2020/21 Season

»I’m a subversive element!« That is how the Moldovan violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja sees herself – and she’s not wrong, as anyone who has ever witnessed the passionate artist in action will be able to confirm. However, none of this is an act: everything comes from the heart and the head – and so too in the six very different formats of her Elbphilharmonie residency.

The composer, conductor and pianist Thomas Adès achieved his breakthrough in the world of classical music when Sir Simon Rattle included a spectacular work by the British composer in his inaugural concert with the Berlin Philharmonic in 2002. Adès is celebrating his 50th birthday in March 2021. What better occasion to get to know the all-rounder in all his guises!

Sir Antonio Pappano is a veritable whirlwind on the conductor’s podium, be that in the opera house or in Rome’s Colosseum. He is giving a double guest performance with his Rome-based symphony orchestra of the Accademia di Santa Cecilia as part of the Music Festival, and he will also be stepping up to the podium as guest conductor of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.

No one composes in such a tight, condensed and scaled-back form as the Hungarian master György Kurtág. On the occasion of his approaching 95th birthday, the Elbphilharmonie dedicates a spotlight to the composer, bringing together a number of his most important works. The spotlight includes a special focus on his orchestral music, which is rarely performed.

Daniil Trifonov descended upon the music world like a natural phenomenon in 2010/11, scooping up awards and prizes at the prestigious Chopin, Tchaikovsky and Rubinstein competitions over the course of the year. He is a regular guest in Hamburg and can be seen performing six times in the current season, in solo concerts and with orchestras.

In his energetic and radically subjective interpretations, Teodor Currentzis, the star conductor with Greek–Russian roots, explores boundaries and pushes beyond them. He is coming to Hamburg for four concerts – both with the SWR Symphony Orchestra, whose chief conductor he has been since 2018, and with his musicAeterna ensembles.

As the daughter of the famous sitar virtuoso Ravi Shankar, Anoushka Shankar was perhaps born with a special talent. However, thanks to her versatility, she has long emancipated herself from the overpowering role model. For this »Reflektor« series, she and a number of long-standing musical companions take over the Elbphilharmonie programme for four whole days.

Please note: The »Reflektor« has been postponed to 4–7 November 2021.

As the second »Reflektor« artist of the season, Max Richter takes charge of the concert schedule for a few days. The composer, pianist and producer is admired by a huge community of fans around the world for his minimalist soundscapes and condensed piano pieces. The highly creative mind is also famous for collaborations with artists from almost every field. Max Richter has invited numerous musician friends to his weekend at the Elbphilharmonie.

Please note: The »Reflektor« has been postponed to 8–10 October 2021.

With the Balthasar-Neumann Orchestra and Choir, which he founded, conductor Thomas Hengelbrock realises his personal vision of ideal music-making: dynamic and enthralling, and based on profound historic and stylistic insights. That can now be experienced in action in a four-part concert series at the Laeiszhalle and the Elbphilharmonie.

As its third major orchestra, the Symphoniker Hamburg make a vital contribution to the city’s musical life with intelligently conceived and stirringly played concert programmes. The orchestra’s home is the tradition-steeped Laeiszhalle, but they also perform in the Elbphilharmonie and other venues around the city. Sylvain Cambreling has been the chief conductor of the Symphoniker since 2018: he is recognised around the world for his colourful and imaginative performances, and is conducting a total of 18 concerts in the 2020/21 season. He is joined by renowned resident artists with whom he has a long association, including Martha Argerich and Guy Braunstein.

Now for the twelfth time, the Harbour Front Literature Festival draws the biggest stars of the scene to Hamburg. Since it first opened its doors, the Elbphilharmonie has become a regular venue, hosting authors such as Salman Rushdie and John le Carré. The Harbour Front and the Elbphilharmonie are now developing the connection further: as a festival within a festival, »Harbour Front Sounds« is dedicated to the relationship between music and literature.

The music of the 21st century is never more at home than in a 21st-century concert hall. The Elbphilharmonie has been putting this insight into action from the very beginning – works by contemporary composers are performed often and with great enthusiasm. And contemporary music is now getting its own festival, held once every two years, with Alan Gilbert as its spiritus rector: Elbphilharmonie Visions.

