The Nutcracker is the last and most successful work by the Russian composer Peter Tchaikovsky. Based on the story Nutcracker and Mouse King by E. T. A. Hoffmann, the work still enjoys great popularity today and is regularly performed, especially in the run-up to Christmas. The present arrangement by flautist Jennifer Seubel uses as its basis the Nutcracker Suitein which the composer has summarized the best-known pieces.

The arrangement for two flutes is characterized by a skilful division of the thematic action between the two voices, which creates charming dialogues, as already seen in the Overture and in the March can be heard.

Since the flute already plays a leading role in the orchestral parts, it was, for example, in the Dance of the reeds possible, as the editor writes, "to take a few bars directly from the original". The Dance of the sugar fairywhere both flutes play the celesta solo and share the cadenza. The fast dance Trepak is played in thirds and sixths in the outer sections and thus achieves great compactness and intensity. The wind solos in the other dances are also well suited to two flutes, so the well-known flute solo from the Chinese dance can be well integrated into a duet. In the Flower waltz the familiar opening motifs of horn and clarinet remain in the first flute part, while the string accompaniment has largely been transferred to the second part.

A certain amount of technical skill is required in almost all movements, for example in the semiquaver runs. The entire range of the flute from c' to b"' (with an ad libitum octave up to c"") also appears in the duo arrangement, which is related to the orientation towards the original score. The Nutcracker Suite for two flutes is a successful and demanding arrangement of the well-known, catchy melodies, which is suitable for advanced players and, as Jennifer Seubel writes in the foreword, is worth "accepting the challenges".

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky: Nutcracker Suite, for two flutes arr. by Jennifer Seubel, full score, BA 10951, € 19.50, Bärenreiter, Kassel

Hugo Wolf is primarily famous as a composer of lieder. One of his few instrumental works is the string quartet Italian Serenadecompleted in two days in 1887, which he later arranged for small orchestra with woodwinds and horns. This sparkling Tarantella is a brilliant, difficult eight-minute piece with sophisticated transitions to the rondo sections and an emotional cello recitative. The editor Bruno Borralhinho supplements the string quartet version for string orchestra with a double bass part that pauses during delicate and high cello passages.

Swiss saxophonist and composer Daniel Schnyder, born in 1961 and living in New York, has created a new album with Rite wrote a moderately difficult string orchestra piece in E minor. A recurring melody, reminiscent of an Irish folk song, is heard in all voices and also in fast variations, accompanied by counter-voices with exciting rhythms and unusual tone productions. In the "Tempestoso", the cellos and double basses are chromatically challenged. After several piano approaches, the piece builds up to a racy fortissimo finale. You can listen to the work on Kunzelmann's website.

The orchestral material for both works can be borrowed.

Hugo Wolf: Italian Serenade, arranged for string orchestra by Bruno Borralhinho, score, OCT-10357, Fr. 19.30, Edition Kunzelmann, Adliswil

Daniel Schnyder: Ritus for string orchestra, score, OCT-10348, Fr. 31.20

The Schumann letter edition is extraordinarily comprehensive - it is almost unbelievable what Robert and Clara wrote. The "Correspondence with Theodor Kirchner, Alfred Volkland and other correspondents in Switzerland" has just been published, offering a fascinating insight into the development of music in this country.
The most extensive correspondence is with Theodor Kirchner, who, on the recommendation of Mendelssohn and Schumann, held an organist position in Winterthur from 1843 and who later became close friends with Clara Schumann. The largest part of the collection of over 100 documents was written by Clara Schumann; unfortunately, many of Kirchner's letters have been lost. Thanks to Clara Schumann's contributions, however, we learn a great deal about Kirchner's work in Switzerland and indirectly about Jakob Rieter-Biedermann.

The Winterthur publisher, with whom Clara Schumann published her late husband's works, was one of a large number of recipients of letters, many of which were only a few pages long. In Basel, for example, it was the Riggenbach-Stehlin couple, whom Clara Schumann had met at a concert there in 1857, whereupon a friendship soon developed. There is evidence of 58 letters in total, although not all of them have survived.

