World premiere of the year: Vito Žuraj's first full-length opera Blühen came to the stage in Frankfurt in early 2023 under the musical direction of Michael Wendeberg and has now been named premiere of the year by Opernwelt magazine. In our interview, Vito Žuraj talks about his collaboration with librettist Händl Klaus, director Brigitte Fassbaender and the Ensemble Modern.

In 1975, Les Percussions de Strasbourg premiered Karlheinz Stockhausen's scenic composition Musik im Bauch. At the Berlin festival Maerz Musik, the ensemble presented the work in a visually and musically impressive new production by Simon Steen-Andersen.

Newborns as music critics: With Liszt's Liebestraum No. 2, Mariam Batsashvili starts a series of recordings of "baby-friendly" works from the piano repertoire.

Numerous obituaries, some of them very personal, pay tribute to the life and work of Friedrich Cerha, who died in February 2023.

On François-Frédéric Guy's first Chopin album Secret Garden, the pianist lets a cross-section of Chopin's works blossom on two CDs.

The GrauSchumacher Piano Duo inspires with their recording of Brigitta Muntendorf's Trilogy for two pianos and as performers in her Theater des Nachhalls (Theatre of Echo) included on Blue-ray.

The PluralEnsemble has recorded important works by Fabián Panisello for a recently released portrait CD.

In addition to having recorded all of György Ligeti's works for choir a cappella, the SWR Vokalensemble is offering workshops on the composer's work as part of a major school project and is also touring his music in Germany, Hungary, the Czech Republic, France and Italy in May and June.

Composers of various generations talk about their personal encounters with Friedrich Cerha’s monumental Spiegel cycle.

Congratulations to Daishin Kashimoto: his CD with chamber music by Nino Rota received a Diapason d'or award of the year!

On 2 February 2023, Samir Odeh-Tamimi's music theatre work Philoktet, based on the dramas by Sophocles, Heiner Müller and André Gide, was premiered at the Eclat Festival Stuttgart with the Neue Vocalsolisten and the Zafraan Ensemble.

In the first edition of our new kwmm podcast series "Encore," violinist Johanna Staemmler chats about the Armida Quartet's complete Mozart recordings while we listen to the interpretations together (in German).

Ming Tsao's Triode Variations, premiered in May by Ensemble Musikfabrik under Emilio Pomàrico, have now been released on CD; the Neue Vocalsolisten Stuttgart and the Kammerensemble Neue Musik Berlin have also recorded works by the composer for the album.

Composer and painter: Friedrich Cerha (1926-2023) was both. Karsten Witt on his encounters with the artist since the 1980s.

In May 2022, Ensemble Musikfabrik premiered Ming Tsao's Triode Variations in Cologne. We caught up with the composer during a visit to his Berlin flat in the run-up to the performance.

Congratulations to the Armida Quartet: the final CD of the complete Mozart recordings is currently receiving critical acclaim, and the previously released Volume 4 even receives an Opus Klassik award.

"Outstanding through and through": On 26 August, Miriam Batsashvili's second album was released on the Warner Classics label, centred on Liszt's piano transcriptions from the opera, lied, and organ repertoire.

The Armida Quartet has put together a comprehensive Mozart package in recent years: a concert series, a complete recording, and even an app - all with surprising perspectives on the composer.

The new CD by the Gringolts Quartet received outstanding reviews and was awarded a Diapason d'or.

The Armida Quartet becomes musical ambassador of the climate initiative Orchestras of Change.

In the November issue of the journal MusikTexte, Ming Tsao outlines ways towards a materialistic musical expression.

The recording of Ondřej Adámek's compositions Where are you? and Follow me with Magdalena Kožená, Isabelle Faust and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra conducted by Peter Rundel and Sir Simon Rattle has received the prestigious Italian critics' award Premio Abbiati del Disco.

The Castalian String Quartet's debut CD, released at the end of April, has received rave reviews.

Originally recorded for a film, this masterful interpretation of Mahler's Wunderhorn Lieder with baritone Dietrich Henschel and the Bochumer Symphoniker under Steven Sloane has now been released on CD.

