AKADEMIE  FÜR ALTE MUSIK BERLIN

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“The ensemble is superb—it’s as much fun to watch these performers listen to one another as it is to hear them play.”
— The Boston Globe

AKAMUS RETURNS !!
DECEMBER 2-8, 2024 ONLY

The Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin can be counted on to bring together beloved works and wonderful discoveries, concertos as well as ensemble works, in a way that entrances audiences and critics alike.

Program options: ‘Pure Baroque’ or ‘Discover Telemann’

Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin

Xenia Löffler, Oboe
Georg Kallweit, Solo Violin & Concertmaster

‘Pure Baroque’

Johann Bernhard Bach: Orchestral Suite No. 1 in G minor for Solo Violin, Strings, and Basso continuo
Johann Sebastian Bach: Concerto for Oboe, Strings, and Basso continuo in G minor | BWV 1056R
Interval
Antonio Vivaldi: Violin Concerto in D minor from “La Stravaganza” | Op.4,8 RV 249
Georg Philipp Telemann: Overture-Suite “Burlesque de Quixotte” for Strings and Basso continuo | TWV 55:G10
Johann Sebastian Bach: Concerto for Oboe and Violin, Strings, and Basso continuo in C minor | BWV 1060R

About this program:
The Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin plays hauntingly beautiful concertos of the Baroque era. Oboist Xenia Löffler and concertmaster Georg Kallweit, two outstanding soloists of the orchestra, guarantee a fresh take on masterworks by Bach, Vivaldi and others.

Bach's Solo Concerto for Oboe and the famous Double Concerto for Violin and Oboe continue to fascinate today for their sheer beauty and the amount of inventiveness in every aspect of his music. The whole Bach dynasty was unusually rich in musical talent and there is no question why Johann Sebastian highly appreciated the music of his cousin Johann Bernhard: His elegant Orchestral Suite in G minor still captivates listeners with its appealing French taste. And there are further musical gems to discover: Vivaldi‘s Violin Concerto in D minor is a truly adventurous work full of exuberant ideas, whereas Telemann’s Overture “Burlesque des Quixotte” evokes the story of the melancholic knight and his down-to-earth companion Sancho Panza with witty, theatrical music.

‘Discover Telemann’

 Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767):

Ouverture-Suite for Strings and Basso continuo in A major, TWV 55:A1 

 Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Basso continuo in D major, TWV 51:D5

“Concerto Polon” in G major for Strings and Basso continuo, TWV 43:G7       

Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Basso continuo in D minor, TWV 51:d2 

 - Interval -

 Ouverture-Suite for Strings and Basso continuo in F-sharp minor, TWV 55:fis1  

 Concerto for Strings and Basso continuo in G major, TWV 43:G5  

 Concerto for Oboe, Strings and Basso continuo in C minor, TWV 51:c1  

About this program: Let yourself be surprised by the beauty of Telemann’s music united in this program! It offers a fascinating tribute to Georg Philipp Telemann, one of Europe’s greatest composers. The ”jack-of-all-trades” of the Baroque was more famous during his life than Johann Sebastian Bach.  

Xenia Löffler, the ensemble's internationally sought-after solo oboist, presents a selection of Telemann’s finest concertos for ‘her’ instrument - highly inventive and imaginative works that Telemann wrote during his time as municipal music director in Frankfurt.  But there’s more to discover: Telemann’s Ouvertures-Suites are typical for the playful elegance with which the composer fused Italian and French stylistic elements. Telemann was also interested in the music of Eastern Europe. His most charming  “Concerto Polon” was inspired by the music that Telemann heard in the taverns during his travels through Poland. The rich variety of Telemann’s style turns the program into a fascinating portrait of one of the ensemble’s most admired composers.

Please consult for combinations of the two programs/Programs subject to change

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In May of 2005, the Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin (AKAMUS) made their US debut tour to critical acclaim and to sold‐out houses at many major venues. They returned to the US in 2008, 2011, 2014, 2017, and 2020, all in conjunction with new Pentatone or Harmonia Mundi CD releases.  Past tours included repeat visits to Carnegie Hall, Berkeley, Boston, Ann Arbor, Toronto, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington DC and introduced the group to audiences stretching from Vancouver to New Orleans. Following a tour of Canada in Fall 2019, February 2020 brought the ensemble to Purdue Convocations, Duke University, Eastern Carolina University, Kansas City Friends of Chamber Music and UC Berkeley's Cal Performances.

The Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin began as a courageous display of musical sovereignty against the East German socialist regime, and now, 40+ years later, they enjoy recognition as one of Europe’s greatest musical success stories. The ensemble has received numerous awards for its recordings, now nearing 100 releases, including the Cannes Festival Award, the French Diapason d’or, the Dutch Edison Award, the British Gramophone Award, The Telemann Prize, as well as a Grammy Award nomination. In May 2014, AKAMUS became the first-ever ensemble to be awarded the prestigious Bach Medal by the city of Leipzig. The ensemble records for Harmonia Mundi and Pentatone, and, in addition to their annual sold‐out series at the Berlin Konzerthaus, they can frequently be heard at the Palais de Beaux Arts in Brussels, the Theatre des Champs‐Elysees in Paris, the Zürich Tonhalle, the Vienna Musikverein, the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden and other major European venues. As artist in residence, AKAMUS will also perform regularly in London's Wigmore Hall and at the German Mozart Festival in Augsburg in 2022. To celebrate the ensemble's 40th Anniversary in 2022, a special 10-CD boxset featured its best recordings dedicated to the Bach family.

Read the rave review from their 2020 Cal Performances appearance HERE.

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