One particular example is the composer Wilhelm Baumgartner, of whom only a single letter from December 1851 has survived. In it, he introduces Robert Schumann as the dedicatee of his piano songs op. 10. It is precisely such "micro-correspondence" that provides a comprehensive picture. And not only through the letters themselves, but also through the extremely helpful and instructive editorial work of Annegret Rosenmüller. Not only is the annotation apparatus meticulously designed, there is also a short biography for each person, in which the relationship to the Schumanns and to Switzerland is illuminated.

Rosenmüller has thus created a veritable treasure trove, allowing us to linger and, thanks to her extensive research, learn a great deal about the enormous upswing in music in Switzerland that began in 1850. For example, in the brief correspondence with the Basel composer August Walter or with the musician Heinrich Szadrowsky, who organized a guest performance for Clara Schumann in St. Gallen, which was apparently arranged by Rieter-Biedermann. Or from his correspondence partner Joseph Viktor Widmann, a companion of Brahms. The latter had introduced his friend Clara to the Widmann couple in Baden-Baden in 1889.

The "Swiss Letters" are so numerous that it would take two volumes with a total of over 1000 pages to contain everything.

Schumann-Briefedition, Serie II Briefwechsel mit Freunden und Künstlerkollegen, Band 10, Briefwechsel Robert und Clara Schumanns mit Theodor Kirchner, Alfred Volkland und anderen Korrespondenten in der Schweiz, ed. by Annegret Rosenmüller, 2 Teilbände, 1121 p., € 158.00, Dohr, Cologne 2022, ISBN 978-3-86846-021-6

The books published by Breitkopf & Härtel in the series Pädagogik Eleven Easy Pieces bring together a colorful bouquet of appealing piano pieces for the intermediate level. The Danish pianist and conductor Sven Birch (*1960) succeeds in writing pieces which, for all their simplicity, are not simple and combine different musical and pianistic demands. The pieces offer a stylistic variety ranging from boogie and blues to tango and techno. There are also song-like, poetic pieces.

I consider this collection to be an ideal addition to the "classical" teaching material. The clear instructions on articulation and dynamics as well as the sparing fingering help to give the playing a clear profile and get to the heart of the basic dance feeling. I am impressed by the rhythmic subtleties and the opportunities offered to highlight various pianistic aspects in lessons. Seen in this light, the pieces are an ideal enrichment for working on sound culture at this level.

Sven Birch: 11 Easy Pieces for piano, ED 9378, € 16.50, Breitkopf & Härtel, Wiesbaden

The 2023 conference will be held under the umbrella theme Transformation - digitalization and inclusion in music education. For the first time, the new President of the Swiss Association of Music Schools (VMS), Philippe Krüttli, will be chairing the conference. In addition to two keynote speeches on the first day, there will be several input presentations on specific educational topics on the second day. The best practice competition will also take place for the fourth time - an achievement that has been very well received by many music schools in recent years. As a result, the VMS has clearly raised its profile at the "grassroots" level.

The history of the Forum Musikalische Bildung (FMB) is closely linked to that of the VMS. For the first 30 years of its existence, the association (founded in 1975) functioned as a national body for its member schools with an annual general meeting. At the beginning of the eras, there was a call for new structures. At the 2005 closed meeting, the Board of Directors defined a strategy for the association for the first time. The introduction of an umbrella organization structure is decided, and at the same time preparatory work begins on the Youth+Music initiative. The founding of the FMB should also be seen in this context. The association needed a platform to anchor music education issues in the political and social consciousness. The vision of the then VMS President Hector Herzig was to establish a forum where, at least once a year, not only music education, but primarily educational topics in general would be widely discussed. The initiator envisioned a new educational concept in which creative subjects would be given a prominent place. Under the motto "Rethinking education", Herzig wanted to "persuade society to reposition music education in the overall context of education" and to substantiate his arguments with regard to the popular initiative. In close collaboration with Liliane Girsberger, the person responsible for the FMB on the VMS Board, the content of the forum was developed over the following years.
 

