2024

Schackenborg
Musikfest

August 9-11

ARTISTS

ARTISTS 2024

Lea Desandre, mezzo-soprano (France/Italy)

Thomas Dunford, lute (France)

Julia Pusker, violin (Hungary)

Nicholas Algot Swensen, viola (Denmark/USA)

Katrine Gislinge, piano (Denmark)

TRIO ORELON:
Judith Stapf, violin (Germany)
Arnau Rovira i Bascompte, cello (Spain)
Marco Sanna, piano (Italy)

THE DANISH CLARINET TRIO:
Tommaso Lonquich, clarinet (Italy)
Jonathan Slaatto, cello (Denmark/Germany)
Martin Qvist Hansen, piano (Denmark)

CONCERTS 2024

Friday, August 9th

19:30 @ Schackenborg Castle

Schackenborg 1, Møgeltønder

'FAIRY TALES AND SERENADES'

Julia Pusker, violin

Nicholas Algot Swensen, viola

Tommaso Lonquich, clarinet

Jonathan Slaatto, cello

Martin Qvist Hansen, piano

Robert Schumann, Märchenbilder for piano & viola, Op. 113

Ernst von Dohnányi, Serenade in C Major for string trio, Op. 10

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Robert Schumann, Fantasiestücke for clarinet & piano, Op. 73

Gabriel Fauré, Piano Quartet No. 1, in C minor, Op. 15

Two world-class talents, violinist Julia Pusker and violist Nicholas Algot Swensen, join our artistic directors for a lyrical and intensely romantic opening concert.

Hungarian-born Julia Pusker, a prize-winner at the Queen Elizabeth Competition, is a regular guest at major concert halls, including the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées Paris, the Wiener Konzerthaus, and Müpa Budapest, to name just a few.

A recipient of the Leonie Sonning talent prize, the Danish-born Nicholas Algot Swensen has already won several other major prizes, among which at The Juilliard Viola Concerto Competition and the Primrose Viola Competition. Despite his 24 years of age, he is already in high demand as a soloist and chamber musician in both Europe and North America.

Saturday, August 10th
10:30 @ Møgeltønder Church
Sønderbyvej 2, Møgeltønder

'IDYLLE'

Lea Desandre, mezzo-soprano

Thomas Dunford, lute

D'ambruys: Le Doux Silence De Nos Bois

Hahn: Etudes Latines - No. 2 Neere

Francoise Hardy: Le Temps De L'amour

Satie: Gnossienne No.1

Charpentier: Celle Qui Fait Tout Mon Torment, H.450

Charpentier: Aupres Du Feu L'on Fait L'amour H.446

Charpentier: Tristes Deserts, Sombre Retreat H.469

Messages: L'amour Masque, Act 1 - J'ai Deux Amants

Satie: Gymnopedie - No. 1, Lent et Douloureux

Lambert: Ma Bergere Est Tendre et Fidele

Hahn: a Chloris

Charpentier: Sans Frayeur Dans Ce Bois, H.467

De Visee: Suite No. 7 in D Minor - III. Sarabande

Francoise Hardy: Le Premier Bonheur Du Jour

Le Camus: On N'entend Rien Dans Ce Bocage

Debussy: Pelleas et Melisande - Mes Longs Cheveux Descendent

Lambert: Ombre De Mon Amant

Lambert: Vos Mepris Chaque Jour

De Visee: Suite No. 7 in D Minor - V. Chaconne

Barbara: Dis, Quand Reviendras-tu

Le Camus: Laissez Durer La Nuit

Offenbach: La Belle Helene - Amours Divins

French love songs from three centuries, interspersed with reflective lute solos, constitute an Idylle for mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre and lutenist Thomas Dunford. As they explain: “The emotions of love are explored in different forms – languor, desire, fascination, happiness.”

The 2023 album by the same name was acclaimed with superlative reviews from all over the world:

"Spanning four centuries, this gorgeous recital from a couple who were brought together through a mutual love of French Baroque is absolutely hypnotic stuff...Desandre's limpid, flexible mezzo works beautifully against the delicacy of the theorbo, and Dunford's Satie transcriptions are mesmerising."
Presto Music

"Relentlessly beautiful, extremely French, (...) you’d be hard-pressed to resist the sexy allure and intimacy of this program".
The New York Times

Saturday, August 10th
14:30 @ Schackenborg Castle
Schackenborg 1, Møgeltønder

RISING STARS:

'The Countess and the Wanderer'

TRIO ORELON

Judith Stapf, violin

Arnau Rovira i Bascompte, cello

Marco Sanna, piano

Dora Pejačević, Piano Trio in C Major, Op. 29

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Franz Schubert, Piano Trio No. 2 in E-flat Major, D. 929

Trio Orelon has already established itself as one of Germany’s most exciting and inspiring young ensembles. A first prize winner of the ARD International Music Competition, the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition, the Franz Schubert and the Modern Music Competition in Graz, it has debuted in major concert halls such as the Tonhalle Düsseldorf, the Gewandhaus Leipzig, the Beethoven-Haus Bonn, the Alte Oper Frankfurt and the Konzerthaus Berlin.

