It is important for musicians to think about estate planning right at the beginning of their career. Florian Schmidt-Gabian, author of the brochure Estate planning for musiciansconvinced.

The brochure is the first publication in the series Estate planning for ... of the 2019 founded Center for Artistic Legacies (ZKN). It introduces the terminology, explains planning steps, clarifies financial and legal issues and outlines the development and implementation of an estate strategy.

The 20-page brochure can be obtained from the ZKN:

- for 18 francs (incl. postage) as a printed edition via broschuere@zkn.ch 

- or free of charge as a PDF download from the ZKN website - Link to the brochure
 

The Muscat software was selected by the international RISM community as the standard tool for the worldwide cataloging of historical music sources. Accordingly, the staff of the Swiss office are now also responsible for the installation and administration of Muscat on the servers of the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin - Preussischer Kulturbesitz.

Swiss expertise is also evident in the development of other programs, such as the notation tool Verovio. This gives the Swiss office an outstanding position in the RISM community at an international level. The association and the center will therefore be renamed in January 2021 "RISM Digital Center".

The name change is supported by both the international RISM Association and the Swiss National Science Foundation. The latter has already been supporting RISM Switzerland as an infrastructure company for several years. At the interface between the humanities and technological disciplines with a direct link to Swiss music culture, the project is a prime example of a digital humanities enterprise.

Happy birthday Mr. Beethoven! What would the master say if he found out about all the concerts and festivals, congresses and celebratory lectures planned in his honor for 2020? He would probably be surprised at the matter-of-factness with which posterity is celebrating his 250th birthday - or rather the 250th year of his birth. Because exactly when Little Ludwig saw the light of day remains a mystery. The only certainty is the entry in the baptismal register of St. Remigius in Bonn on December 17, 1770.

The birth had most likely been the day before, December 16; due to the high infant mortality rate at the time, baptisms were usually held immediately the next day. Beethoven himself probably regarded the 16th as his birthday, and this was also known to his immediate circle. This can be seen from a letter from Johann Georg Albrechtsberger, who expressly wrote on December 15, 1795 to the "tomorrow's name festival" congratulated her - but of course meant her birthday.

What is astonishing, however, is that Beethoven was unclear about his year of birth for a long time, which meant that his age was not exactly certain either: his father had announced him as being two years younger at his first public appearances (1778 as the age of "6 years") - an entry which continued in the following years and was still quite common in the 19th century. After Beethoven had requested a copy of the baptismal register in Bonn in the spring of 1810 (the family register had been lost), he even corrected "1770" to "1772". The error must have been resolved in the following years; in any case, the correct age is given in the obituary.

However, Beethoven is unlikely to have celebrated a real birthday in any year: The day that is so important today only acquired its significance at a later date, when the church name day was replaced by the secular birthday. In this respect, it will come as no surprise to find only one serenade in Beethoven's instrumental music: the Congratulations menu WoO 3 was first performed on November 3, 1822 at an ambitious open-air serenade on the eve of the name day of Karl Friedrich Hensler (1759-1825), the director of the Josephstadt Theater.

This was even discussed in the Wiener allgemeine Theaterzeitung reported - albeit with a misunderstood ennoblement of the minuet: "... As soon as Mr. Hensler had entered his apartment, the entire orchestra personnel began the beautiful overture by Kapellmeister Prof. Drechsler under the windows on the street ..., This was followed by an excellently played flute concerto, followed by a very good overture by Mr. Kapellmeister Gläser, and finally a simphony, magnificently newly composed for this evening by Ludwig van Beethoven sic." The finale was a march and chorus from Mozart's opera Titus with newly underlaid text.

Even if the book, written in a light hand and first published in 1832 under the neutral title Allegretto printed Congratulations menu may be largely unknown today, even among connoisseurs, individual harmonic twists and turns as well as the instrumentation unmistakably reveal the true master.