A "Forum Burgdorf - International Forum for Music Education" was held in 2005. That was the only time. Hector Herzig, who was one of the initiators, took over the concept and implemented it in November 2007 as the first "Forum Musikalische Bildung FMB" at the Kultur- und Kongresszentrum Aarau (KuK). National Councillor and President of the initiative committee Christine Egerszegi gave the opening speech on the topic of "Musical education in the political field of tension"; Abbot Martin Werlen from Einsiedeln Abbey drew a line between the Benedictine rules of the 6th century and the digital present in his remarkable speech "What must remain for change to be possible". Four exciting input presentations were held simultaneously. Among the speakers was none other than Hans Günther Bastian, who examined the effect of increased music lessons on primary school children with his well-known long-term study and thus provided fundamental arguments for the concerns of music education.

The structure of the conference has remained basically the same all these years - keynote speeches on the first and second morning, followed by panel discussions and input presentations. Musical contributions, mostly by award-winning young musicians, were heard at the start and end of the conference.
Incidentally, Jodok Kobelt hosted the event (except in 2016) in his relaxed yet professional manner until 2020.

In 2008, again at the KuK, the focus was on "Music teaching in schools and music schools", one of the core topics of the initiative. An impressive six input presentations were devoted to this topic. Christian Pfeiffer, Director of the Criminological Research Institute of Lower Saxony, gave a captivating presentation on his research findings on the connection between media consumption and school performance. Beat Hofstetter, Head of School Music Studies at the FHNW, warned of a decline in the musical know-how of future teachers, as the subject of music could be dropped at teacher training colleges - a prediction that unfortunately became reality. Gerhard Wolters' dictum "Don't talk about what children should learn, talk about what makes children want to learn" stuck with the audience, as did Hector Herzig's radical proposal to "break up the structures and build a completely new school on a greenfield site".
 

Photo: Niklaus Rüegg

Jodok Kobelt chaired all meetings until 2020 (except 2016).

Panel discussion at the FMB 2011: from left Oskar Freysinger, Christine Egerszegi, Jodok Kobelt, Jean-Frédéric Jauslin

There was no FMB 2009. The VMS Board decided to move the Forum from November, which was packed with events, to the "January slump" and at the same time to the new Trafo location in Baden. This meant that not much more than a year had passed since the last edition. Among the absolute highlights of the early Trafo years were the appearances of "day hiker" Daniel Fueter. He not only took part in several forums as a speaker and discussant, but also provided inimitable highlights with his linguistically and substantively perfect summaries of the day.

Photo: Niklaus Rüegg

"Day hiker" Daniel Fueter at the FMB 2011

The FMB 2010 was once again a little more political. Herzig wanted more controversial discussions and points of view, as he felt there had been too much agreement on the central topics in previous years. In this respect, the meeting between child psychiatrist Michael Winterhoff and pediatrician Remo Largo, who were based on different pedagogical principles, was very interesting. The political discussion with representatives of the Federal Office of Culture (BAK) was also controversial. Opinions were formed in view of the upcoming vote. The philosopher Georg Kohler took the discussion on the importance of music to a new level. The participants were then brought back down to earth by educational scientist Gerhard de Haan.

Things were even more political in 2011. A friend of music education was found in the person of Bernese cantonal councillor Bernhard Pulver. National Councillor Ruedi Noser opposed the initiative, BAK head Jean-Frédéric Jauslin was conciliatory, Christine Egerszegi put her foot down and SVP populist Oskar Freysinger was a self-promoter. Mr. Expo 02, Martin Heller, diagnosed politicians with a lack of courage when it came to financing cultural projects.
 

Photo: Heiner Grieder/FMB/VMS

Hector Herzig initiated the FMB in 2007 and chaired five conferences until 2012.

Hector Herzig stepped down as VMS President in 2012, and the fifth FMB was also the last under his leadership. Logically, it was dominated by the upcoming vote. A muted optimism about the medium-term effects of a future constitutional article was palpable. The greatest success of the conference was achieved by a speaker who was not even present. Neurobiologist Gerald Hüther had to cancel at short notice and instead showed an exciting video on the topic of "What we are and what we could be".

