European Chamber
Music Academy
Oslo Session 2015
Norwegian Academy of Music
9 – 13 April
The Spirit of Creativity
Opening Concert
Thursday 9 April 07:30 pm
Lindemansalen
Dear friends,
Welcome to five intensive days of sharing, learning and music making at the highest levels of artistic excellence. This
year’s session features masterclasses, lectures and concerts
with some of the best and most passionate advocates of
chamber music in the education of young professionals. The
programme reflects this commitment by exploring the many
roles of Creativity in the development of classical music.
We’re proud to welcome so many distinguished members of
the ECMA community to Oslo, and wish you all a productive
and thorougly enjoyable stay with us.
Peter Tornquist - Principal
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809):
String Quartet in C major, Op. 33 No. 3, Hob. III, No. 39
Allegro moderato
Allegretto, (scherzo)
Adagio ma non troppo
Rondo, (presto, finale)
Mettis Quartet
Bèla Bartok (1881-1945):
String Quartet in a-minor, No. 2, Op. 17
Moderato
Allegro molto capriccioso
Lento
Hanson Quartet
-- Break -Classical music appears as a synthesis of free, autonomous
expression and strictly structured forms. The improvisational
element has since the early 1900s been toned down in art
music, but a new interest in improvisation is currently emerging throughout the music world. During this year’s ECMA
gathering, with Beethoven’s works as the point of departure,
we will explore the liberating aspects of improvisational performance. Among several prominent Norwegian musicians
joining us this year, are the players of the Vertavo String Quartet, who established this high standing ensemble while studying with Hatto Beyerle nearly 30 year ago.
Are Sandbakken - Artistic director Oslo session
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827):
Trio in E flat major, Op. 38
Adagio; Allegro con brio
Adagio cantabile
Tempo di menuetto
Thema: Andante con variaizioni
Scherzo: Allegro molto e vivace
Andante con moto alla Marcia; Presto
Trio ClariNord
Concert
Final Concert
Saturday 11 April 6:00 pm
Levinsalen
Monday 13 April 6:00 pm
Levinsalen
Joseph Haydn (1732-1809):
String Quartet in B flat major, Op. 76 No. 4, ”Sunrise”
Franz Schubert (1797-1828):
String Quartet in C major, D 46 No. 4
Polychord Quartet
Quartetto Testosterone
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827):
String Quartet in B flat major, Op. 18 No. 6
Johannes Brahms (1833-1897):
Piano Trio in B major No. 1, Op. 8
Allegro con spirito
Adagio
Menuetto: Allegro
Finale: Allegro ma non troppo
2. movement; Adagio ma non troppo
Improvisation
Ergo Quartet
-- Break --
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791):
Divertimento in E flat major, KV 563
Allegro
Adagio
Menuetto
Andante
Menuetto
Allegro
Boccherini Trio
Adagio – Allegro con moto
Andante con moto
Menuetto. Allegro
Allegro
Allegro con brio
Scherzo. Allegro molto
Adagio
Allegro
Munich ARTISTrio
Lectures
Masterclasses
Friday 10 April 3:00pm
Levinsalen
Experience the Masters at Work
Concert lecture: Beethoven and the Art of Improvisation
Masterclasses with the ECMA ensembles are held every day
(Thursday - Monday) from about 9:30am till the afternoon.
Tor Espen Aspaas (piano)
Avo Kouyoumdjian, Hatto Beyerle, Johannes Meissl, Elise
Båtnes, Per Lundberg and Are Sandbakken will be giving
masterclasses.
Saturday 11 April 3:00pm
Levinsalen and Lindemansalen
Detailes and schedule are available at the Academy.
Improvisation workshop
Open to the public.