Baptismal register of St. Remigius

He needs no introduction in the Swiss folk music scene: Fritz Dünner. Quite a few consider him to be one of the best clarinettists that Swiss folk music has ever seen. Especially with his main formation, the Dünner-Nauer band, he has published numerous compositions of his own. He has been all the more missed in the local music scene since he ended his musical career in 2010 and emigrated to Mallorca. From afar, however, Dünner is now making a comeback as a composer with the music book Volksmusik für Anfänger, a music book for beginners and school ensembles.

The 23 two-part original compositions were written in 2017, when Dünner's grandson began to play the clarinet. Such simple pieces are extremely rare in the specialist trade. Moreover, despite their simplicity, they are masterfully composed and are ideal for inspiring young clarinettists to play folk music.

At the suggestion of the publisher Peter Gisler, Fritz Dünner has expanded his compositions for music ensemble. The result is two booklets for melody instruments in C and Bb as well as two accompaniment booklets for piano and double bass. There are also MP3 files to play along to, which Fritz Dünner has recorded in playback. These sound files are available for download as playalong files on the Mülirad-Verlag website. The various editions of the booklet allow different instruments such as clarinet, violin, accordion, piano, cello, bass, etc. to play together. This makes Folk Music for Beginners ideal for home music and school formations.

At the same time, Mülirad-Verlag is also publishing literature for advanced clarinettists. Dani Häusler, probably the most sought-after Swiss clarinettist at the moment, brings together in Clarinet quartet - 14 Swiss dances his favorite original compositions, some of which were written while he was still a student. While the leading parts are sometimes very demanding, Häusler has deliberately kept the middle and bass parts simpler. This makes it possible to mix levels, which is particularly beneficial for music school ensembles, for example. Furthermore, Häusler has dispensed with precise articulation instructions in the scores with chord indications in order to give the performers full artistic freedom. The CD Dani Häusler squared on which he has recorded each of the four parts for all the pieces himself. The recordings of the individual parts are also available as playalong files on the publisher's homepage. In this way, the pieces can be practiced together with Dani Häusler, so to speak.
 

Mülirad-Verlag was founded in 1991 and focuses primarily on rarities, the unusual and the forgotten in Swiss folk music. Peter Gisler has been running the publishing house since 2006 and since then it has become a national and international insider tip in the folk music sector.

Dani Häusler: Clarinet Quartet - 14 Swiss Dances, article no. 1119, Fr. 39.00

Fritz Dünner: Folk music for beginners - 23 two-part compositions for two clarinets or other melody instruments

• For Bb instruments: Article no. 1123Bb, Fr. 29.00
• For C instruments: Article no. 1123C, Fr. 29.00
  
• Piano accompaniment booklet: Article no. 1123Kl, Fr. 29.00

Mülirad publishing house, Altdorf

 

Born in 1983, David Virelles comes from a family of Cuban musicians and studied piano at Humber College in Toronto. In 2009, he moved to New York to study composition with Henry Threadgill. He has been in demand worldwide as a pianist and composer for many years. In 2014, he released the album "Mbókò - Sacred Music for Piano, Two Basses, Drum Set and Biankoméko Abakuá" on the ECM label.

Jazz is offered at the ZHdK in the Bachelor's program as a specialization with a focus on instrumental/vocal jazz and instrumental/vocal pop. Building on the individual talents and interests of the students, the course imparts knowledge and skills to enable them to operate successfully in the changing scenarios of the international music scenes as independent and creative jazz and pop personalities.

For the 2022 festival, project outlines on the theme of "unmediated" are required. Programme submissions from ensembles, musicians, event organizers and institutions will be jointly refined or integrated into the festival as a collaboration if they seem suitable to the Board of Trustees.

The festival management has set the following conditions:

1. project outline: Project idea, project form and implementation of the festival theme. The different levels of meaning of the theme may be taken into account.

2. reference to Bern: The call is aimed at Bernese musicians, organizers and institutions, or musicians who are developing a project together with Bernese musicians, organizers or institutions.

3. short description of the ensembles, organizers and artists including links to current recordings.