Photo: Heiner Grieder/FMB/VMS

Christine Bouvard takes over responsibility for the conference from Hector Herzig at the end of the FMB 2012.

With the handover of the baton to the new VMS President, Christine Bouvard Marty, and after winning the vote, the FMB took a two-year break to reflect. From then on, the work of the VMS Board focused on the implementation of the new Article 67a of the Constitution. The forums were increasingly devoted to the "grassroots" realities of music schools. Under the umbrella topic of "Keys to success", the FMB 2014 focused on the promotion of talented students - one of the topics now enshrined in the new constitution. Some of the speakers were vividly remembered: Graziella Contratto with her astute analyses, music psychologist Stefan Kölsch on the topic of musicality, educational scientist Annette Tettenborn on the process of "becoming gifted", Hacı-Halil Uslucan, Professor of Modern Turkish Studies, on the topic of musicality and migration. The President of Swiss Olympic, Jörg Schild, provided insights into the promotion of sport, enabled cross-comparisons and gave the music promoters new ideas. Helga Boldt presented a school financed by the Volkswagen Group, which was built on a "greenfield site" according to the latest educational principles.

For the first time, best practice projects from the music schools were presented in a large poster exhibition.

In 2016, the focus was on "Innovation and living change". Inventor Andreas Reinhard advocated a culture of error in education, educational researcher Malte Petersen explained the principle of intuitive learning and psychologist and guitarist Alan Guggenbühl revealed himself to be an opponent of purely output-oriented education. Timo Klemettinen gave an update on the Finnish education system and, finally, Hector Herzig presented the federal government's new broad-based support program, "jugend+musik".
Due to the positive experience with the best practice projects, this was expanded into a competition.
 

Photo: Heiner Grieder/FMB/VMS

Andreas Weidmann, then responsible for communication at VMS, at the FMB 2016.

In 2016, FMB participants were able to evaluate the best-practice projects for the first time.

The last two forums - again at the Trafo - dealt with future scenarios. Under the title "Change: opportunity or threat?", the FMB 2018 looked at the influence of megatrends on music education. Age researcher Jonathan Bennett pointed out the increasing importance of older people in the teaching market, while sociologist Ueli Mäder diagnosed education with a relapse into mechanistic recipes. Joël Luc Cachelin called for a conscious and critical approach to digitalization. The German and Austrian music school worlds were presented by Michaela Hahn and Ulrich Rademacher. Andreas Doerne and Stefan Goeritz attracted a lot of attention with their presentation of a music school as a "place of learning". In the best practice competition, participants were able to take part in the selection of the best. The stunning duo Calva provided a witty counterpoint.

The most recent FMB 2020 looked for "Paths to the goal" and "Opportunities for a changing society". Political issues took on a greater significance as the preliminary consultations for the new Culture Dispatch (2021-2024) entered the decisive phase. Educational scientist Max Fuchs spoke about a "human right to music", National Councillor Markus Ritter revealed tricks on how to be politically successful in Bern, David Vitali from the BAK explained the planned implementation of the promotion of talent (constitutional article 67a, para. 3) and start-up founder Jan Rihak presented his web-based teaching app. The highlight of the conference was undoubtedly the presentation by sociologist Armin Nassehi. He posed the question: "For which problem is digitalization the solution?" and put digitality on a par with epochal achievements such as the printing press or the steam engine. We can look forward to the next edition in January 2023 under the aegis of the new VMS President Philippe Krüttli.
 

Antoine Gilliéron - The notion of freedom within Swiss higher music education courses has been questioned through concrete examples: this article aims to serve as a summary of the discussions by presenting the results of this day of educational exchange.

The opening lecture given by Elisabeth Gutjahr, rector of the Mozarteum in Salzburg and vice-president of the European Association of Conservatories, highlighted the main areas of reflection that shaped the debates that followed:

Vision and values: what is a free person (at all levels)?

Didactics: what is our idea of learning?

Pedagogical engineering: what structure for curricula and teaching?

Institutionnel : quelle relation entre des individus libres et le collectif qui agit aussi librement ?

Évaluation et standards : quelle réussite à l'apprentissage ?