Wolfgang Plagge (piano) and Henning Kraggerud (violin)
Sunday 12 April 3:00pm
Levinsalen
Lecture: Chamber Musical Theater Sports
Berit Cardas of the Vertavo String Quartet
Monday 13 April 3:00pm
Levinsalen
Concert Presentation: Approaches to Beethoven’s String
Quartet No. 14 in C# minor, Op. 131
by composer Nils Henrik Asheim
Vertavo String Quartet: Øyvor Volle and Annabelle Meare
(violin), Berit Cardas (viola), Bjørg Lewis (cello)
Instructors & Lecturers
Hatto Beyerle
Viola
Hatto Beyerle is the founder and
current artistic director of the European Chamber Music Academy
ECMA. He is also artistic director
of the Europäisches Kulturforum
Grossraming in Austria.
Among his present and former students are many prize winners of international competitions, including
the Hagen Quartet, Artis Quartet,
Wihan Quartet, Szymanowski Quartet, Iturriaga Quartet and Meta4
Quartet, the Quatuor Ysaye, Quatuor Debussy, Quatuor Manfred, the
Quartetto di Cremona, the Trio Jean
Paul and the Trio Ernest Chausson.
As violist and chamber musician,
Beyerle tours worldwide with the
Vienna Soloists, the Alban Berg
Quartet and the Vienna Chamber
Ensemble. In addition to his perfor- Hatto Beyerle lives in Benthe, Germany.
ming activities he holds teaching
posts in Vienna (MDW), Cincinnati
(CCM), Hanover (HMTMH), Basel
(MAB) and Fiesole (Florence) and
is much in demand for master classes in both viola and chamber music
in Europe, Australia, Canada, China
and the USA.
Johannes Meissl
Avedis Kouyoumdjian
Violin
Piano
Johannes Meissl is professor for string
chamber music and vice director of
the Joseph Haydn Institut for Chamber
Music at Vienna’s University of Music
and Performing Arts. Artistic director
of isa (International Summer Academy
Prague-Vienna-Budapest), he also gives
masterclasses at numerous renowned
schools and summer academies such as
CNSM Paris, Guildhall School of Music
and Drama London, Tokyo Geidai and
Casals Festival Prades, to name a few.
Born in Austria, J. Meissl studied at A.
Bruckner-Conservatory Linz ( violin
and composition ) and at the Academy
of Music in Vienna with W. Schneiderhan and G. Hetzel and got strong artistic
impulses by Hatto Beyerle. He graduated with distinction and special award.
In 1982 he joined the Artis Quartet. As
a member of this ensemble he took the
opportunity for further studies with the
LaSalle Quartet in the USA. After several
prizes at international competitions the
quartet became a regular at the world’s
most important music centres and festivals from New York to Tokyo. Numerous prizes for more than 30 recordings
(such as Grand Prix du Disque, Diapason d’Or, Deutscher Schallplattenpreis
Echo etc.), and the “Artis series” at the
Gesellschaft d. Musikfreunde in Vienna,
now running its 19th season, also prove
the international position of the quartet.
Beside the quartet work J. Meissl appears in recitals and as a soloist and at
numerous chamber music festivals.
J. Meissl is co-initiator of numerous
international projects in the field of
chamber music and shares with Hatto
Beyerle the function of artistic director
of ECMA.
Having done regular coaching with several orchestras and youth orchestras for
many years he has recently sucessfully
taken up conducting.
of Piano and Chamber Music at the
University of Music and Performing
Arts in Vienna. He is founder of the
International Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Competition at the same
university and, in 2002, became the
co-founder and director of the Joseph
Haydn Chamber Music Institute at
Since winning first prize at the Sixth the university. Since the summer of
International Beethoven Competition 2004, he has been Artistic Director
in Vienna in 1981, Kouyoumdjian has of the International Piano Festival at
St.-Ursanne in Switzerland.
enjoyed a successful and diverse career as performer, professor, director
and administrator. He has performed
in renowned concert halls in Europe,
the United States, Canada and Japan,
is a sought after jury member for
major international competitions
and gives master classes at numerous universities in Europe and Japan.
His recordings are testament to his
artistry as a pianist and a chamber
musician.
Born in Beirut into a family of Armenian descent, Avedis Kouyoumdjian
began his studies when he was 12
years old at the University of Music
and Performing Arts in Vienna. He
was the youngest student at the time
majoring in piano performance.
