6. AlumniConcert

BE BAROQUE
UP CLOSE WITH BACH, VIVALDI, HANDEL & CO

Spark plays Baroque. It sounds simple, yet it is complex. For when a creative ensemble like Spark approaches a bygone era, it can only do so with a fresh perspective, bold reinterpretations and a touch of experimental spirit. It is no coincidence that this ECHO Award-winning classical ensemble enjoys a reputation for uniquely blending the old and the new, tradition and innovation, the familiar and the unheard. Thus, in this programme, the five exceptional musicians are by no means simply adapting Baroque works for their instrumentation. Rather, in their arrangements, they seek to highlight new aspects, intensify moods and evoke unexpected associations. Masterpieces by Bach, Vivaldi, Handel and Telemann thereby acquire a surprisingly contemporary flair and are brought right into the here and now. Modern works, including new compositions by the Spark members, a piece by the Baroque-affine minimal music maestro Michael Nyman, and works by the Stuttgart composer Sebastian Bartmann, are skilfully employed as elements of expansion – sometimes to create contrasts, at other times to highlight cross-connections, or to continue existing atmospheres almost seamlessly across the centuries. For long before arpeggiators became all the rage in minimal music or electro, the Baroque masters had already shown us that a simple triad, when broken up in a virtuoso manner, can create a truly mesmerising effect. 

Works by

Isabella Leonarda · Turlough O’Carolan · Georg Philipp Telemann · Johann Sebastian Bach · Luciano Berio · Peter Breiner · Andrea Ritter · Sebastian Bartmann · Victor Plumettaz · Christian Fritz 

Featuring

Andrea Ritter, recorder
Daniel Koschitzki, recorder and melodica
Stefan Balazsovics, violin and viola
Isabel García Castro, cello
Christian Fritz, piano

Spark was founded in 2007 by recorder players Andrea Ritter and Daniel Koschitzki. The two had known each other since studying recorder together with Prof. Karel van Steenhoven in Karlsruhe.   

Idea and concept
Prof. Maria Stange and Gryta Tatoryte

An event by AlumniCampusOne an der Hochschule für Musik Karlsruhe e. V.