Équilibre : quel degré de liberté insuffler dans les cursus d'études ?

À l'instar des articulations du corps humain avec des mobilités différentes (un poignet ne bougeant par exemple pas de manière similaire à une épaule ou à un cou), la question du curseur a d'emblée été posée, and this in contextualizing what is possible or not to realize within the framework of Bologne, in the light of the philosophical contributions of Jacques Rancière, author of the book "Le maître ignorant, cinq leçons sur l'émancipation intellectuelle".

The cinquantaine of participants on this day was then divided into huit focus groups. During the morning, these groups discussed the potentials and benefits of structuring the curricula more freely, whether from an academic (from a pedagogical or administrative point of view) or a social (according to the social impact and employability of the research) perspective.

The results in terms of profits have demonstrated these elements: a necessary change of paradigm ; a reinforcement of the administrative responsibility of students ; a spirit of openness spread across all sectors of the community ; more horizontal relations ; a reduction in the institutional administrative burden ; a potential increase in employability ; facilitated links with other institutional partners ; a reinforcement of concrete projects on the ground; inclusiveness and diversity at the heart of the teaching system; transformation of ECTS credits into an even more artistic and even potentially free content; fewer problems with human resources linked to missions that carry more meaning; breaking down the cliché of "schools-music" so that they tend to become even more lively platforms; pedagogy that could become even more innovative.

Following a presentation of existing models at the School of Commons of the ZHdK, Open Creation of the Basel Music Academy and Freiform of the FHNW, the aim of the morning's focus groups was this time to concentrate on the concrete implications and limitations of a more flexible curriculum, from the same two angles this morning (i.e. academic pedagogy/administration and global social impact/employability).i.e. academic pedagogy/administration and global societal impact/employability).

The balance in terms of limitations is thus presented: detailed description of the free modules so as not to lose quality; vigilance at the level of international mobility (Erasmus); academic management logic that is not yet sufficiently agile; evaluation of the free forms that needs to be reinvented; volatile and provisional nature of the organization that can destabilize it; the logic of auto-entrepreneurship at the level of society that is being questioned; the need to move towards freedom (with progression and differentiation); the management of human resources that could become more complex; the individualization of courses that is more complicated than generalization; the professional competences that must also be included in the liberal forms by replacing the professional milieu.

Finally, a summary of the day was presented by the students and Philippe Dinkel, former director of the HEM in Geneva-Neuchâtel, to conclude this day of teaching. The conclusions, while paying tribute to artisanship, discipline and excellence, helped to ease the tensions facing the country's music schools: patrimoine et création ; individu et collectif ; institution et innovation ; processus d'apprentissages et apprentissages spontanés ; dignité du métier de musicien-ne et autonomie ; créativité et assurance qualité ; autorité et horizontalité ; institutionnel et non-institutionnel ; tradition et nouveaux métiers ; fixité et fluidité ; marché du travail et volonté de changer ou réparer la société.

The concept of freedom, which is reminiscent of ancient Greece and has been present in all philosophical movements since then, requires responsibility, maturity, trust, critical thinking and respect, which is valid for all segments of society. The solutions for Swiss music colleges should therefore be based in particular on the ideas of lifelong learning, a better selection of students while being aware of the profiles being researched and the institutional identities involved, of the development of expanded artistic communities (physically and numerically), of the increased encouragement of student initiatives, and - even though "art is born of constraints, lives of struggle, lives of freedom" according to André Gide - of the... flexibilization of the study paths.

The plan is to produce 22 large-format volumes of sheet music with a total of over 6000 pages. In addition, there will be around 3000 handwritten pages and around 6000 printed pages of literary publications - as the basis for a digital edition of Schumann's poetic and literary oeuvre. The official title of the project is "Robert Schumann's Poetic World. Drama - Oratorio - Vocal Symphony - Literary Work. Historical-critical hybrid edition".

The researchers involved are pursuing an interdisciplinary approach between musicology, literary studies and the digital humanities. On an open access platform with the working title "Robert Schumann-digital", his journalistic works, the poetic works including the libretti and the "Critical Reports", including their genesis, are to be made accessible to the public. Schumann's compositions are to be published in purely analog form in classical music volumes.