In 1997 he was appointed Professor
Elise Båtnes
Per Lundberg
Violin
Piano
Elise Båtnes began playing the violin
at the age of four, and made her debut four years later as a soloist together with the Trondheim Symphony Orchestra. She performed with the
Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra for the
first time at the age of 10 in 1981, as
a soloist in a children’s concert with
Mariss Jansons conducting. In 1982
she performed once again as a soloist with Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra
during the performance of Vivaldi’s
double concerto. She has since performed as a soloist with all of the
Norwegian symphony orchestras, as
well as in numerous other countries.
Today she has the position of First
Concert Master in the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and her concert activity also includes solo performances under recognised conductors and
orchestras abroad. She has previously held the position of Concert Master in Denmark’s Radio Symphony
Orchestra for a total of nine years, as
well as the Westdeutsche Rundfunk
Sinfornieorchester, in Cologne.
In addition to symphony music,
Bårnes has considerable experience
playing chamber music, and has performed at many festivals and chamber music festivals; among them the
Bergen International Festival, the
Oslo, Risør and Trondheim Chamber
Music Festivals and the ICMF in Stavanger. In these settings she often
performs with famous Norwegian
pianists such as Leif Ove Andsnes,
Håvard Gimse and Sveinung Bjelland.
Together with Håvard Gimse on the
harpsichord, she recorded a CD in
2008 with music by Bela Bartok
(Simax Classics).
Elise Båtnes performs on a A. Stradivari from 1689 (also called “Arditti”)
on loan from The Savings Bank Foundation DNB / Dextra Musica.
Per Lundberg is a member of the
Swedish piano trio, Trio Poseidon,
together with Sara Trobäck, first
He studied at the Swedish Broadcast- concertmaster of the Göteborg Symphony Orchestra and Claes Gunnarsing Music School at Edsbergs castle
son, solo cellist of the Göteborg Symin Sollentuna (1979-82) and at the
phony Orchestra.
Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Vienna (1982-85)
where he gained his soloist’s diploma Per Lundberg is represented on the
Labels BIS, Chandos and SoloMusica.
1985.
He is one of the organizers of the successful Lyckå Chamber Music Festival
Per Lundberg is internationally active as both soloist and chamber mu- that had its 30th anniversary celebrations in 2013.
sician. He has performed with some
of the major Swedish symphony
orchestras such as Göteborg, Helsing- Per Lundberg holds the position
borg, Norrköping symphony orches- of professor of chamber music and
accompaniment tat the Norwegian
tra and Chamber orchestra Musica
academy of Music in Oslo and the
Vitae Växjö.
Royal Academy of Music in Stockholm, Edsberg.
He was the first Swede to perform
the Lutoslawski piano concerto together with Göteborg’s symphony
orchestra. The concert was recorded
live by the Swedish Radio.
Per Lundberg was born in Stockholm
in 1962 but grew up in Norrköping.
Are Sandbakken
Tor Espen Aspaas
Viola
Piano
Are Sandbakken studied with Leif
Jørgensen in Oslo and Sándor Vegh in
Salzburg. For several years he played
principal viola with Camerata Academica Salzburg and The Norwegian
Chamber Orchestra. From 1995 to
2002 he was principal viola of the
Oslo Philharmonic under Mariss Jansons. He performed as soloist with
this orchestra on numerous occasions,
as well as with other Nordic orchestras. Since 2003 he has been professor
of chamber music at the Norwegian
Academy of Music.
In 1991 Sandbakken was among the
founding members of the Oslo String
Quartet, which today is regarded
as one of the most outstanding and
innovative string quartets in northern
Europe. The quartet performs regularly at leading European festivals
and their recordings of Scandinavian
repertoire (Grieg, Sibelius, Stenhammar and contemporary works) for the
labels Naxos and CPO have received
outstanding reviews in the international press. The quartet’s recordings of
the Nielsen string quartets were Editors Choice in Gramophone magazine
in 1999.
Oslo String Quartet is especially dedicated to alternative concert forms.