4. other components are desired and can be part of the project:

• planned collaborations with Bernese ensembles or event organizers
• planned collaborations with international ensembles, composers or event organizers
• scenic or interdisciplinary approach
• unconventional spaces
• unusual timelines
• Mediation aspects

5. cost and financing plan, including details of the share of financing from other funding bodies, foundations and personal contributions as well as the desired financial contribution from the Bern Music Festival (only subsidiary financing possible).

The project outline (PDF, max. 6 pages) can be submitted exclusively digitally by March 14, 2021 at the latest via: info@musikfestivalbern.ch

Further details can be found on the website of the Bern Music Festival:
Link to the invitation to tender
 

According to the canton, a complete renovation was necessary for structural and energy-related reasons. The interior of the entire building was restored to its original state. The interior was then redefined with a reversible exposed timber construction. Two classrooms of 72 square meters each and two group rooms of 18 square meters each as well as several ancillary rooms are spread over two levels.

The total outlay amounted to 1.4 million. According to the press release, the new music building now meets the requirements for modern music and singing lessons. In addition to school lessons, the music building will also be available to cultural associations.

Chicago-born bass trombonist and tuba player Ed Partyka has lived in Europe for almost 30 years and has won prizes at many international competitions. He studied jazz trombone with Jiggs Whigham and composition under the direction of Bob Brookmeyer at the Cologne University of Music.

Partyka has played with numerous major big bands and has worked as a composer, arranger and bandleader for prominent international jazz orchestras. Today, the 53-year-old lives in Austria, works at the University of Graz and the Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts and also leads the UMO Helsinki Jazz Orchestra.

According to the ZJO's press release, he is regarded as a first-class bandleader who takes an orchestra forward without neglecting the existing tradition. One of his plans for his work with the ZJO is to give historically relevant big band music a permanent place in the annual program.

The rest of the ZJO's management remains unchanged: Bettina Uhlmann continues to take care of the management, Daniel Schenker remains co-leader at the interface between musical and program management after two years of interim management and Steffen Schorn continues to work as composer in residence.

"I think it's absolutely necessary for an artist, a musician, to give free rein to his creativity." A strong sentence that Werner Bärtschi utters on the telephone on the occasion of the anniversary of his concert series "Rezital". And central, as the desire for unconditional artistic freedom was at its cradle. Equipped with sufficient self-confidence thanks to national and international successes, he took the step 40 years ago to create his own platform. A place where he can do whatever he considers artistically right without having to justify it. Not in front of organizers, and not in front of his own past.

So it's a concept that can't really be described as such. It could rather be called the decision to trust and follow one's instincts. But one that definitely works, as you can see from the long existence of the series. A non-concept that has allowed Rezital to become a small institution in Zurich. This can be seen from the fact that the city of Zurich provides the series with a small but fixed annual grant. A rare honor that is otherwise only granted to institutions such as the Tonhalle or the Collegium Novum.

And a non-concept that gave Zurich some memorable moments. For me, Karlheinz Stockhausen's visit to the recital and the performance of Moments among the most impressive concert experiences of my life. Werner Bärtschi himself doesn't like to emphasize any highlights, because "what counts in the end is a successful concert", and that could also be a simple piano recital with Schubert. But when asked, he does mention the Cage-Satie Festival or his four years of intensive study of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach.

This is certainly a constant in Bärtschi's work as an interpreter. Time and again, he has championed the works of unknown composers. He promoted Erik Satie, for example, even before he mutated into a now popular eccentric. However, it is never about being original. The engagements stem from the conviction that this is good music. And the desire to play this music. However, he does not want to be an "expert on the unknown", as he has played Beethoven and Chopin most often. The classics of piano music par excellence.

All of this was once again impressively demonstrated in the concert on December 1. And even though it was not the anniversary concert that should have taken place on October 30, exactly 40 years and one day after the first recital, the second concert of the season was still a worthy anniversary event. This is because it brought together a number of things that are typical of recitals. It was the prelude to a series of concerts dedicated to the composer César Franck. While it is already unusual to hear a piece by Franck in concert in this country, a whole series of concerts is all the more surprising. But Bärtschi explains the unusual program idea succinctly by stating that he simply considers Franck to be one of the very great composers. He then adds that he admires "how César Franck draws listeners and performers into a stream of passion". All great music captivates you, of course, but "with Franck it comes closer". That was not too much of a promise, because the Piano Quintet in F minor played on this Tuesday evening actually proved to be a work that stands out for its passion. Even the slow movement, which begins in a relaxed manner, spirals upwards to a gripping intensity.

