NEWS

Beethoven in chamber music: the Septet as a chamber music original and the transcription of the Eroica Symphony for piano quartet and double bass showcases not only the palpable and explosive power of Beethoven's music, but also the flexibility and spontaneity of CHAARTS Chamber Artists. 

Great memories after two wonderful concerts with all Beethoven op 59 and op. 130 with the great Fuga in less than 24 hours.  

Yesterday evening, the International Bruckner Festival Linz 2022 opened with a concert in honour of Anton Bruckner's 198th birthday. In the parish church of his birthplace Ansfelden, Dominik Fischer and the casalQuartett treated the audience to dreamlike string quintets by the birthday boy himself and Heinrich Kaminski, who was ennobled as Bruckner's legitimate successor and genius. The musicians were deservedly rewarded with standing ovations and great applause. 

Schöne Sendung über die Ersteinspielung der Eberl Streichquartette mit dem casalQuartett. Viel Spass beim Hören! 

La Méditation de Thaïs splendidement interprétée par Felix Froschhammer, violon solo de l’orchestre, confirme le haut potentiel des performances solistiques de la phalange neuchâteloise. 

The 26th edition of the Festival du Jura ended with a highlight on Saturday and Sunday with two sold-out concerts in Tramelan and Courgenay.
From 3 September to 10 October, music resonated through the halls of the canton of Jura and the Bernese Jura, during eleven concerts under the theme of "Legends". More than 2,000 spectators attended, despite the restrictions due to the health situation and the first concerts with limited capacity. Among the highlights of the 26th edition, "Legends", the poetic and bewitching work created by Nathan Stornetta, the king of klezmer music Giora Feidman who made the audience dance and sing in Le Noirmont, the three young winners of the Jura Festival Competition, The three young winners of the Jura Festival competition, true artists in the making, the great Gérad Wyss back in his native Ajoie with his musician friends, a vibrant tribute to Astor Piazzolla and the tango, and a warm and unforgettable evening in a packed Synagogue in Delémont.
This edition once again gave rise to fruitful collaborations. The Festival du Jura joined forces with the Théâtre du Jura and Contes et compagnie for Steve Muriset's original creation "La Malédiction du Canard". A show seen by 800 children during 8 school performances in the brand new venue in Delémont. With Espace Choral, the Festival du Jura was also pleased to participate in the inauguration ceremony of the Théâtre du Jura, performing extracts from Martin Palmieri's mysterious MisaTango.
This edition was a success: see you in two years, for the 27th! 

The Festival programme is online! A rich and varied programme is waiting for you in September and October in the beautiful Jura in Switzerland :-) 

Lots of nice reviews and ICMA nomination for our last 5 CD Box Beethoven’s World with casalQuartett :-) 

„Das Zusammenspiel Fazil Says mit dem casal Quartett offenbart eine große Vertrautheit der Künstler untereinander. Das Resultat ist eine stimmungsvolle, ansprechende Interpretation von Werken jenseits des Mainstreams.“ 

The Swiss musicians of the casalQuartett, who refer to themselves as cQ, give each of their interpretations a natural, lively, so to speak, elegant character. The play without without effects and yet never allow a moment of boredom. With masterful craftsmanship they succeed in creating a mature and balanced sound that makes the music blossom. The cQ has indeed developed a distinctly subtle playing style. Schubert’s emblematic quartet in particular lives from the beautifully articulated line, not from sharply torn chords or other dramatically exaggerated passages, as is often heard. This does not mean that accents and edges disappear in the works, but the cQ plays very carefully and without pressure even in these moments. 

Die Interpretationen sind balanciert und differenziert, mit schönen Phrasierungen und präzisem Zusammenspiel, überragend dokumentiert vom sehr natürlichen Klangbild. Eine Box, die bleiben wird – wie die Musik Beethovens.  

Great time at the Paléo festival Nyon with Jane Birkin and ESN!  

