Elevator interviews

All three of them have won many prizes as soloists, and in April at the Elbphilharmonie they performed together for the first time: the Russian-American violinist Maria Ioudenitch, the Stuttgart cellist Sebastian Fritsch and the Austrian pianist Aaron Pilsan.

For this very successful premiere as a trio, they included romantic works by Johannes Brahms and Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy as well as a piece by contemporary composer Thomas Larcher, who is a special focus of the Elbphilharmonie in the 2022/23 season.

At least since his triumph at the prestigious 2019 Tchaikovsky Competition, Alexandre Kantorow has been one of the most sought-after pianists of the young generation and has toured the major stages of the concert world. In 2022, he also caused a sensation several times in the Grand Hall at the Elbphilharmonie. He is especially known for his equally virtuosic and sensitive interpretations of romantic piano music. It is not without reason that the critics celebrated him as the »reincarnated Liszt«. For his recital debut at the Elbphilharmonie in March 2023, he performs works by the great Romantic composers Brahms, Schubert and Liszt.

»From Chinese philosophy comes the idea of a great entirety in which opposites depend on and complement each other. Based on this idea, we combine complexity and simplicity. As four different individuals, together we shape the unity of the string quartet, the royal genre of chamber music.« That is how these four young musicians describe their approach. Unity and diversity – an interesting polarity when making music together. The musicians also feel the same about the past and the present, and about contrasts between cultures: the Simply Quartet is continuously searching for a deeper understanding of the inherent language of music – from early classical works to modern string quartet literature. The quartet places great emphasis on combining their different cultural roots (China, Austria, Norway): by exploring works from each of their cultures, they deepen their knowledge of different sound worlds and develop their own language.

Originally founded in Shanghai, the quartet later moved to Vienna – to the heartland of the string quartet. There, the ensemble studies at the Joseph Haydn Institute with Johannes Meissl of the Aris Quartet. The four musicians have already been awarded numerous prizes at renowned chamber music competitions, including the International Carl Nielsen Competition in Copenhagen and the International Joseph Haydn Chamber Music Competition in Vienna.

In 2020–22 the Simply Quartet was selected for the Great Talent Programme of the Vienna Konzerthaus, and in 2021–22 the musicians toured the great concert halls of Europe as the »Rising Stars« of the European Concert Hall Organisation. For their eagerly awaited second visit to the Elbphilharmonie, the quartet has put together a diverse programme with works ranging from Haydn to the present.

The mezzo-soprano Ema Nikolovska is quickly establishing a name for herself as one of the leading young singers of her generation. After studying singing in Toronto and London, she went on to win numerous prizes and awards, including at the ‘s-Hertogenbosch International Vocal Competition in the Netherlands and at the Kathleen Ferrier Awards in the UK. In 2019 she became a BBC New Generation Artist – a scheme for nurturing young talent that has turbocharged the careers of artists such as Janine Jansen and Igor Levit – and in the following year she became a member of the opera studio of the Staatsoper Berlin.

She also quickly made the leap into the premier league as a lieder singer, with performances in the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin and in the Wigmore Hall in London with renowned piano accompanists such as Malcolm Martineau and Wolfram Rieger. Hamburg audiences will also be very familiar with the Berlin-based singer: back in 2021 she made a dazzling impression at Thomas Hampson’s »Song of America: A Celebration of Black Music« festival in the Elbphilharmonie, and in 2022 she gave her debut in the Grand Hall. Together with her outstanding piano partner Kunal Lahiry, she gave her first lieder recital in the Recital Hall as part of the FAST LANE series in December 2022 – to great acclaim. Special thematic spotlights and perfectly thought-out programmes make each one of the duo’s concerts an extraordinary event.

Only 24, and already heading for the peak of the jazz world: with his special musicality and emotional depth, alto saxophonist and composer Immanuel Wilkins is currently attracting the attention of the entire jazz scene.

Wilkins grew up near Philadelphia, where he had his first contact with music through the local Afro-American church. The religious experience of music in gopels and spirituals has had a lasting influence on him as an artist. Immanuel Wilkins went to New York and enrolled as a student at the prestigious Juilliard School, and from here he launched an international careert without delay: he has since worked together with music icons like Bob Dylan, Wynton Marsalis and Jason Moran, and he also created quite a stir in the band »Good Vibes« with Joel Ross.

2020 saw the release of his first quartet album, »Omega«, with which the long-established group of four made it straight on to the international critics' favourites lists: the New York Times voted it the best jazz album of 2020, while the American magazine JazzTimes called it »the most important jazz debut for years«. It wasn't long before the quartet brought out their sophomore project: »7th Hand« was released in 2022. At their gig in the Elbphilharmonie they performed songs from both albums – a truly exquisite jazz evening.

»This percussionist is simply fantastic,« Martin Grubinger enthuses about Vivi Vassileva – and he should know, being a percussion star himself. His young colleague, known to everyone simply as »Vivi«, follows effortlessly in his big footsteps. Vivi kicks off the new »FAST LANE« series at the Elbphilharmonie with an extremely varied concert. She opens the evening solo with works from Johann Sebastian Bach to an impressive cadenza on two plastic bottles; then, after the interval, she is joined by the Brazilian guitarist Lucas Campara Diniz for South American sounds.