In this highly original program, the castle hall will resound not only with the moving late masterpiece by Schubert (whose slow movement provided the unforgettable soundtrack to Stanley Kubrick's 'Barry Lyndon'), but also with the Trio by Croatian composer Dora Pejačević, a wrongfully neglected yet wonderfully crafted romantic pearl.

Saturday, August 10th

19:30 @ Schackenborg Castle

Schackenborg 1, Møgeltønder

'SOLO: 88 KEYS'

Katrine Gislinge, piano

Claude Debussy, Reflets dans l'eau, Claire de lune, L'isle joyeuse

Franz Schubert, Impromptus op. 90, no. 2, 3, 4

Robert Schumann, Carnaval op. 9 (selection)

Bent Sørensen, La sera estatica

Frédéric Chopin, Nocturne op. 9, no. 1 & Scherzo op. 20 no. 1

Over the past three decades, Katrine Gislinge has established herself as one of Scandinavia's leading and most significant pianists, and with her formidable will to express herself and exceptional empathy in music, she places herself as one of the most significant and interesting artists in Denmark.

Katrine Gislinge has collaborated with musicians and conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Gidon Kremer, Augustin Dumais, Jin Wang, Kurt Sanderling, Andreas Brantelied and more, and played at festivals such as Lockenhaus, Bergen, Trondheim, Cervantino, London, radio France Montpellier, as well as in concert halls such as Carnegie Hall, Concertgebouw etc.

"Gislinge tapped the pained beauty of this music in a way it was hard to imagine any other pianist getting close to."

Andrew Mellor

Sunday, August 11th
14:00 @ Schackenborg Castle
Schackenborg 1, Møgeltønder

'ETERNITY'

Julia Pusker, violin
Tommaso Lonquich, clarinet
Jonathan Slaatto, cello
Martin Qvist Hansen, piano

J.S. Bach, Chaconne from Violin partita no. 2 in d minor BWV 1004
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Olivier Messiaen, Quatuor pour la fin du temps (Quartet for the End of Times) for clarinet, violin, cello & piano

Our artistic directors join Julia Pusker for a memorable exploration of time, redemption and eternity. Two of the greatest religious composers and their tour-de-force masterpieces, two centuries apart. A monumental ending to Schackenborg Musikfest's fourth edition.

"Julia Pusker is a true aristocrat of the violin"
La Libre

"Tommaso Lonquich tore into the dazzling passage-work and soared on wings of song."
The New York Classical Review

"In conjunction with the ensemble’s eloquent pianist, Martin Qvist Hansen, the cellist, Jonathan Slaatto, dominated the sound, pungently playing the chords in the slow second movement and, in the third, plucking at the very top of the fingerboard for a brilliantly muted, curt effect. As Mr. Hansen’s lines grew more expansive in the third-movement Scherzo, Mr. Slaatto still spurred him on with an undercurrent of urgency.”
The New York Times

CONCERTS

BUY TICKETS

PARTOUT TICKETS ARE SOLD OUT,

but a limited number of single tickets is now available!

Due to Møgeltønder Church's large capacity, a limited number of single tickets is now available, exclusively for the saturday morning concert featuring Lea Desandre and Thomas Dunford.

BUY SINGLE TICKETS

New offer in collaboration with Løgumkloster Refugium
(SOLD OUT)

This very special offer includes:

- accommodation and breakfast at Løgumkloster Refugiet

- a pass for the whole festival (five concerts)

- the opportunity to participate in morning and evening singing in the atmospheric settings of Løgumkloster Church and the Chapter Hall.

More info

ABOUT THE FESTIVAL

Schackenborg Musikfest is a world-class chamber music festival taking place in the border-country between Denmark and Germany, on the grounds of beautiful Schackenborg Castle and in Møgeltønder.

Praised by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung for the high energy, artistic quality and risk-taking of its "Viking-spirited" artistic direction, the festival's ambition is to bring together Denmark's, Germany's and Europe's finest artists.