Their children’s concerts, where Are
Sandbakken has also performed as a
singer and actor, have become very
popular. In 2006 the quartet celebrated its 15th anniversary with performances of the complete Beethoven
string quartets in a series entitled The
Beethoven Code. Are Sandbakken
plays a viola by Mattio Goffriller of
1729, on loan from Dextra Musica.
Tor Espen Aspaas is one of the most
distinguished pianists and music
communicators of his generation in
Norway. In 2006 he was appointed
professor at the Norwegian Academy
of Music. In addition to his teaching
duties, he is presently researching the
role of improvisation in the creative
processes and works of Beethoven.
Aspaas gained his postgraduate soloist’s diploma from the Academy in
1996 and gave a critically acclaimed
debut recital in Oslo the following year. He has received numerous
grants and awards, and he has appeared as soloist with international
orchestras, as well as with all major
Norwegian symphony orchestras. In
2011 Aspaas gave the first performance of O.A. Thommessen’s Third
Piano Concerto, commissioned by
Trondheim Symphony Orchestra.
In addition to recitals and worldwide
concert tours, Aspaas is regularly
invited to festivals and concert series
in Norway and abroad. In the autumn
of 2010, Aspaas received attention
for his performances of the complete
collection of Debussy’s 24 Preludes,
and in March 2013 he made his US
debut with a solo recital at Carnegie
Hall in New York City.
Tor Espen Aspaas has a comprehensive discography, including critically
acclaimed solo CDs of works by Beethoven, Schönberg, Berg and Webern,
as well as the complete piano works
by Paul Dukas.
Aspaas was one of the founders of the
Røros Winter Chamber Music Festival
and served as its first artistic director
from 1999-2008 in addition to programming the festival of 2014.
Berit Cardas
The Vertavo
Quartet
Viola
Berit Cardas studied violin with Leif
Jørgensen, Oslo, Jens Ellermann in
Hannover and with Almita and Roland Vamos in Minneapolis. Other
great influences where the string
quartet teachers Norbert Brainin and
Hatto Beyerle.
As a founder member of the Vertavo
Quartet, chamber music has always
been Cardas’ musical passion and she
has performed in the major halls of
America, Europe and Australia. The
quartet celebrated 25 years together
in 2009.
The Vertavo has received several
prizes, among them the 1st prize,
Audience’s prize, Critic’s prize and
the Radio listener’s Award in the
Melbourne International Chamber
Music competition 1995, as well as
1st prize in the Nordic Chamber Music Competition 1997 and the Grieg
Prize of Norway 2005.
Cardas has been a leader of the
Norwegian Chamber orchestra, and
performed as a soloist with major
Scandinavian orchestras.
She is also a renowned pedagog in
and has great success with a chamber music teaching method that includes theatre sport, improvisations
and huge amounts of humour.
Among Berit Cardas ambitions is
letting as many children as possible
get the chance to experience music
making on a high level. This has led
to developing school programs for
exercising listening to classical music, as well as gotten her involved in a
unique “violins for everyone” project,
with sixty eight year olds playing the
violin.
Cardas plays a beautiful Lorenzo Storiono violin from around 1770, which
is lent to her by Dextra Musica.
The Vertavo Quartet is internationally
recognised as one of the most masterful
string quartets playing today. Since their
formation in Norway in 1984, their
dynamic and deeply thoughtful performances have captivated audiences.
Collaboration also plays an integral
role in the Vertavo Quartet’s concert
life; they have formed partnerships
with Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Leif Ove
Andsnes, Lambert Orkis, Steven Kovacevich, Håkan Hardenberger, Martin
Fröst, Sabine Meyer, Isabelle van Keulen and Paul Lewis.
