Artists
Arabella Steinbacher, Violin
Robert Kulek, Piano
Dr. Hans Hachmann, Presenter
Arabella Steinbacher, violin
Arabella Steinbacher was born in 1981 in Munich (her mother is Japanese, her father German). When she was only three years old, she had her first violin lessons, and at the age of nine, she became the youngest student at the Music Academy of Munich, studying with Ana Chumachenko, who has been one of her closest confidants ever since. She participated in master classes by Dorothy DeLay and received valuable musical inspiration by Ivry Gitlis.
Arabella Steinbacher is a laureate of the Joseph-Joachim Violin Competition Hannover. In 2001 she was awarded the promotion prize of Bavaria. In the same year, she became a member of the "Anne-Sophie Mutter Circle of Friends Foundation". Anne-Sophie Mutter, who personally promotes and supports her as a scholarship holder, gave her the violin bow which was made by the the famous Benoit Rolland. This year, Arabella Steinbacher received one of the most coveted prizes in classical music: the "ECHO Klassik”. Associated with that honour is the title "Up-and-coming young artist of the year”.
Arabella Steinbacher achieved her international breakthrough in March 2004 with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France under Sir Neville Marriner in Paris. Enthusiastically appraised by the public, the press wrote: "An artist interpreting sovereignly and maturely,, whose beauty of tone is overwhelming." A highly promising career developed then. She played under world famous conductors such as Pinkas Steinberg, Valerij Gergiev and Sir Neville Marriner (this year also performing in the Heidelberger Frühling festival ), to name only a few, and with internationally renowned orchestras such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Münchner Philharmoniker and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (this year also performing in the Heidelberger Frühling festival).
Arabella Steinbacher regularly cooperates with the label "ORFEO international”. For her debut recording, the violin concert by Aram Khatchaturian with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra under Sakari Oramo, was published in autumn 2004. For her CDs with concerts by Darius Milhaud, played with the Rundfunkorchester Munich under Pinkas Steinberg, Arabella Steinbacher was awarded the Quaterly Prize of the Deutsche Schallplattenkritik .In June 2006, she published the CD Violino Latino, for which she was awarded the prize "ECHO Klassik 2007”. Lately the recording of both violin concertos by Dimitri Schostakowitsch with the Symphony Orchestra of the Bayerischer Rundfunk under Andris Nelsons appeared. It was also for this recording that the violinist received the Quarterly Prize of the Deutsche Schallplattenkritik.
Robert Kulek, piano
Robert Kulek was born in Latvia and currently lives in the USA. He received his education at the Mannes College for Music in New York, at the New England Conservatory in Boston and at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. Appraised by the New York Times for his technical excellence and musical sensitivity, he performed all over Europe, the USA and Asia, as a soloist and also as a chamber musician. After he was awarded a prize at the Chamber Music Competition "Vittorio Gui” in Florence in 1994, he played with the violinists Kyung-Wha Chung, Nikolaj Znaider, Julian Rachlin, Julia Fischer and the cellists Daniel Müller-Schott and Gary Hoffman, to name only a few. He performed in the most renowned concert halls, among them the Berliner Philharmonie, the Concertgebouw Amsterdam and the world famous Carnegie Recital Hall in New York.
Robert Kulek contributed to many important festivals, such as in Luzern (Switzerland), in Ravinia (USA), at the Vancouver International Festival (Canada), at the St. Magnus Festival (Schottland) and also at the Rheingau Festival, in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and in Ansbach (Germany). He played with the radio stations Radio France, BBC Radio, Radio Amsterdam, Deutschland Radio und Bayern 4, where he was heard in numerous live broadcasts.
In May 2002, a collaborative CD with the cellist Daniel Müller-Schott appeared with pieces by Franck, Debussy and Poulenc. This recording received the worldwide highest press award "The Editor's Choice” by the BBC Music Magazine and WQXR Classical Radio "Hot Pick of the Week”. The Luister Magazine (Netherlands) praised this recording to be the currently best one of the famous Cesar Franck Sonata. This CD was nominated for the 2003 Edison Prize. In May 2003, Robert Kulek and Daniel Müller-Schott recorded another CD dedicated to works by Robert Schumann.
In future tours he will perform in Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands and Canada.
Hans Hachmann, presenter
Hans Hachmann studied at the Music Academy in Freiburg (major subject: viola) and in addition graduated in musicology. After further studies in Munich (musicology, journalism and theatre science) and several positions, he joined the current SWR2 studio in Karlsruhe. Here he was in charge of numerous broadcast series and also of many concerts, among them the Castle Concerts in Bruchsal and Ettlingen.
His bi-weekly Saturday morning broadcast 'Music Hour' was very successful. He loved this broadcast because of the many different topics – according to him, not only listening to radio but also doing radio educates! In addition, he conveyed topics with a most profound knowledge that even downright experts commented with "Oh really”?. He also held positions at the Heidelberg University, at the Music Conservatory in Mannheim and currently at the Music Conservatory in Karlsruhe. The latter awarded him an honorary doctorate. He is a sought-after speaker for lecture series and concert introductions.
Hans Hachmann, freshly appointed chair of the association "Friends of music and arts Heidelberg”, is himself active in playing music. Together with Wolfgang Schäfer and Reinhard Buhrow, he forms the 'BosArt Trio', performing top class music cabaret since more than 20 years. In addition he is member of the group 'Rädelchen' and he also intensively plays chamber music at home.