For some it is the holiest of Christian holidays, for others it is a welcome excuse to enjoy a few days off and eat one’s weight in chocolate eggs. But even those who fail to appreciate the true significance of Easter are, presumably, not completely oblivious to its spiritual dimension. This is where the Easter programme comes in, with a number of very special concerts – above all Bach’s famous »St Matthew Passion«.

Every year the Hamburg International Music Festival provides one final highlight in the concert calendar at the end of the season. In 2021 the festival takes place entirely online and presents many programme highlights with all major Hamburg-based orchestras and top-class guests.

Even if no one can be sure how the weather will be, one thing is certain: this year it’s going to be a particularly long summer. Over the course of five weeks, the Elbphilharmonie is putting on a full and varied programme in a casual atmosphere and of the usual outstanding quality.

Stravinsky revolutionised music history in 1913 with his scandalous ballet »Le sacre du printemps«, shaping the sound of modernism as a result. Towards the end of his long career, after the Second World War, he enjoyed working with the NDR Symphony Orchestra and did so often. To commemorate that relationship, a ten-day festival packed with events honouring Stravinsky had been planned. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, this has now been transformed into an online festival – with three live streams from the Elbphilharmonie.

In a concert hall with such visionary architecture as that of the Elbphilharmonie, contemporary music belongs to the core of the programme. Two composer portraits and the major new festival »Elbphilharmonie Visions« put present-day music firmly under the spotlight. The »State of the Art« series offers concerts for anyone looking for exciting sounds and unusual line-ups. And musicians continue to work on the music of the future in »Below Deck«.

The recital halls in the Elbphilharmonie and Laeiszhalle are both perfect for chamber music and song recitals. In the intimate ambience of the recital halls, audiences get even closer to the artists and can follow the interaction on stage particularly well.

The piano is such a versatile instrument that it can replace a whole orchestra. The list of top-class pianists visiting Hamburg this season is a long one. The »Master Pianists« series is traditionally held in the Laeiszhalle Grand Hall. And »Pianomania« presents double the enjoyment this year: four outstanding piano duos turn their attention to the Russian repertoire.

Unfortunately, the pandemic has completely thwarted the Elbphilharmonie’s plans to invite a whole number of super ensembles from the USA to appear at the Elbphilharmonie this season. Travel restrictions have obliged them to cancel their engagements. Wherever possible, the cancelled concerts will be replaced by other first-class soloists and ensembles who live in Europe and are able to travel.

The Elbphilharmonie always has an ear open to the world. And less familiar sound cultures from the far corners of the earth find an enthusiastic audience here. In 2020 however – and probably still for months to come – the coronavirus crisis prevented almost all international travel. That has naturally also affected all the artists who would have performed in the »Around the World« and »World Classical Music« series.

Pop and electronica also belong in a 21st-century concert hall. Hot Hamburg artists are given a stage in the »Made in Hamburg« series. Sound magicians, synthesizer gods and modular tinkerers continue to perform in the series »ePhil«, which now moves from the Resonanzraum in St. Pauli to the Elbphilharmonie.

It’s well-known that the Elbphilharmonie is not an opera house. Nonetheless, opera can regularly be enjoyed here at the highest level – but without scenery. But that doesn’t matter: in purist concert versions, the music can be heard to its best advantage. And this season it really packs a punch.

Admirers of the dynamic, emotionally concentrated music of the Baroque, Renaissance and earlier periods really get their money’s worth in the tradition-steeped series »Das Alte Werk«. Once again, six passionate ensembles with high profiles in this field give guest performances in the rarefied ambience of the Laeiszhalle. All six ensembles are committed to historically informed performance practice with the greatest possible musical authenticity.

»Maître« is what the French call organists of outstanding merit who usually work in one venerable church. Once again this season, a number of »masters« give guest performances on the Klais organ in the Elbphilharmonie. As the Elbphilharmonie’s titular organist, Iveta Apkalna takes to the organ console numerous times this season.