In June 2005, the quartet was honoured
with the Grieg-Prize: a prize bestowed
on artists of high international standing. Vertavo have always had a great affinity for contemporary music. They
have given commanding performances
Vertavo now play at all the major conof works by Ligeti, Adès, Widmann,
cert venues in the world. They tour extensively throughout Europe and also in Gabriela Frank and works by contemporary Nordic composers such as
Japan and the US. Their last US tour included performances at Stanford Lively Nørgård, Edlund and Asheim. In March
Arts, Chamber Music in Napa Valley and 2013 to great critical acclaim, they gave
the world premiere of Poul Ruders’s
Lincoln Center. In the past year, tours
4th String Quartet at a major festival of
and concerts have also taken them to
Norway, Spain, Mexico, Sweden, Poland, Danish and Finnish composers at the
Barbican Hall in London.
the US and the UK. They gave concerts
at Concertgebouw, Amsterdam; Barbican, London; Kings Place, London and in Vertavo Quartet are Artistic Directors of
last year’s celebration of Benjamin Brit- the Elverum Summer Music Festival in
ten’ s centenary, Vertavo were invited to Norway.
play at the Aldeburgh Festival 2013.
Henning Kraggerud
Wolfgang Plagge
Violin
Piano/Composer
Norwegian violinist Henning Kraggerud is an artist of exquisite musicianship, who combines an unusually sweet
tone and beauty of expression with
impressive virtuosity. Kraggerud performs at a high level throughout Europe
and North America, and is increasingly
in demand in a play/direct capacity.
Highlights of the current season include Kraggerud’s debut with the
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra at New
York’s Carnegie Hall, concerts with the
Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony Orchestra and Detroit
Symphony Orchestra. In the UK, Kraggerud tours with the Scottish Chamber
Orchestra and returns to the London
Philharmonic Orchestra. Maintaining a
busy diary of European engagements,
Kraggerud continues to work extensively in his native Scandinavia where
he enjoys special relationships with
several of the major orchestras.
An experienced chamber musician,
Kraggerud’s most frequent collabora-
tors include Christian Ihle Hadland,
Truls Mørk and Lars Anders Tomter.
This season includes a tour of UK
and US festivals with Piotr Anderszewski, including recitals at London’s
Wigmore Hall and New York’s Zankel
Hall, and an appearance at the Verbier
Festival where Kraggerud performs
chamber music with Joshua Bell
among others.
Born in Oslo in 1973, Kraggerud studied with Camilla Wicks, Emanuel Hurwitz and Stephan Barratt-Due. He is a
recipient of Norway’s prestigious Grieg
Prize. In 2007 he was awarded the Sibelius Prize for his interpretations and
recording of Sibelius’ music throughout
the world. Henning is a Professor at
the Barratt-Due Music Conservatoire in
Oslo. From 2011 onwards he is co-sharing the artistic directorship of Norway’s
Risør Chamber Music Festival.
Henning Kraggerud plays on a 1744
Guarneri del Gesu, provided by Dextra
Musica.
Wolfgang Plagge showed an early interest in classical music, playing the
piano and composing from the age
of four. At the age of ten he won an
international talent competition on
British television. He completed his
studies at the Hochschule für Musik
in Hamburg.
of his works have grown out of his
researches into early medieval Norwegian music.
Ever since his student days, the
phenomenon of time has been an
important component of his music:
observations on and studies of the
course of time, manipulation of the
sense of time and the use of time as a
formal element are essential factors
in his creative process.
Wolfgang Plagge is active as a performer all over the world and is a
sought-after chamber musician. He
has performed as soloist with numerWolfgang Plagge’s music is perforous orchestras and collaborated with
med by musicians, ensembles and
many prominent musicians.
orchestras all over the world, and his
reputation as a composer is steadily
His first compositions were publisgrowing.
hed when he was 12. Since then he
has developed into a mature, original
and versatile creative artist with a
considerable body of work behind
him. His work includes liturgical music, symphonies, chamber music, music for solo piano, and several works
for woodwind and brass chamber
music ensembles.
He has long had a love of the ancient
music of Northern Europe, and many
Participating Ensembles
ECMA Session 2015
in alphabetical order
Boccherini Trio
Suyeon Kang – Violin
Florian Peelman – Viola
Paolo Bonomini – Cello
The Boccherini Trio was formed just
over a year ago, as a result of various
evening sight-reading sessions that
frequent the Berlin music scene. Since
their formation they have received
coaching from Guenter Pichler and Natascha Prischenpenko, and have performed in numerous venues in Europe.
