From February 28 till March 20 the string students of the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian Academies of Music are invited to apply for the competition to participate in the Baltic Roots project that will take place from 18 to 24 May in Berlin.
Peter Riegelbauer, long-standing double-bass player of the Berliner Philharmoniker and Head of the Karajan Academy, explains:
“The Karajan Academy is extremely pleased about the new partnership with the Baltic music academies and the related concert project with Baiba Skride at the Philharmonie Berlin. The exchange and cooperation with the young musicians of the Baltic academies is a great opportunity for us and our scholarship holders to get to know the fantastic talents and the excellent educational institutions from the Baltic States. To broaden our horizon, It is also a great pleasure for us to bring to Berlin the exciting scene of contemporary music of the Baltic countries, which is perhaps still largely too unknown in Germany. And who knows – perhaps after this cooperation project the ranks of the Karajan Academy will expand to include a few musicians from the Baltic States?”
Students of the Baltic Music academies have been collaborating for many years. During recent celebration of our centenaries the Baltic Student Symphony Orchestra performed succesfully in 2017, 2018 and 2019 in the capitals and regional concert halls of the Baltic states, as well as in Gdansk, Berlin, Helsinki and St.Petersburg.
Since the motto of the Academy founded by Herbert von Karajan is “Learn from the pros” – young, well-trained graduates receive the best possible preparation for the profession of orchestral musician. Working together with long-standing members and principals of the Berliner Philharmoniker, students learn the particular style and sound ideal of the orchestra. Young instrumentalists get a sense of what it means to be a “complete musician”, who not only work intensively on their own development, but also learn to widen their experience and meet the world with a thirst for knowledge and open eyes. The facts speak for themselves – around one-third of the members of the Berliner Philharmoniker are former students of the Academy.
In frames of this project, the Baltic students will get acquainted with the daily study process of the Karajan Academy scholars during individual lessons with the principals of Karajan Academy and orchestra rehearsals side by side with the Karajan Academy students. The joint orchestra will be conducted by Stanley Dodds, violinist of Berliner Philharmoniker who studied conducting under Jorma Panula and appears regularly in front of the Karajan Academy and ensembles of the Berliner Philharmoniker members.
At the closing concert of the project on May 23, 2021, in the Chamber Music Hall of Philharmonie Berlin, young musicians of the Baltic Music Academies and Karajan Academy will perform Pēteris Vasks` Concerto “Distant Light” together with Baiba Skride, “Sad Serenades” by Maija Einfelde for string quartet and clarinet, “Elongation of Nights” by Juste Janulyte, “Passion. Illusion” by Erkki-Sven Tüür and “Serenade” for strings by Piotr Tchaikovsky.
“Baltic Roots” project is implemented by Karajan Akademie der Berliner Philharmoniker in collaboration with Jāzeps Vītols Latvian Academy of Music, Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre , Lithuanian Academy of Music and Theatre, as well as Andreas Richter Cultural Consulting. Project is supported by the Baltic Culture Fund.
The application is open to all string students of EAMT. One must record a video recording with:
1) one piece of your own choosing (piece, movement from a concerto or sonata) with or with no accompaniment;
2) one excerpt of your own choosing from the EUYO audition material;
3) an excerpt from P. Tchaikovsky’s “Serenade”.
The recorded material must be uploaded latest by 20 March.
Additional info and questions: