Kaleidoscop | Berlin, Germany
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Hi! My name is Ögmundur Thor Johannesson, and I am a classical guitarist from Iceland currently residing in Berlin, Germany. I thought that my first post should feature the ensemble that perhaps has inspired me most in thinking out of the box in classical music performance and production: Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop .
Like their German name suggests
("ensemble of soloists"), it is an ensemble or a string orchestra
consisting of 15 of high notch string players forming the core of the ensemble,
expanded by various guest players.
Founded by cellist Michael Rauter and conductor
Julian Kuerti in 2006, Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop has been a
Ensemble-in-residence at RADIALSYSTEM V since April 2008. It was there where I
attended one of their most memorable performances where you as an audience
member were suggested to lie on a yoga mat. Furthermore, the whole traditional
concept of stage vs. audience was completely dissolved, as the string players
were completely scattered among the audience. It was a blissful experience to
lie completely relaxed on a yoga mat with my eyes closed, enjoying the
scattered surround stereo effect of the dispersed string players!
The
members of Kaleidoskop are equally versed in historical
performance practice as well as in the performance of contemporary music, with
their repertoire ranging from the early Baroque to contemporary music, working
closely with young composers as well as with musicians from the universes of
metal, rock, and electronic music. Collaborations include Sasha Waltz, Roland
Kluttig, Jan St. Werner (Mouse on Mars), Jennifer Walshe, Martin Eder and Olof
Boman.
Kaleidoskop is on a mission to transform
the traditional experience of concert-going on various levels, respecting the
musical tradition to a certain extent, but at the same time experimenting with
context and other aspects of the production of their shows.
If we look at the aspect of programming we
can see that in recent times, for instance, the music world has grown slowly
tired of the same old chronological programs, which has brought about
increasing influx of creativity in the structuring of concert programs. In the
case of Kaleidoskop ensemble, they are taking it to new
dimensions.
To begin with, contemporary works are
contrasted against earlier musical epochs in order to show how they relate to
each other, thus creating a certain theme for each concert, mostly on a
poetical and philosophical level. From there, the rabbit hole goes even further
down. I watched them for instance in concert where they dissolved an entire
movement of a Haydn symphony, interspersing it with contemporary music in
appropriate context, thus creating a new dimension in the usual linear
presentation. They started with the first phrase, abruptly stopping in mid-air,
making space for an intermezzo like intervention of a contemporary piece, later
concluding the movement.
This is one of the methods Kaleidoskop is using to encourages its audiences
to listen to music in new ways, paying attention to the combination of the
classic and the contemporary, combining composers like Bach, Purcell, Ikeda,
Dillon and Saunders for example.
Furthermore, their innovative
adventure does not only include new ways in concert programming, but including
collaboration with artists of other fields, including architects, dancers,
actors, and light designers, creating a sense of a musical installation and an
entire theatre production, making collaboration and use of our fellow artists
of other fields.
This kind of innovation brings indeed a
new hope for our classical music industry, desperately in need of a makeover if
it is to continue to survive in our rapidly changing and demanding modern
world, and continue to attract audiences, especially the younger people.
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