In the sold-out Riphahn Hall, the Cologne Classical Ensemble celebrated its 20th anniversary. A special programme with the seasons by John Cage, Antonio Vivaldi and Astor Piazzolla, the outstanding ensemble and the outstanding violin virtuosos Alexander Prushinskiy and Arsenis Selalmazidis delighted the audience.
In 2003, eight students at the Cologne University of Music founded the Cologne Classical Ensemble. Today - 20 years later - this ensemble has developed into one of the leading collectives for classical chamber music in NRW.
The young Cologne Classical Ensemble's own arrangements of Astor Piazzolla's "Las Estaciones Porteñas" were a great success and the CD released by Sony received worldwide attention. As then, we combine these seasons from Argentina with the famous "Four Seasons" by Antonio Vivaldi.
But 20 years later, the world has changed so much that we asked ourselves: can we still play a cycle of the seasons today as if there were no climate change that would alter these very seasons so noticeably for all of us?
John Cage also dedicated himself to the seasons in his "String Quartet in Four Parts". The first movement stands for summer and thus formed the starting point for our programme: in this way, the seasons mixed in a completely new way and the different "summers" became the starting and end points of the cycles. A symbol for seasons that are becoming more and more blurred due to man-made climate change.
The eight musicians of the Cologne Classical Ensemble performed with tremendous musicality and perfection, driven again and again by the magnificent performances of the two soloists Alexander Prushinskiy and Arsenis Selalmazidis. The enthusiastic audience in the sold-out Riphahn Hall thanked them with unceasing applause, which was rewarded with two encores.
Soloists:
Alexander Prushinskiy, violin (Four Seasons of Piazzolla)
Arsenis Selalmazidis, violin (Four Seasons Vivaldi)
Svetlana Shtraub, violin
Erin Kirby, viola
Lena Kravets, violoncello
Marian Kushniryk, double bass
Marta Dotkus, harpsichord
Tobias Kassung, guitar & arrangements
The Cologne Classical Ensemble live with "Verano Porteño" by Astor Piazzolla at Chamber concerts at Kunstverein:
Programme:
Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)
Le quadro stagioni - The Four Seasons, op. 8 nos. 1-4
Soloist: Arsenis Selalmazidis
John Cage (1912-1992)
Quietly Flowing Along (Summer)
from: String quartet in Four Parts (1950)
Astor Piazzolla (1921-1992)
(Arr.: Tobias Kassung)
Las Cuatro Estaciones Porteñas - The Four Seasons in Buenos Aires
Soloist: Alexander Prushinskiy
Sequence:
1. John Cage: Quietly Flowing Along (Summer).
2. Antonio Vivaldi: L'autunno - Autumn, op. 8 No. 3, RV 293
3. Astor Piazzolla: Invierno Porteño (Winter)
4. Antonio Vivaldi: La primavera - Spring, op. 8 No. 1, RV 269
5. Astor Piazzolla: Verano Porteño (Summer)
- interval -
1. Antonio Vivaldi: L'estate - Der Sommer, op. 8 Nr. 2, RV 315
2. Astor Piazzolla: Otoño Porteño (Autumn)
3. Antonio Vivaldi: Winter - Winter, op. 8 Nr. 4, RV 297
4. Astor Piazzolla: Primavera Porteña (Spring)
Photographer Jörg Saibou (www.studiosaibou.de) has provided us with a beautiful photo review of the concert:
