Following his highly acclaimed Scriabin cycle this autumn, Jonathan Powell’s second concert at the Jacqueline du Pre Hall this season focusses on twentieth-century Czech piano music, and specifically the work of Hans Winterberg and Viktor Ullmann, both of whom were prominent German-speaking Jewish composers who were interned at the Theresienstadt concentration camp. Although Winterberg was eventually freed and was able to compose in relative obscurity in Germany after the Second World War, recordings are only now starting to be released of his strikingly sonorous music, including Jonathan Powell’s highly-acclaimed Capriccio release of the first piano concerto from 1948.

After a very successful pilot in Tallinn last March, the B4CH project is coming for two concerts on 17th and 18th of December to the Dzintaru Concert Hall in Jurmala.

All Bach multiple piano concertos in one program, likely to be a premiere event in that format with leading Estonian and Latvian pianist: Sten Lassmann, Sten Heinoja, Reinis Zarins and Daumants Liepins are getting together with the Tallinn Chamber Orchestra, conducted by Taki – Alsop Fellow Anna Duczmal-Mroz.

There’s a bilingual English-Latvian broadcast about the project with Anna Duczmal-Mroz and Reinis Zarins on Latvijas Radio Klasika worth listening to:

Florian Schuck writes an equally detailed and enthusiatic review about Remy Ballot’s Vienna debut with the Klangkollektiv Wien, including also the presentation of their new CD with Beethoven string quartets.

‘Highlight of Viennese musical life’

‘one of the most outstanding chamber orchestras of our time’.

‘The way Ballot allows the music to pause here and at the same time creates an enormous tension, which is only released in the final movement, is simply great art…He leaves nothing to chance, each phrase seems examined for its place in the greater whole.  ‘Chamber’ and the ‘orchestral’ music-making arise naturally from the respective situation in the course of the music’.

You can read the full review in German here, Deepl and other online services provide reasonable results in English:

Jonathan Powell ended his European tour of Scriabin’s sonatas for the 150th anniversary with standing ovations for his recital at the Ivan Moravec Academy / Prague Music Performances in Prague:

‘a pianist of extraordinary artistic and intellectual abilities’
‘Powell can be described as the master of the tenor voice’
‘an unforgettable evening’

You can read Jiri Bezdek’s equally enthusiastic and scholarly review for Opera +, Czechia’s leading Classical Music Magazine, here. Google and Chrome offer reasonable translations for all non-Czech speakers:

Prior to the Vienna Debut of his Klangkollektiv Wien, Remy Ballot talks to Christoph Wellner on Radio Klassik Stephansdom about his studies with Celibidache, the latest CD of the Klangkollektiv Wien, and of course his Bruckner cycle in St Florian (in German):

The Alban Berg Ensemble Wien opens the season of the prestigious Filarmonica Romana at the Teatro Argentino, with a recital of works by Crumb, Debussy and Schoenberg:

As part of his European Scriabin 150 tour, Jonathan Powell will play a complete cycle of Scriabin’s piano sonatas on 22nd October at the Tallinn International Piano Festival ‘KLAVER’

Current Taki-Alsop Fellow Anna Duczmal-Mroz conducts the semifinals of the 16th Wieniawski Competition in Poznan, you can watch all performances on the Wieniawski Competitions Youtube Channel:

‘Thanks to his penchant for writing short and succinct movements. Winterberg’s tough, gritty and uncompromising music never outstays its welcome. It certainly receives persuasive advocacy from Johannes Kalitzke and the Berlin Radio Symphony, and Jonathan Powell does a terrific job in projecting the piano concerto’s dynamic energy.’

Siebe Riedstra’s enthusiasic review of the new recording of Hans Winterberg’s orchestral works for Opus Klassik:

‘The importance of this publication cannot be underestimated, so any attempt at a valuation is superfluous. With his extensive experience with Musikfabrik and Ensemble Modern, composer and conductor Johannes Kalitzke (1959) is the right person to bring these partly very complicated scores into the limelight. Jonathan Powell has a formidable reputation in the modern repertory and delivers an impressive performance, particularly in the huge cadence of the last movement of the piano concerto.’

You can read the full text here.

Martin Blaumeiser writes a glowing review for KLASSIK HEUTE about all aspects of the first commercial CD of Hans Winterberg’s orchestral music, which also includes Jonathan Powell’s rendition of the 1st piano concerto with the Berlin Radio Orchestra and Johannes Kalitzke conducting.

‘new discovery, unparalleled in music history’…
‘No wonder that this artist, who is technically almost unbeatable at the moment, immediately enchants the listener here.’

35 year old German conductor Jesko Sirvend, a multiple prize winner of the Malko competition, is with a 2nd prize from the jury, and also the prize of the Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo, the clear winner of the 2022 Evgeny Svetlanov Conducting competition in Monte Carlo.

An important rediscovery according to Rémy Franck in the Pizzicato Magazine:

‘The First Piano Concerto becomes attractive in the exciting interpretation of Jonathan Powell and Johannes Kalitzke. The English pianist is responsible for the critical edition of all the piano works (including 4 piano concertos)’

Capriccio Records are releasing the first ever commercial recordings of orchestral works by Hans Winterberg, based on the new Winterberg Edition in a cooperation between Boosey & Hawkes and Exilarte.

Jonathan Powell is in charge of the critical edition of all piano works, and will also record the 4 piano concertos

Martin Blaumeiser reviewed in The New Listener Jonathan Powell’s monumental performance of Sorabji’s Sequentia Cyclica, a highlight of the 25th anniversary edition of the Heidelberger Fruehling Festival, curated by Igor Levit.

‘A sensational performance in every respect’

‘Jonathan Powell is undoubtedly today’s most highly-qualified pianist for this extreme repertoire’

‘His piano playing is characterised by enormous sonority and precisely differentiated dynamics; even in the loudest passages’

Powell masters the necessary precision of touch – and he also keeps track of the large-scale harmonic progressions.’

On personal invitation by Igor Levit, Jonathan Powell will perform the German premiere of Sorabji’s monumental 8.5 hour set of variations ‘Sequentia Cyclica’ in 5 concerts over 3 days at the Heidelberger Frühling Festival beginning of April.

On Saturday 26th March, Michael Zlabinger accepted to conduct his debut with the Tonkünstler Orchester Niederösterreich with only a few hours notice. The programm included among others Kurt Weill’s second Symphony:

A week before going to play the entire Sequentia Cyclica as German Premiere on Igor Levit’s invitation at the Heidelberger Fruehling Festival beginning April, Jonathan Powell performs the entire monumental set of 27 variations on Dies Irae as a Baltic premiere at the Decibels Festival in Riga on 23rd March. Recommended listening, Edgars Raginskis talks to Jonathan about his ties to Latvia and the upcoming performance of SC on Radio Klasika:

Thanks to the initiative of Randol Schoenberg and Michael Haas,
Hans Winterberg‘s music can now be made public despite of an imposed embargo by the Sudenten German Music institute.
Boosey & Hawkes / Exilarte started working on a first ever Winterberg Edition, with english pianist Jonathan Powell in charge of all piano works, and German Radio embarked on a series of new recordings of his orchstral works:

Having had to spostpone a planned debut last season, the Alban Berg Ensemble Wien is giving its Riga debut at the Viennese Classics Festival on 26th February with a program dedicated to Schubert’s 225th anniversary: