May 24, 2013 | Sabine Wiedemann News Mandelring Quartett: 17th HAMBACHERMusikFEST
From May 29th to June 2nd renowned artists follow the Mandelring's invitation to the Palatine and present a top-class festival program. Besides the Mandelring Quartett this year also audite artists Laura Ruiz Ferreres (Brahms: The Complete Chamber Music for Clarinet, Gala Concert ICAM Milano for audite: Label of the Year 2013) and Anne-Cathérine Heinzmann (Works for Flute) will be participating in the HAMBACHERMusikFEST.
The HAMBACHERMusikFEST was founded in 1997 under the artistic direction of the Mandelring Quartet, and takes place each year during the week of Corpus Christi. The success of this international chamber music festival is determined by an unique combination of highest musical standards and delightful concert venues such as Hambach's famous Schloss, idyllic wine estates, and the town's beautiful baroque church.
In 2013 the host ensemble presents a colorful mixture of compositions from the 18th to the 20th century. Special focus will lie on the Romantic Period, with works like Richard Strauss' Introduction from „Capriccio", Op. 85 for String Sextet, the Sonata for Violoncello and Piano from Claude Debussy as well as Pyotr I. Tchaikovskys String Quartet C minor ,Op. 70 "Souvenir de Florence". Alomgside the Mandelring Quartett two more audite artists will take part in Hambach. The clarinetist Laura Ruiz Ferreres (Brahms: The Complete Chamber Music for Clarinet & performance as audite representative for the award Label of the Year 2013 in the gala concert of the International Classical Music Award) as well as the flutist Anne-Cathérine Heinzmann (Works for Flute).
The Mandelring Quartett points out that next to the traditional Surprisekonzert on Saturday after Corpus Christi another specialty takes place on the very same weekend: The city of Neustadt celebrates its 1st Neustadter Kulturfest.
The Mandelring's expressivity and remarkable homogeneity of sound and phrasing have become its distinguishing characteristics. The four individual members are as one in their shared determination always to seek out the innermost core of the music and remain open to the musical truth. By grasping the spiritual dimension, exploring the emotional extremes and working on the details, these musicians probe far beneath the surface of each work, thus revealing the multiple layers of meaning inherent in each. Their approach to the music is always both emotional and personal.
Their success in winning some great competitions - in Munich (ARD), Evian and Reggio Emilia (Premio Paolo Borciani) - was what initiated their international career. In addition to numerous performances in Germany, the Mandelring Quartet's concert tours have taken them throughout Europe - Amsterdam, Brussels, London, Madrid, Paris and Vienna; annually to North America - New York, Washington D.C., Chicago, Los Angeles and Vancouver; to Japan -- Osaka and Tokyo; to Central and South America - Buenos Aires, Lima and Montevideo; the Middle East and Asia. The Mandelring Quartet has enjoyed highly successful appearances at international Festivals including Lockenhaus, Montpelier, Montreal, Ottawa, the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, the Enescu Festival in Bucharest and the Salzburg Festival.
Numerous CD recordings, repeatedly awarded the German Music Critics' Prize and nominated for the International Classical Music Award, confirm the Mandelring Quartet's exceptional quality and wide-ranging repertoire. Their recording of the complete string quartets of Shostakovich has been hailed by the press as one of the outstanding complete recordings of our time. The discs of works by Schubert and Schumann have been selected as new benchmark performances, and their recent CD of the string quartets of Leos Janáček has received a range of awards. Currently, the quartet is recording the complete chamber music for strings by Mendelssohn. Two of the four CDs have already been published.
Information on the Festival can be found here or by calling +49/(0) 6321/92043.