The performance of Brahms Violin Concerto with Sinfonietta de Lausanne and David Reiland is now on youtube. 

 

We are happy to present you the 25th edition of the Festival du Jura from 12September to 6October.
More informations at www.festiju.ch 

Active as interpreters in the European musical world, Scandinavian composers in the 19th century were interested in shaping their own style and incorporating it into European music. They were greatly influenced by folk music of different regions in Sweden, Norway and Finland. The Swedish violinist and violin pedagogue, Tor Aulin (1866-1914), was committed to the great romantic music tradition. In 1899, Aulin composed his Four Watercolors for violin (or cello) and piano. Also on the disc is the Sonata for violin and piano No. 1 in F Major by Edvard Grieg and following are four miniatures by the composer Jean Sibelius. On the voyage of discovery of traditional sounds of Nordic music, one arrives almost inevitably to Nordic folk music, which inspired the classical composers. Folk melodies are usually interpreted by a group of string instruments, or accompanied by guitar, flute and accordion, and are available today in collections according to the traditional mostly oral transmission. Fritz Froschhammer arranged these versions for violin and piano on this album in cooperation with the Duo Froschhammer in 2017. The Duo Froschhammer features siblings Felix Froschhammer (First Violinist of the casalQuartett and Concertmaster of both the Ensemble Symphonique Neuchâtel and Sinfonietta de Lausanne, Switzerland), violin, and Julia Froschhammer, piano. Founded in 1998, the Duo has since performed in Switzerland, Germany, Italy, France, Malta and at the famous Atheneum in Bucharest. Together they are prize winners of the International Wolfgang Jacobi Competition for 20th century chamber music and have been recipients of scholarships from the Bavarian Music Fund. 

Swiss composer Paul Müller-Zürich’s chamber music is a real discovery. He kept the tonality in his works, but had his own voice paired with a great craftsmanship. His String Trio, String Quartet and String Quintet, the latter with two violas, experience an outstanding performance by the casalQuartett and Razvan Popovici as second viola player. 

Fantastic week with David Reiland and Sinfonietta de Lausanne! Listen to the encore: Ole Bull - Solitude sur la Montagne 

Das casalQuartett klingt verführerisch edel und durchsichtig schön und sorgt für die elegante Note an diesem Abend. Brillant sind die Vier in Haydns G-Dur-Quartett. Und brillieren, dann wieder mit Say, in Schumanns Es-Dur-Klavierquintett. Hier glänzt Fazil Say als feinnerviger Kammermusiker. Jubel, Bravorufe.
WESTDEUTSCHE ZEITUNG 

Masterclass in Kalamata - ready to inscripe from 16-26 July. Hope to see you in Kalamata this summer :-) 

Nice critic from Brahms Concerto in Erlangen with "Junge Philharmonie Erlangen" und Gordian Teupke. 

The last album of caalQuartett „RUSSIAN TREASURES“ is nominated for the ICMA (International Classical Music Award)!! 

Thanks to David Guyot, video and Richard Kuster, recording I'm very happy to share the concert from 19th March in Lausanne with you. Also big thanks to Alexander Mayer and Sinfonietta de Lausanne for their great support. Hope you enjoy the video! 

The CD of Sebastian Manz and casalQuartett with Carl M. Webers Quintett op. 34 is awarded the PREIS DER DEUTSCHEN SCHALLPLATTENKRITIK !!! Special thanks and congratulations to Sebastian! 

Looking forward to play the first perfomance of the piano quintet of Fazil Say with casalQuartett and Weber Quintet with Damien Bachmann in Delemont on 6th September. 

Join me for an amazing week in Kalamata at the 3rd International Music Days.  

Videos are coming soon! :-) 

casalQuartett in der Münchner Hofkirche. Rezension von Harald Eggebrecht. 

I'm happy to announce that I will become the new Artistic Director of the Jura Festival from 2018.