2000, and a frequent guest in other radio, opera and symphony orchestras, she regularly gives concerts in Tokyo, Amsterdam, London, Berlin, Vienna and Zurich.
She plays solo in outstanding ensembles and chamber music with artists of the stature of Hilary Hahn, Wen‑Sinn Yang, Emmanuel Pahud, Angela Hewitt, Matthias Goerne, Christine Schäfer, Christina Landshamer, Eckart Heiligers, Matthias Höfs, Christian Schmitt and Yaara Tal.
Photo by Marco Borggreve
Tatjana Ruhland was born in Regensburg and received her training in Munich, New York and Siena. Besides winning first prizes at the German University Competition and the Prague Spring International Competition (1996), she is a laureate of the prestigious Kobe International Flute Competition (Japan, 1997) and the East&West International Auditions (New York, 1999) and has held a scholarship from the German Music Competition.
Tatjana Ruhland plays instruments by Muramatsu as well as V.Q.Powell.
Sign up for Tatjana’s newsletter here!
Now Presenting: Organist Christian Schmitt, who performed at the German Forum in March 2015
Camille Saint-Saëns: “Organ Symphony”
Excerpts from the May, 12 2020 Livestream on Medici TV:
Christoph Eschenbach, Conductor
Christian Schmitt, Organ
Camille Saint-Saëns: Symphony No. 3 c-minor op. 78 “Organ Symphony”
Excerpts edited by C. Schmitt & Matthias Schneider-Hollek
Saint-Saëns was also considered a renowned organist. He saw his 1886 “Organ Symphony” as the zenith of his compositional output: “In it, I gave everything I was able to give.” The Organ Symphony is an impressive work full of sacred brilliance: Gregorian motifs, powerful wind chorales and masterly fugues create a colourful spectacle of sound – and in the monumental finale, the entire orchestra sounds like a gigantic organ.
Vivaldi’s Violin Concerto RV 310 for trumpet and organ
Christian Schmitt, organ
FIREWORKS – a musical fireworks display for 3 trumpets and organ with festive, virtuoso music by Bach, Handel and Vivaldi etc. The CD was recorded in Japan with Matthias Höfs’s former students Kenichi Tsujimoto (solo trumpeter, Tokyo Philharmonic), Tomonori Sato (solo trumpeter, Tokyo Symphony) and his organ accompanist, Christian Schmitt.
You can order this CD and find a more complete discography on Christian’s website!
Hans Pieter Herman & La Société De Fabrice
Dear All,
Desperate times call for creative measures. Here you will find Hans’s exciting and exclusive online project that we hope will interest you.
As he’ll say towards the end of this 16 minute promotional presentation – before he sings one of my favorite songs by Reynaldo Hahn, Si Mes Vers Avaient Des Ailes, composed in 1888 – you can receive more information about how to sign up and the membership fee by sending Hans an email at: hanspieterherman@mac.com
Clara & Marie Becker perform W. Lutoslawski: Variations on a theme by Paganini
Piano Duo Clara & Marie Becker performed for the German Forum in September 2019, at our last concert before the COVID-19 lockdown.
Being born into a musical family, Clara and Marie Becker showed interest in classical music and especially the piano very early. Since 2010, the twins have dedicated themselves to duet repertoire ranging from baroque to contemporary music for either one or two pianos. Their charismatic playing and thoroughly chosen concert programs have drawn attention to the young duo.
Learn and listen more on their website: claramariebecker.com
New Album from Katie Reimer, Artistic and Executive Director of The Mimesis Ensemble
Pianist Katie Reimer, who performed for the German Forum in November 2013, is pleased to announce the launch of Dancing Circles In the Night. The album features music by Edith Alomar, Alexandra du Bois, Moses Hogan (arr.), Jorge Lockward, Jessie Montgomery, Judith Kurka Nagel, Astor Piazzolla, Huang Ruo, Dave Schnackenberg, Dina Shilleh, and Heitor Villa-Lobos. The recordings are available via Apple Music, Spotify, iTunes, and Amazon, as well as in physical copy: Support Katie Reimer and The Mimesis Ensemble by purchasing the CD here.
This collection of vocal and chamber music features Michele Kennedy, Jasmine Muhammad, Lubana Al Quntar, Eliza Bonet, Hai-Ting Chinn, Linda Collazo, Jorell Williams, Sammy Lesnick, Matthew Willis, So Young Kim, Yuri Namkung, Karla Donehew Perez, Rachyl Martinez, Yves Dharamraj, Oded Hadar, Dara Hankins, Maureen Kelly, Sofia Nowik, Karlos Rodriguez, Valeriya Sholokhova, Sara Bennett Wolfe, and Katie Reimer.
More information, as well as the liner notes for the album, can be found here.
Beethoven Op. 128, from our friend Äneas Humm
www.aeneashumm.com
Äneas Humm recently wrote an essay for Juilliard about life after graduation, which you can read here.
I’ve tried to find the beauty in practicing at home, and that has given me the luxury of growth and an almost meditative way of finding solutions and inspiration for vocal and artistic questions.
Äneas Humm | Life After Juilliard