The thoughtful way in which Bärtschi conceives his programs was demonstrated by the way he combined the Franck that concludes the concert. In the first part, Beethoven's String Quartet op. 95, also in F minor, was combined with Anton Webern's Six bagatelles op. 9 for string quartet. And in such a way that the Webern pieces were played twice, before and after Beethoven. In this way, Webern became an ear-opener for Beethoven - and vice versa. The astonishing thing was that Webern's "modern" music seemed more romantic than Beethoven's in this constellation. The interpretation certainly contributed to this impression. The Merel Quartet played Beethoven in a modern way, with accentuated contrasts, which seemed all the more radical because the more delicate, emotional passages were played in a silvery rather than warm manner. The avant-gardist Beethoven was highlighted here, through interpretation and program design.

Arbitrariness should therefore not be confused with incoherence. This is also reflected in the program of the anniversary concert, which has been postponed to 11 June 2021: 40 miniatures from 400 years, one piece from each decade. At first glance, a crazy idea for the moment. But on closer inspection, someone is being serious here with a twinkle in their eye, where other organizers are merely making assertions: The audience is taken on a journey through 400 years of music history.

Singing in non-professional choirs has been banned since October 29; professional choirs are allowed to rehearse but not to perform. The IG CHorama writes in its press release of November 4 that the ban on choral activities affects more than 4,000 association choirs and ensembles with over 120,000 singers and more than 600 choir conductors. Planning security is lacking. The choral world is helping to get the pandemic under control and reduce the number of infections by applying strict protection concepts for singing in groups. IG CHorama would like to see the ordinance amended so that singing in groups is possible under certain conditions and that professional choirs are also allowed to give concerts under certain conditions. It is prepared to work on a strategy so that the entire choral scene can "regain its radiance".

"... I sing, therefore I am/Chorsing in times of Corona" is an online petition by numerous choral associationsinitiated by the Swiss Catholic Church Music Association. It is aimed at parliament, the Federal Council and the Federal Office of Public Health. The associations are convinced "that singing in a choir has a positive impact on social life and health, especially in times of crisis". This is why singing in choirs or small ensembles should also be possible again for laypeople, provided that strict protection concepts are adhered to.

The petition is still online until December 18. It will be handed over to Parliament, the Federal Council and the FOPH on December 21.

The initiators wrote on December 14 that they hoped they would "not be the last to be considered in the various easing measures."

The IG CHorama consists of:
A cœur joie ACJ
Association de Soutien aux Chœurs d'Enfants et de Jeunes ASCEJ Association Vaudoise des directeurs de chœurs AVDC European Youth Choir Festival Basel EJCF
Reformed Church Music Association Switzerland RKV Swiss Choral Association SCV Swiss Professional Conductors' Association SBDV Swiss Federation Europa Cantat SFEC
Swiss Catholic Church Music Association SKMV Swiss Children's and Youth Choir Promotion SKJF Swiss Church Choral Federation SKGB
Association of Choral Conductors of Northwestern Switzerland VChN

With the support of the Swiss Association of Music Schools VMS

The Akku Quintet was founded by Bernese drummer and composer Manuel Pasquinelli. He is joined by saxophonist Michael Gilsenan, pianist Maja Nydegger, guitarist Markus Ischer and bassist Andi Schnellmann. Since 2010, the five have worked on countless pieces and have released four albums to date, which have also attracted international acclaim.

Xavier Dayer, born in Geneva in 1972, studied composition in his home town with Eric Gaudibert, then with Tristan Murail and Brian Ferneyhough in Paris at the legendary IRCAM, the Institut de recherche et coordination acoustique/musique. He has received awards for his compositions from the Bürgi-Willert Foundation and the Sandoz Foundation (FEMS Prize), among others.