For further information please contact: Prof. Dr. Ulrich Konrad, Chair of Musicology I,
T: +49 931 31-82828, ulrich.konrad@uni-wuerzburg.de

Immediately after publication of their last album In the spring of 2019 - after a nine-year radio silence, it was like a comeback - the Young Gods began to reunite with Terry Riley's minimal music evergreen In C to deal with it. This was apparently prompted by Benedikt Hayoz, the director of the long-established Fribourg brass orchestra Landwehr. This resulted in several interpretations of the piece together with other formations, for example alongside the Geneva-based contemporary music collective Ensemble Batida. The day before this concert, on October 21, 2021, the three gods - Franz Treichler (multi-instrumentalist, voice), Cesare Pizzi (sampler, computer) and Bernard Trontin (drums) - went to a studio in Geneva to record their own trio version in a single, intensive live session.

Composed in 1964, there are now dozens of recordings of this genre classic by ensembles as diverse as Piano Circus, Shanghai Film Orchestra, Acid Mothers Temple and Africa Express. It's no wonder: the composition consists of 53 phrases, ranging in length from half a beat to 32 beats. But how these are strung together and how often they are repeated is up to the musicians. Terry Riley does not even specify the number or type of instruments, let alone the length of the performance.

Many other interpretations allow the repetitions and the consistent rhythm to drift into a Zen-like serenity. In terms of instrumentation alone, the Young Gods tickle a much rockier dynamic and thus also unexpected new nuances out of the piece. The trio, who are perfectly attuned to each other, masterfully control the ups and downs of intensity and volume. The bulbous fullness of the electronic noises generates a sounding depth massage, percussive marimba riffs let playful cones of light flash through the undergrowth, the many finely chiseled details are never obtrusively thrown at our ears, but wait patiently until we finally discover them on the third, fourth or even fiftieth listen. The last minute of "Part 6" is worth the ticket alone. Conclusion: breathtaking.

The Young Gods: Play Terry Riley In C. Two Gentlemen TWOGTL 101 (2 Vinyl-LP + 1 CD)

The World Federation of International Music Competitions (WFIMC) will organize the event in Geneva under the name "Horowitz Competition Kyiv-Geneva" from 13 to 21 April 2023. The nine-member jury will be chaired by Ukrainian conductor Kirill Karabits, who will also conduct the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande in the final of the competition at Victoria Hall.

The competition is supported by the City and Canton of Geneva, the City of Kiev, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, the Vere Music Fund, the Art Mentor Foundation Lucerne as well as the Concours de Genève, the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition in Bolzano, the Fryderyk Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw, the Franz Liszt Competition in Utrecht and the Van Cliburn Competition in Fort Worth, Texas.

Although today the mandolin has a rather exotic status among instruments, it has always been an instrument that has managed to build bridges, write the regional music councils. 

At first glance, the mandolin, as the successor to the lute, appears to have its origins in the courtly world, but it was always a folk instrument, a "fiddle of the workers", which led to the mandolin orchestras, the symphony orchestras of the common man. It was the instrument of the Wandervogel movement. The bridge to the music of other cultures can easily be built through its relationship to other lute instruments such as the bağlama.

Since 2008, an instrument of the year has been chosen every year and the focus has been on it for twelve months. Each federal state has its own approach in order to achieve the transnational goal: To draw curiosity and attention to the many facets of the instrument.

With Brönnimann, the Real Filharmonía de Galicia is gaining an artistic director "with a committed social approach and a pronounced sensitivity for topics such as education and contemporary creation", writes the orchestra. Founded in 1996 in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, the ensemble was initially conducted by Helmut Rilling, among others.

Baldur Brönnimann, born in Basel in 1968 and raised in Pratteln, trained at the Basel Music Academy and the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, has been Principal Conductor of the Basel Sinfonietta since the 2016/17 season.

Until 2020, he was Chief Conductor of the Orquestra Sinfónica of the Casa da Música in Porto and previously Artistic Director of the Norwegian contemporary music ensemble BIT20 and Chief Conductor of the National Symphony Orchestra of Colombia in Bogotá. Brönnimann lives in Madrid.

