The Swedish Radio Choir Sings Bach
In the late 1730s, Johann Sebastian Bach composed four short masses in Latin. He selected parts from his existing older works, putting them together in new and ingenious ways in these musically rich mass settings. One of these short masses is performed here by the Swedish Radio Choir and conductor Fredrik Malmberg, together with the church cantata Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, regarded by conductors as one of Bach’s most well-written cantatas.
The concert takes place at Oscarskyrkan, Saturday 25 November at 3 pm., and will be broadcasted in the Swedish Radio Friday, December 15 at 7 pm.
Participants
For more than 90 years, the Swedish Radio Choir has contributed to the development of the Swedish a cappella tradition. Under the leadership of legendary conductor Eric Ericson, the choir earned great international renown. It is still hailed as one of the best choirs in the world. The choir members’ ability to switch between powerful solo performances and seamlessly integrating themselves in the ensemble creates a unique and dynamic instrument praised by critics and music lovers alike, as well as by the many guest conductors who explore and challenge the choir’s possibilities.
Permanent home of the Swedish Radio Choir since 1979 is Berwaldhallen, the Swedish Radio’s concert hall. In addition to the seated audience, the choir reaches millions of listeners on the radio and the web through Klassiska konserten i P2. Several concerts are also broadcast and streamed on Berwaldhallen Play, offering the audience more opportunities to come as close as possible to one of the world’s top choirs.
With the 2020–2021 season, Kaspars Putniņš begins his tenure as the tenth Music Director of the Swedish Radio Choir. Since January 2019, Marc Korovitch is the choirmaster of the Swedish Radio Choir with responsibility for the ensemble’s continued artistic development. Two of the orchestra’s former Music Directors, Tõnu Kaljuste and Peter Dijkstra, were appointed Conductors Laureate in November 2019. Both maintain a close relationship with the choir and make regular guest appearances.
The Swedish Radio Choir was founded the same year as the Swedish Radio Service began its broadcasts and the choir had its first concert in May 1925. Right from the start, the choir had high ambitions with a conscious aim to perform contemporary music.
Fredrik Malmberg innehar sedan 2012 två prestigefyllda uppdrag i det svenska musiklivet: chefsdirigent för Eric Ericsons Kammarkör och professor i kördirigering vid Kungliga Musikhögskolan. Han är en erfaren uttolkare av verk i skiftande stilar och epoker men har en särskild förkärlek för den samtida körmusiken som han framhäver, inte minst med hans egen ensemble, Vokalharmonin. Han tjänstgör även som musiker i Oscarskyrkan i Stockholm.
Malmbergs verksamhet omfattar såväl kör- som orkesterrepertoar och han har samarbetat med ensembler såsom Radiokören och Sveriges Radios Symfoniorkester, Concerto Copenhagen, DR Vokalensemblet, Helsingborgs symfoniorkester, Tallinns kammarorkester och Mariinskijteaterns orkester. Han är även efterfrågad som pianist och organist, bland annat med Mahler Chamber Orchestra, under ledning av dirigenter som Daniel Harding och Claudio Abbado.
Han har mottagit flera priser och utmärkelser för sin musikaliska gärning. 2012 listade musikmagasinet Opus Malmberg som en av de som gjort mest för att förnya konstmusiken i Sverige. Han är utbildad som kyrkomusiker, med diplom i orgelspel från Musikhögskolan i Malmö och Paris. Som 25-åring vann han första pris i orgelimprovisation i en internationell tävling i Biarritz.
Soloists in Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme:
Magnus Wennerberg
Kathrin Lorenzen
Lars Johansson Brissman
Soloists in Mass in G major:
Karl Söderström
Eleonora Poignant
Anna Graca
Niklas Engquist
Jesenka Balic Zunic, violin 1
Katarina Bengtsson-Dennis, violin 1
Marie-Louise Marming, violin 1
Emma Nyman, violin 2
Arsema Asghodom, violin 2
Juliana Shapiro, violin 2
Rastko Roknic, viola
Gabriel Bania, viola
Ingrid Andersson Kjellsdotter, cello
Mattias Frostensson, double bass
Pär Stolpe, oboe
Ia Neumüller, oboe
Jana Langenbruch, oboe
Sven Aarflot, bassoon
Andreas Bengtsson, corno
Johan Hansson Lindström, harpsichord
Leon Tscholl, organ
Approximate duration: 1 hr
The Oscar church is situated on Narvavägen 6, Stockholm
Tickets
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