Though a fledgling group, the trio has
already received magnificent reviews
of their performances.
As individuals, the musicians of the trio
are active in a variety of fields of music, and are passionate in their solistic,
chamber and orchestral endeavours.
Suyeon Kang is a prizewinner at numerous international violin competitions,
and has collaborated with Stephen
Isserlis, Christian Teztlaff, etc. She is currently a Konzertexamen student under
Antje Weithaas at the Hochschule fuer
Musik ‘Hanns Eisler’ in Berlin.
Florian Peelman is a graduate of the
Queen Elisabeth Music Chapel in Brus-
sels as well as the Hanns Eisler Musikhochschule in Berlin, having previously
also studied in Finland and England.
As a thoroughly sought out chamber
musician he has worked with Marie
Hallynk, Ronald Brautigham, etc. His
orchestral experience includes two
years as principal viola of the Brussels
Chamber Orchestra, and he substitutes
regularly with the Berlin Philharmonic
Orchestra.
Paolo Bonomini has appeared as soloist
with numerous orchestras. His various
chamber music performances has taken
him throughout Europe alongside artists such as Giovanni Sollima and Salvatore Accardo. Currently studying under
Jens Peter Maintz (Berlin), he was a
former student of Antonio Meneses in
Bern. He has received the Diploma of
merit several times at the Accademia
Chigiana summer course in Siena. In
2014 Paolo started a part time collaboration with the Symphonieorchester
des Bayerischen Rundfunks.
Hanson
Quartet
Mettis
Quartet
Anton Hanson – Violin
Jules Dussap – Violin
Gabrielle Lafait – Viola
Simon Dechambre – Cello
Kostas Tumosa – Violin
Bernardas Petrauskas – Violin
Karolis Rudokas – Viola
Rokas Vaitkevičius – Cello
The Hanson Quartet is founded in
2012 by four students of the Conservatoire National Supérieur de
Musique de Paris (CNSMDP). Formed
by Anton Hanson, Jules Dussap
(violins), Gabrielle Lafait (viola) and
Simon Dechambre, they are currently
studying in masters under prof. Jean
Sulem (Rosamunde Quartet) in Paris,
and have attended regularly masterclasses with members of the Ebene
quartet, Claire Desert, Christophe
Giovaninetti.
In 2014, they played with Jean Sulem
in quintet, and in festivals of the
IRCAM (Institute for Research and
Coordination Acoustic/Music) and La
Roque d’Anthéron where they performed in piano quartet and quintet.
The Hanson Quartet is now member of the European Chamber Music
Academy since 2014 and residents
of the Singer-Polignac Foundation in
2015.
Metis is ancient Greek mythological
figure, Oceanid from the Titans’ generation. The Greek word metis meant
quality that combined wisdom, cunning and skills.
“Mettis” string quartet was founded
in 2011, professors’ Augustinas Vasiliauskas class of Lithuanian Academy
of Music and Theatre (LAMT).
“Mettis” regularly participates in
masterclasses: ECMA sessions in
Vilnius and Grossraming, now Oslo,
also ISA’12 and ISA`14 summer academies (Reichenau, Austria). In ISA’12
quartet got awarded Vienna‘s university of Arts Joseph Haydn institute
prize. In 2012 December they have
won the 1st place and special prize
in XII international Lithuanian cham-
ber music performance competition
in Vilnius and also were selected to
represent the academy in Harmos‘13
festival (Porto, Portugal).
In 2013 May “Mettis” have participated in European Festival of Music
Academies (EFAM). In 2013 June
quartet was invited to take part in
49th Chamber music festival of Plovdiv (Bulgaria). In 2014 August they
took part in ISA’14 masterclasses
where they got awarded two prizes
– chamber music and Gottfried von
Einem foundation prize for outstanding interpretation of composers’
string quartet.
Since 2014 September “Mettis” are
members of ECMA.
