Johannes Kirchberg & Canea Quartett Hamburg

To mark the 60th anniversary of Johannes R. Becher’s death, pianist Johannes Kirchberg dedicates a musical evening to the author, with texts and poems by the almost-forgotten writer who went down in history as a politician above all else. Becher was an SED politician and served as the first President of the GDR’s Academy of Arts. In 1949 he wrote the words for the GDR’s national anthem to Hanns Eisler’s melody. The programme developed by Johannes Kirchberg and the Canea Quartet Hamburg around Johannes R. Becher centres on the themes of homeland, the battle for democracy and the unbending will for peace – without ever ignoring Becher’s pugnacious personality.