Since their beginnings in 1995, the Martinů festival days has established itself as an integral part of Basel's musical life. At their core, they are committed to cultivating and disseminating the large and diverse oeuvre of Bohuslav Martinů, who lived as a guest of Paul Sacher on the Schönenberg in Pratteln near Basel from 1956 before he died in Liestal in 1959. Under the artistic direction of the pianist Robert Kolinsky has succeeded in attracting renowned artists to the festival with its varied programming off the beaten track. It is probably these two consistently pursued qualities that have given the festival a reputation far beyond Basel in recent years, as evidenced not least by the high-profile honorary patronage of Federal Councillor Alain Berset and Slovakian President Zuzana Čaputová.

An exciting counterpoint to Martinů in this year's program was the work of the composer and conductor Miloslav Kabeláč (1908-1979), which is probably little known in this country outside of connoisseur circles. The central piece of the opening concert on October 23 in the Paulus Cultural Church was his eighth symphony Antiphons op. 54 for soprano, mixed choir, percussion instruments and organ. Composed between 1969 and 1970 on texts from the Old Testament, it is an accusatory reaction to the invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact troops in 1968 and the suppression of the reform efforts of the Prague Spring. A harsh, extended-modal tonal language, strong rhythmic impulses and dynamic extremes characterize the work, which is divided into five movements and four interludes. The performance of the extremely demanding soprano part by Aphrodite Patoulidou; impressive in precision and presence the realization of the percussion parts by members of the Percussions de Strasbourgthe same ensemble that performed the world premiere in Strasbourg in 1971. The coming together of the Zurich Singing Academy and the Ukrainian Radio Choir - whose presence lent the subject matter an oppressive topicality - succeeded just as brilliantly here as in Martinů's Four songs about Mary for mixed choir H 235 and The mountain of the three lights for men's choir and organ H 349. The German organist also shone on this evening. Sebastian Heindl in Kabeláčs Two fantasies op. 32 and Martinů's Vigil H 382. The transparency and richness of color that the organist, who was born in 1997 and was the youngest finalist to win the renowned Longwood Gardens Organ Competition in 2019 and was appointed church musician of the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in Berlin in July, was able to present and illuminate on the organ of the Pauluskirche, which is ideally equipped for the repertoire of the 19th and 20th centuries, was nothing less than sensational.

In addition to a concert with large ensembles, the Martinů Festival traditionally includes a chamber music concert, a cinema event, a jazz concert and a family concert. The latter, inspired by the fairy tale Bětuška and the forest fairy (Božena Nĕmcová ), discover a different side of Kabeláč; the program included Dětem op. 22 (Small orchestral suite for children) the suite Modré Nebe (Blauer Himmel) op. 19a for children's choir and orchestra, chamber works by Martinů (Nonet No. 2 H 374 and Serenade No. 3 H 218) and the Kinderlieder H 184bis (performers: Ensemble le raid merveilleux, children from the Insel primary and orchestra school; Stefano Mariani, musical director). The jazz concert on October 30 at Bird's Eye (Martina Barta, vocals; Matti Klein, piano; Niklas Lukassen, bass; Genius Wesley, drums) was dedicated to the work of the legendary song composer Burt Bacharach (born 1928), who toured with Marlene Dietrich in the 1950s and studied with Martinů, among others. Martinů's biography was the focus of the film shown at Stadtkino Basel on November 1 My life with Bohuslav Martinů (Director: Jakub Sommer).

Finally, the chamber concert on November 6 in the Hans-Huber-Saal with Steven Isserlis, cello, and Connie Shih, piano, presented two discoveries: the world premiere of Kabeláč's manuscripted Three pieces for violoncello solo and the Deux ritournelles pour violoncelle et piano op. 25 by the highly talented Czech composer, conductor and Martinů pupil Vítězslava Kaprálová (1915-1940), who died young. Alongside Martinů's Sonata for cello and piano No. 1 H 277 continued Schumann's Adagio and Allegro for violoncello and piano op. 70 on the program.