Stephan Eicher, who grew up in Münchenbuchsee in the canton of Bern, has brought "Bärndüütsch" to concert halls around the world - so much so that at the end of the 1990s an audience in Paris sang along enthusiastically to his cover version of Mani Mutter's "Hemmige" without understanding the lyrics exactly.

Sabina Schärer and Felix Rohner are the creators of the sound sculpture Hang, which is played around the globe. Their long-standing collaboration began in the steel band "Berner Ölgesellschaft", the first steel band in the canton of Bern, and encompasses music-making, research into the sound of brass and sculptural work with the hammer.

This year's "Coup de cœur" prize for young talent in the amount of CHF 3,000 goes to Marie Delprat. The Bordeaux-born musician, composer and performer completed her training as a recorder player at the Bern University of the Arts in 2015 under the direction of Michael Form. She holds a master's degree in composition and theory as well as a master's degree in pedagogy.

More info:
https://www.be.ch/portal/de/index/mediencenter/medienmitteilungen.meldungNeu.html/portal/de/meldungen/mm/2020/12/20201211_1704_kanton_vergibt_viermusikpreise?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=Medienmitteilungen&utm_campaign=Kanton+vergibt+vier+Musikpreise

Many Beethoven biographers once looked with embarrassment at the score of Wellington's victory or the Battle of Vittoria op. 91 - according to Alfred Einstein, it would even be "the low point in his oeuvre". Success and popularity made the musical battle painting (consisting of the two "sections" Battle and Victory Symphony) appear suspicious, not least because of its programmatic presentation. The historical context in which the work was composed was lost sight of.

For more than a decade, Napoleon and his troops had been causing unrest in the military and civil society throughout Europe when news of the victory at Vitoria finally reached Vienna on July 27, 1812: Lord Wellington had already put Napoleon's troops to flight near the Basque city on June 21 and ended French rule over the Iberian Peninsula. This success gave the battered coalition forces the courage they needed to win the Battle of Leipzig in October of that year - the beginning of the end for Napoleon.

When Beethoven's Battaglia and Symphony No. 7 were performed for the first time in Vienna's University Hall on December 8 and 12, 1813, not all battles had been fought, but the decisive ones had. This is the only way to understand the prestigious performance and the success of this concert, which was organized to benefit the Austrian and Bavarian soldiers who had been invalided in the Battle of Hanau. The orchestra of around 100 musicians included the best musicians in the city with Schuppanzigh as concertmaster, Beethoven conducted and the applause was said to be "indescribable": "Mr. von Beethoven's fame was established anew; he was received with enthusiasm at every performance." (Wiener allgemeine musikalische Zeitung)

The postlude, however, was inglorious. Beethoven had originally written the Victory Symphony (the second part of the work) for Johann Nepomuk Mälzel's Panharmonica, a sensational mechanical playing machine at the time. However, Mälzel had performed the work with orchestra in Munich without prior consultation and was also in negotiations with London. Beethoven then instigated legal proceedings regarding the rightful authorship and made his claim clear in an outline of the work's genesis.

First he had "of its own accord ... without money" wrote the Victory Symphony for Mälzel's panharmonica. Then he would have approached him with the request for an arrangement "for full orchestra"which was also realized. However, he, Beethoven, had already had the idea for a large battle music beforehand, which could be played musically on the panharmonica. "not applicable" be. Mälzel mistakenly believes that entitlement as a "exclusive owner of this work" to be able to register, since he - as compensation, so to speak "belonging to machines"hearing aids. However, these were "not useful enough for me".

The proceedings were not concluded, and Beethoven and Mälzel apparently later reconciled. Just how long the battle music actually played a role in the public debate is shown by Gottfried von Weber's review of a piano reduction in 1826, in which the Victory Symphony was described as a significant work. "Tonwerk, - in a sound piece of great demands" is called. During his reading, however, Beethoven made a sign right here and made a fragmentary, undecided remark: "not at all, nothing but an occasional piece, which however -"

Link to the project homepage "52 x Beethoven"

The Swiss coordination office and networking platform for female musicians Helvetiarockt has been campaigning for a significant increase in the proportion of women in the Swiss music industry since 2009 and is committed to greater diversity in the music business, particularly in jazz, pop and rock. Women are barely represented in the professional music industry at all levels. According to surveys, the proportion of women on Swiss festival stages is around 15 percent and in music production around 2 percent.

