Winterreise - Weltreise

This recital is a global reimagining of Franz Schubert’s beloved song cycle. Selected original works by Franz Schubert are combined with songs by composers from non-European regions, drawing on thematic references to the original cycle (winter, wandering, and loneliness).

Musicologist Natasha Loges has invited internationally renowned baritone Stephan Loges and pianist Libby Burgess to Hamburg for this project.

The concert design draws on the practice of “interleaving” in the 19th century, which Natasha Loges has examined in detail in her research on concert history. This form of programming mixes different styles and genres into groups that are often combined with improvisation and spoken text. This allows the audience to hear connections between the individual pieces and place them in context.

The concert begins with composers from regions that are particularly relevant to a German audience, namely Israel, Ukraine, Turkey, and Syria, with songs by Verdina Shlonsky (1905-90), Nazife Güran (1921-93), and Gaswan Zerikly (1954). It then explores more distant regions through music by Venezuelan Antonio Estevez (1916-88) and two Nigerian composers, Joshua Uzoigwe (1946-2005) and Akin Euba (1935-2020), representing Igbo and Yoruba art songs respectively. A section at the end takes us back across Asia, with songs by Indian composer Vanraj Bhatia (1927-2021), Japanese composer Yoshinao Nakada (1923-2000), and Korean composer Sun-Ae Kim (1920-2007). The sequence was planned to emphasize the affinities with the more familiar songs from Schubert’s Winterreise.

With a panel discussion following the concert, this project contributes to intercultural and musical life in Hamburg.

Panel discussion following the concert:

The concert will be followed by a discussion on how the contradictory artistic legacies of European colonialism can be reflected upon in order to promote intercultural understanding. What examples have already been found? What has worked and how can we see this?

All details and the program: Winterreise-Weltreise – HIAS

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Host or Publisher Hamburg Institute for Advanced Study