Launched in 2021, the festival has already been attended by thousands of audience members who have experienced 30 distinguished guests incl. Christian Tetzlaff, Nicolas Altstaedt, Alexander Lonquich, Mojca Erdmann, Anneleen Lenaerts and the Vertavo Quartet, among others.

The 2024 edition will feature 5 concerts, 20 composers and 11 artists, including the fabuluous duo of mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre and lutist Thomas Dunford, who visit us from Paris for an idyllic program in the perfect acoustics of Møgeltønder Church. Inspiring violinist Julia Pusker, a Queen Elizabeth Competition prizewinner, will join us from Hungary. Denmark will be represented by the outstanding young violist Nicholas Algot Swensen, as well as by beloved pianist Katrine Gislinge, who will enchant the Castle hall with a special evening dedicated to the piano. Our artistic directors, the Danish Clarinet Trio, will be joining other guests in the opening and closing concerts.

The development of exceptional young talent is a priority for the Danish Clarinet Trio: the Musikfest promotes the most vibrant Danish/German/Nordic talents through its "Rising Stars" program, which creates collaborations with established artists.

The 2024 edition will feature the fantastic Trio Orelon, which has already established itself as one of Germany’s most exciting and inspiring young ensembles. It was crowned first-prize winner of the ARD International Music Competition, the Melbourne International Chamber Music Competition, the Franz Schubert and the Modern Music Competition in Graz.

Past "Rising Stars" include Jonathan Swensen, Michael Germer, Gustav Piekut, Anna Agafia, Jonas Frølund and the NOVO Quartet.

Concerts take place in three venues:

1) the castle's elegant Entrance Hall, where a long and exciting history comes to life;

2) Møgeltønder Church, one of Denmark's most beautiful, offering a perfect acoustic and the country's oldest organ;

3) the peaceful Castle park, a magical outdoor venue in summer evenings (not for the 2024 edition).

The festival was founded by artistic directors Martin Qvist Hansen, Tommaso Lonquich and Jonathan Slaatto, members of The Danish Clarinet Trio. It is run in collaboration with consultant Per Erik Veng (former orchestra and choir director in DR) and the management of the Schackenborg Foundation.

ART & MUSIC OVERCOME BOUNDARIES

In 2022, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Sœnderjylland-Schleswig cooperation, the Musikfest began a cooperation with the association KUNST FÜR ANGELN in Schleswig-Holstein, thanks to financial support from Interreg Germany-Danmark and the European Union.

A new program was born: ART & MUSIC OVERCOME BOUNDARIES is a "cultural bridge" which will combine exhibitions of contemporary artworks by artists from Denmark and Schleswig-Holstein with music performances: on the Danish/Sønderjylland side, at Schackenborg Castle; on the Schleswig-Holstein/Angelland side, in the Asmus-Petersen barn at WITTKIELHOF.

The collaboration kicked off in 2023 with two cross-border projects:

1) At MØGELTØNDER SCHACKENBORG CASTLE: exhibition of a part of the art collection ROOSEN-TRINKS presented by the non-profit association KUNST FÜR ANGELN at Schackenborg Musikfest in the castle during Schackenborg Musikfest 2023. The exhibition was freely open to public.

2) At WITTKIELHOF/ SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN:
Saturday, October 7 and Sunday October 8, 2023: performances/program by Schackenborg Musikfest, The Danish Clarinet Trio & Kunst für Angeln e.V. at Wittkielhof

We look forward to resume the collaboration in 2025!

Read more at: https://www.kunstfuerangeln.de/

THE DANISH CLARINET TRIO
Artistic Leadership

Tommaso Lonquich – Clarinet
Jonathan Slaatto – Cello
Martin Qvist Hansen - Piano

The Danish Clarinet Trio was established in 2016 by three leading chamber musicians in Scandinavia, all members of world-renowned Ensemble MidtVest. The New York Times has praised their ‘undercurrents of urgency’ and ‘brilliant effects’.

The Trio has recorded for the Danish label Dacapo and has appeared on tours in Canada, Italy, Germany, Iceland, Brazil, the USA, the UK and throughout Scandinavia.

Between them, the Danish Clarinet Trio’s members are laureates of the ARD Competition in Munich, artists of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center and the prestigious BBC New Generation Artists scheme.

The ensemble has appeared on BBC, DR, ARD and on most other European radios. With Ensemble MidtVest it has recorded for the German label CPO.

In 2018, the trio was invited to reside at the BBC’s Belfast International Arts Festival as Ensemble-in-Residence.

The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung has praised the leadership of the Trio at Schackenborg, highlighting the Directors' daring energy as organizers and their depth and top quality on the concert stage.