Violist Ernst-Martin Schmidt is looking forward to our Open House on October 4 for several reasons:

“I’ve been playing at open houses at the Konzerthaus more than 20 times, but they’re always something special! This year, I’m especially looking forward to the two concerts with the orchestra and, above all, our artist in residence, the fantastic soprano Vera-Lotte Boecker, who will perform short excerpts from Beethoven’s “Fidelio” and Dvořák’s “Rusalka” with us. I personally associate “Rusalka” with my completely unexpected marriage proposal to my wife, after we saw the opera in Prague. So there’s a great chance for a magical atmosphere at the Konzerthaus, too! Of course, we’ll be bringing our four children along: they love the children’s activities and are hoping to get their faces painted.The instrument carousel is also great—it lets you try out instruments under the guidance of KHO musicians. I’m wondering  if I shouldn’t give it a try myself. The oboe has fascinated me for a long time. I’d be curious to see the looks on the oboists’ faces  if I showed up there!”

[As for trying out the oboe, our violist will unfortunately have to be patient a little longer: This season, string instruments and a small harp await our young guests.]

On October 17 and 18, François Leleux will join us as soloist and conductor of the KHO—a truly special musical event that our principal oboist, Michaela Kuntz, highly recommends:

“What inspires me about François Leleux’s oboe playing is the way he combines his technical brilliance with his extraordinary musical expressiveness. His tone is extremely beautiful and warm, yet clear, luminous, and incredibly versatile. Every phrase he plays feels effortless and perfectly crafted. It’s particularly impressive how smoothly Leleux masters even the most demanding passages. His virtuosity is truly breathtaking. Even—and especially—in the soft passages, his playing retains this great intensity and expressiveness.

When he plays, he begins to sing—with a naturalness and agility that immediately captivates, moves, and lingers long in the memory. His enormous tonal palette lends the music a special vitality. What ultimately makes his playing so fascinating is the combination of technical perfection, musical freedom, and great emotional depth.”

Dramaturg Filiz Oflazoğlu eagerly awaits the second installment of our “Aşina” series on November 10, featuring kemençe player Deryan Türkan and his ensemble. The word “Aşina” is of Persia origin and refers to something that is familiar to us, even if we do not fully understand it: a sense of closeness that needs no explanation.

“I find it exciting that one of the world’s oldest soundscapes will now be heard in such a historic building, where European musical history was helped to take shape. This concert views Mesopotamia not only as a geographic region, but as a vast cultural space where different peoples, languages, faiths, and musical traditions converge. Great musicians from their respective countries and cultural circles are coming together under the curation of leading kemençe player Derya Türkan to bring Mesopotamia’s rich musical tradition to the stage and make audible what connects us across national and linguistic boundaries. As Derya Türkan once told me: ‘Borders are drawn on maps. A melody, on the other hand, continues on its path.’”