The Berner Münster Children's and Youth Choir was initially founded in 2003 as a project choir; it has been organized as an association since 2012. Today it has around 100 singers aged between 5 and 21. Together with them, Johannes and Katrin Günther have built up a repertoire that ranges from Gregorian chant and works by well-known masters (Bach, Mendelssohn) to world premieres and spirituals.

The Canton of Bern Culture Prize is endowed with CHF 30,000 and the Cultural Mediation Prize with CHF 10,000.

As the cultural sector is once again unable to comment on the measures currently under discussion, the Taskforce Culture on December 9 with a letter to the Federal Council. The six key points and the list of current gaps in support are quoted below:

"1 We welcome the fact that the federal government is taking the reins again. However, we also expect this with regard to compensation. We have been calling for a uniform policy throughout Switzerland to deal with this crisis since the beginning. In fact, from the Federal Council's point of view, the extraordinary situation is apparently prevailing again. The Federal Council should also formally adopt it and act accordingly.

2) In the diverse Swiss cultural sector, the question of a lockdown is being discussed in the same way as in other affected economic sectors, such as ski resorts or the Federal Council: some would like to continue offering culture even with many conditions and restrictions, while many others are already ruling themselves out because cost-covering events are no longer possible under these circumstances.

3. but one thing is clear: in the event of a further cultural lockdown, suitable support measures must be accessible to all cultural players without restrictions. We already pointed out last week that this is not possible with the current Covid-19 pandemic.
law is not the case. These loopholes must now be closed. Also
The federal government must take the reins here. The limits of federalism are clearly evident in the implementation of support measures.

4 At present, the cantons are apparently invited to propose new support measures that they consider necessary. Once again, we regret that the sectors affected are unable to comment on this, even though they are probably best placed to know what measures would help them.

5. we continue to miss at least a medium-term strategy from the Federal Council for future measures (e.g. according to defined levels of measures) and for the resumption of cultural activities. Even if it is unclear how the figures will develop, the Swiss cultural sector, the Swiss economy and the Swiss population need clearer announcements instead of a weekly adrenaline rush at the Federal Council's press conferences.

6 Part of such a strategy must also be a revitalization fund that ensures full indemnification in the event of the cancellation of cultural events. Otherwise, nothing will be planned and culture will no longer get off the ground. For example, the German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz announced in the Daily Mirror a state takeover of the costs for all events that are planned for the second half of 2021 but have to be canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.

• Loss compensation also for cultural workersNumerous cultural professionals work on commissions and contracts for the private sector. In these contractual relationships, there is no cultural enterprise that can or wants to demand compensation for loss of earnings and pay compensation for loss of earnings. Legal disputes over the interpretation of contracts are the result! At the same time, the budget for compensation has not been used up by a long way.
   
• Lowering the hurdles for coronavirus income replacement for the self-employed: If the self-employed only receive income compensation from a loss of turnover of 55%, this firstly sets the wrong incentives (namely to maintain the highest possible loss of turnover) and secondly penalizes the low-income earners. Here too, the federal government would have the means to support micro-entrepreneurs and lower the hurdles.
   
• Hardship compensation for cultural enterprises: According to the will of Parliament, an entitlement to loss of earnings compensation excludes the possibility of supplementary (not double) hardship compensation. This is problematic because the compensation often only covers a small part of the loss. Even if all existing aid has been claimed, many cultural enterprises are left with losses.
   
• Increase in Short-time working compensation for low earners (100% instead of only 80%)
   
• Unemployment insurance: Extension of the framework period to four years for the receipt of benefits and for the contribution period for employees in fixed-term employment and with frequently changing employers."