Ming Tsao becomes Birge-Cary Professor of Music at the University at Buffalo, taking over the professorship once created for Morton Feldman.

In the FAZ, Ilya Gringolts is portrayed as a musician with enormous stylistic range and unwavering integrity.

Just before Bas Wiegers conducted his first concerts in front of a live audience in May, he sat down for an interview to reflect on the preceding Corona year.

As music director of the Folkoperan Stockholm, Henrik Schaefer started the season 2021/22 by bringing the house fresh ideas – and not just through the original romantic sound.

A Mozart with character, played to perfection: Rave reviews for the Armida Quartet's new CD.

Congratulations to Titus Engel on his appointment as the new Principal Conductor of the Basel Sinfonietta!

The first international orchestra to guest in two wonderful new halls: karsten witt musik management brought the London Philharmonic Orchestra under Robin Ticciati to Ankara and Istanbul.

On Vito Žuraj's new CD Alavò, three large orchestras and renowned soloists interpret three works from the past five years.

Before the premiere of the first part of his large spacial orchestra triptych, Philippe Manoury talked about his musical career, his first contact with electronic music and his handling of the large orchestral apparatus.

The complete recording of Christophe Bertrand's instrumental works with the GrauSchumacher Piano Duo, Peter Rundel, and Brad Lubman was awarded the German Record Critics' Award 2021.

For his music building bridges between cultures, Toshio Hosokawa has been awarded the Goethe Medal.

As promised by its title, the new CD of Trio Mediaeval provides comfort: Solacium combines lullabies, hymns, and chorales from the Nordic countries with newly composed works.

Part science documentary, part true crime story: Philippe Manoury about his reconstruction of Boulez' Livre pour quatuor.

Journalist Barry Davis (The Jerusalem Post) accompanied the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra's tour of Germany and drew an enthusiastic account of the first concert tour after the lockdown.

A much anticipated work by composer Samir Odeh-Tamimi received its world premiere at the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence 2021.

Ilya Gringolts' solo-CD Ciaccona features music of today and draws inspiration from Johann Sebastian Bach.

For his recording of Bach's six partitas, Mahan Esfahani examined various copies and printed editions of the works.

Diapason d'or for Ilya Gringolts: on his new CD with the Finnish Baroque Orchestra he dazzles with music by Locatelli.

Congratulations to Antje Weithaas on winning the BBC Music Magazine Award!

Simon Bode talks about his wanderlust for musical journeys.

With his work Api-danza macabra, Vito Žuraj addresses the explosive topic of bee mortality. The WDR Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Cristian Măcelaru, premiered the commissioned composition this summer.

Eliahu Inbal's recording of Shostakovich's 11th Symphony is the first purely orchestral release by the fledgling SWR Symphony Orchestra.

Congratulations to Ming Tsao on his award as a Fellow of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation for 2021!

Marie Heeschen and her ensemble Paper Kite are dedicated to the evocative music created during or as a result of the Thirty Years' War.

Outrage is not enough: Titus Engel talks to the FAZ about conducting Bartók's only opera and about cultural politics in Corona times.

The winner of the International Ernst von Siemens Music Prize 2020, Tabea Zimmermann, accepted the prize during the digital ceremony on 15 June 2021. A portrait by Patrick Hahn outlines her exceptional career.

The series of concerts celebrating Friedrich Cerha's 95th birthday culminated in August 2021: the monumental Spiegel cycle was performed at the Salzburg Festival by the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra under Ingo Metzmacher. We celebrated the anniversary with a collection of portrait articles, current links, and his video interview for the Stadtjournal wien.at.

Under the artistic direction of Jeremias Schwarzer, three venues in the northern Eifel came together for the first time to form an interdisciplinary festival in May, June and September 2021.

Our three-part series of interviews marking Eliahu Inbal's 85th birthday kicks off with musings and memories about his musical roots.

On 19 February, Ryoko Aoki joined musicians from Ensemble Musikfabrik in the virtual space to perform Peter Eötvös' melodrama Secret Kiss.

Jan Caeyers' Beethoven biography is a resounding success, also in its English translation.

Bringing about new things: Ilya Gringolts' I&I Foundation