Munich
ARTISTrio
Polychord
Quartet
Matjaž Bogataj – Violin
Maruša Bogataj – Cello
Katharina Khodos – Piano
Mateusz Smól – Violin I
Dmitry Serebrennikov – Violin II
Vladimir Paulen – Viola
Eric Abeijón – Cello
Munich ARTISTrio is an ensemble
founded by pianist Katharina Khodos
(Ukraine/Germany) and Slovenian siblings Maruša and Matjaž Bogataj. Upon
successful completion of solo
master studies, they finished their
chamber music master degree in July
2014 under the
guidance of Michael Schäfer (piano)
and Wen-Sinn Yang (cello), at the
Hochschule für Musik und Theater
München with highest distinction.
They recorded Ravel’s Trio in A Minor
for RTV Slovenia, and Bavarian national radio recorded their live concerts of
Ravel, Brahms (B-major) and Schubert’s
Piano Trio in B-flat major.
At the 14th competition ACM Trio di
Trieste in September 2013, Munich
ARTISTrio was the only piano trio in
the finals and eventually won the 2.
prize. The trio is also member of the
foundation LIVE MUSIC NOW in
Munich.
The trio regularly elaborates and works
with renowned musicians such as Bruno Canino, Ana Chumachenko, Silvia
Marcovici, Friedemann Berger.
The group has so far given concerts in
Slovenia, Italy, Austria, Germany and
Switzerland.
Polychord Quartet was found in
2014 by students of Hochschule der
Künste Bern in Switzerland. Although all four members come from
different countries (Poland, Russia,
Slovakia and Spain) and different
musical environments, their mutual
passion to chamber music has resulted in forming a new string quartet.
Each one of them has a great experience in performing chamber music
on stage.
For the last five years all of the
members of Polychord Quartet have
worked with each other on many
occasions in several formations but
it was not until the last year when
they have decided to create a string
quartet together. Their common devotion to chamber music has already
resulted in very successful performances in Switzerland.
Quartetto
Testosterone
Trio ClariNord
Daniel Lyngstad – Violin
Sondre Fjose Sandberg – Violin
Jakob Dingstad – Viola
Sverre Barratt-Due – Cello
Emilio Borghesan – Clarinet
Paula Cuetta – Cello
Jie Zhang – Piano
Quartetto Testosterone is a string quartet based at The Norwegian Academy
of Music in Oslo. After its foundation
in 2008, the quartet has specialized in
playing works by twentieth-century
composers. In addition to this the
quartet also frequently performs traditional quartet repertoire.
The quartet has studied with prof.
of chamber music at The Norwegian
Academy of Music, Are Sandbakken
(Oslo String Quartet), in addition to
lessons with amongst others Lars
Anders Tomter and Andrew Manze.
Quartetto Testosterone has since 2013
participated in ECMA-sessions in Oslo,
Vienna and Fiesole and received valuable input from teachers such as Hatto
Beyerle, Johannes Meissl, Avedis Kouyoumdjian, Ferenc Rados and Shmuel
Ashkenasi.
The quartet has in recent years per-
formed at scenes and festivals such as
Oslo Quartet Series, Harmos festival
(Portugal) and Risør Chamber Music
Festival. In 2011, QT was awarded 1st
prize in the Norwegian National Youth
Music Competition.
The quartet has cooperated in concert
with musicians and composers from
different genres including Tor Espen
Aspaas, Håvard Gimse, Stian Carstensen and Morten Gaathaug. The quartet
has also had an active collaboration
with composition students at the Norwegian Academy of Music.
The members study for their Master’s
degrees at The Royal Danish Academy
of Music, Copenhagen, Edsberg Manor,
Stockholm and the Norwegian Academy of Music.
Formed in 2012, Trio ClariNord is a
clarinet trio consisting of clarinetist
Emilio Borghesan, cellist Paula Cuesta,
and pianist Jie Zhang.
