Retrospective Festival 2022
It is with great pride and especially great joy that we look back with you on the 13th International Chamber Music Festival Wassenaar 2022 (May 19-22, 2022). What a joy it was to see you all again!
Hoffman
The 13th edition of the ICMF was a tribute to the German writer, composer and illustrator E.T.A. Hoffmann who died exactly 200 years ago. The Festival managed to connect literature, drawing and music. Bringing different art forms together has become an increasingly strong thread for the ICMF.
Masterclass
The festival began with the Chamber Music Masterclass at The Hague Conservatory, a tradition we started in 2021 and which is sure to remain on the festival's menu in the future. The master class focused on how to communicate with each other in ensemble playing. The teachers (Irina Renes, Manuel Hofer and Ofer Canetti) played with the students in an ensemble "Side-by-Side" and from within the ensemble was taught. The finale was a performance at the Senior Residence Van Ommeren Park. The interaction between the young musicians and the elderly residents of the residence is an emotional moment for the festival that we cherish.
Thomas Beijer
"Katers and life wisdom" at Museum Voorlinden - at one of the most inspiring locations in Wassenaar, we enjoyed an evening with pianist, composer, author and illustrator Thomas Beijer.
Thomas Beijer is the winner of the Dutch Music Prize; he embodies the spirit of E.T.A. Hoffmann like no other.
Prior to the concert, the audience had the opportunity to experience a unique private tour of the Museum. When does one get the chance to contemplate art in such an intimate way!
The concert included a world premiere performance of "Five Life Wisdom of Cat Murr" by Thomas Beijer (based on texts by E.T.A. Hoffmann and composed on behalf of the 13th ICMF). This concert was recorded by NPO Radio4 and broadcast on May 25. This can still be listened to at Radio4.
Young and Bold
Another strong point for our Festival is the opportunity to provide a stage for young talent. In the Village Church this time, music by Tchaikovsky and Mendelssohn by young and established talent. This year it was 15-year-old violinist Luca van der Waals who performed Tchaikovskyʼs Meditation and Valse Scherzo in an arrangement for solo violin and string quartet. She played to the stars!
After this, the audience could enjoy the world-famous Octet by Felix Mendelssohn by international world stars, musicians from the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, Lucerne Festival Orchestra and Stuttgarter Kammerorchester. Afterwards, a large group dined together with the musicians at Restaurant Veen next to the church, an evening not to be forgotten!
Nutcracker and Mouse King
And as a bouncer, our children's concert for the first time at the Rijnlands Lyceum in Wassenaar! How welcome we felt!
Mira Feticu, author and columnist for The Hague Central, rewrote E.T.A. Hoffmann's famous story into the tale of "The Nutcracker and the Mouse King" especially for our festival. The actress Kiki Jaski was narrator, dancer and fairy - and an impressive master of ceremonies. We hope to see her more often at our children's concerts!
The story was supported musically by a chamber ensemble consisting of 7 festval musicians and the music came from Tchaikovskyʼs familiar ballet "The Nutcracker" this time adapted for ensemble by Thomas Beijer.