Trio ClariNord is the first chamber
music group with a wind player to be
accepted to the European Chamber Music Academy. ClariNord has studied with
renowned pedagogues Hatto Beyerle,
Johannes Meissl, Avedis Kouyoumdjian,
Ferenc Rados, Per Lundberg, Are Sandbakken and Håvard Gimse.
Trio ClariNord is working actively with
contemporary composers to expand
the repertoire for clarinet trio. Our two
first commissions are from the leading
Norwegian composers Jon Øivind Ness
and Gisle Kverndokk.
Trio ClariNord performs frequently in
Norway and abroad. In 2014-2015, the
trio has played concerts in Norway, Aus-
tria, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic
and in Wigmore Hall in London.
In spring 2015 Trio ClariNord will record a cd of music by Beethoven, Frühling, and Ness with LAWO Classics.
The three members of Trio ClariNord
are all current students or alumni of the
Norwegian Academy of Music. Clarinetist Emilio Borghesan came to Norway
in 2011 and has played frequently with
the Oslo Philharmonic. Pianist Jie Zhang
has performed with all the major symphonies in Norway, and in 2010 she was
the first foreigner to win the Princess
Astrid Music Prize. Cellist Paula Cuesta
has participated in the Verbier Music
Festival, and she won first prize in the
Alexander and Buono International
String Competition and subsequently
performed in Carnegie Hall.
ECMA The European Spirit
ECMA - European Chamber Music Academy - is recognized
as the number one ”talent factory” for European chamber
music ensembles. ECMA is dedicated to promoting young,
aspiring, elite ensembles, thus promoting the tradition and
development of European chamber music. It has charitable
status and its activities are non-profit-making.
ECMA was founded in 2004 on the initiative of Hatto
Beyerle. It is an association of European music universities, conservatoires and festivals which work together to
provide on-going training for chamber music ensembles.
Within this program the partner institutions host regular
week-long sessions. Renowned tutors work intensively
with ensembles who receive guidance and inspiration for
their artistic work. ECMA also holds lectures and focus
workshops in, for example, cultural history and historical
performance, practice and philosophy. Furthermore ECMA
naturally develops new networks by bringing together
people from different backgrounds and cultures.
ecma-music.com
The Norwegian
Academy of Music
The Norwegian Academy of Music, based in Oslo, offers the
highest level of education for performers and composers,
pedagogues and music therapists and is an artistic and
creative centre providing research within various fields of
music.
The Academy offers a variety of high quality courses at all
levels and is Oslo’s biggest concert producer presenting
approximately 400 concerts a year.
The Norwegian Academy of Music is a specialised university with 600 students, and offers both undergraduate and
postgraduate courses. We have a permanent staff of 130
teachers, both academic and artistic, and a number of auxiliary part-time teachers.
The Academy has 15 research fellow positions and in addition admits candidates with external funding. The Academy has 9 artistic research fellows at present.
nmh.no
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ECMA Partners
Austria - Vienna - mdw - Universität für Musik und darstellende Kunst
Austria - Grafenegg - Grafenegg Kulturbetriebsgesellschaft m.b.H.
France - Paris - Conservatoire national supérieur de musique
Italy - Fiesole - Scuola di Musica di Fiesole – Fondazione Onlus
Lithuania - Vilnius - Lietuvos muzikos ir teatro akademija
Norway - Oslo - Norges musikkhøgskole
Switzerland - Bern - Hochschule der Künste
United Kingdom - Manchester - Royal Northern College of Music
Cooperating partners
Austria - Großraming - Europäisches Kulturforum
Großraming
Austria - Horn - Allegro Vivo Kammermusik Festival
Austria - Vienna - isa - International Summer
Academy of the mdw
France - Prades - Festival Pablo Casals
United Kingdom - London - Wigmore Hall
Session Organizers
Coordinator:
Ellen Haldar
[email protected]
+47 23 36 70 75
(mobile) +47 995 21 343
Artistic Director:
Are Sandbakken
[email protected]
+47 23 36 70 00
Norwegian Academy of Music
Slemdalsveien 11
PB 5190, Majorstua
NO-0302 OSLO
+47 23 36 70 00
[email protected]
nmh.no