Terrestrial dread – heavenly consolation

Mario Venzago is the principal conductor and artistic director of the Bern Symphony Orchestra since 2010 and Artist in Association at Finland’s Tapiola Sinfonietta since 2007.

Before, he was principal conductor or general music director of the following orchestras: Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Basque National Orchestra in San Sebastian, Basel Symphony Orchestra, Graz Opera und Graz Philharmonic Orchestra, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Frankfurt (now Bremen), Theatre and Philharmonic Orchestra of the City of Heidelberg and Musikkollegium Winterthur. From 2010 to 2014 he was principal conductor of the Royal Northern Sinfonia and from 2000 to 2003 Artistic Director of the Baltimore Summer Fest, as successor to Pinchas Zukermann and David Zinman.

Mario Venzago has conducted the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, the orchestras in Philadelphia and Boston, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France, the Filarmonica della Scala and the NHK Symphony Orchestra. He is a regular guest conductor with internationally renowned orchestras such as the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, the Netherlands Philharmonic Orchestra, the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra, the Konzerthausorchester Berlin and the Frankfurter Museumsorchester.

Mario Venzago has given concerts with the world’s most famous soloists, and worked together with directors such as Ruth Berghaus, Peter Konwitschny and Hans Neuenfels.

Several of his CDs have won international prizes such as the Grand Prix du Disque, the Diapason d’or and the Edison Award. His recordings of the operas “Venus” and “Penthesilea” and of all choral works by Othmar Schoeck with the MDR choir and symphony orchestra received great international recognition and prestigious awards, as did his first film, “My Brother the Conductor” by Alberto Venzago, which was shown in cinemas across Europe and brought out on DVD. In the spring of 2015, the collaboration between Mario Venzago and the label CPO on the project “The Other Bruckner,” with all ten Bruckner symphonies, was completed. The individual releases, acclaimed by international critics, are available from CPO, as are the complete CD box and a documentary film (www. jpc.de).

The complete recording of the serenades and symphonies by Johannes Brahms has been released in June 2018. Further, the recording of Franz Schubert’s „Unfinished“ symphony with the Kammerorchester Basel, completed and conducted by Mario Venzago (Sony), currently causes a stir.

For more than three decades, Jean-Yves Thibaudet has performed world-wide, recorded more than 50 albums, and built a reputation as one of today’s finest pianists. From the start of his career, he delighted in music beyond the standard repertoire, from jazz to opera, which he transcribed himself to play on the piano. His profound professional friendships crisscross the globe and have led to spontaneous and fruitful collaborations in film, fashion, and visual art.

Thibaudet expresses his passion for education and fostering young musical talent as the first-ever Artist-in-Residence at the Colburn School in Los Angeles, where he makes his home. The school has extended the residency for an additional three years and has announced the Jean-Yves Thibaudet Scholarships to provide aid for Music Academy students, whom Thibaudet will select for the merit-based awards, regardless of their instrument choice.

In 2019/20 Thibaudet renews many longstanding musical partnerships. As the St. Louis Symphony’s Artist-in-Residence, he plays a pair of season-opening concerts conducted by long-time friend and collaborator Stéphane Denève. He tours a program of Schumann, Fauré, Debussy, and Enescu with Midori, followed by the complete Beethoven sonatas for piano and violin. Thibaudet gives the world premiere of Aaron Zigman’s Tango Manos concerto for piano and orchestra with the China Philharmonic, and goes on to perform it with the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and San Francisco Symphony; Zigman composed the score for the 2016 film Wakefield, for which Thibaudet was the soloist. A noted interpreter of French music, Thibaudet performs works by Ravel, Saint-Saëns, Connesson, and Debussy around the world; as one of the premiere interpreters of Messiaen’s Turangalîla-Symphonie, Thibaudet performs the piece in his hometown as Artist-in-Residence of the Orchestre National de Lyon. He also brings along his passion for Gershwin, performing the Concerto for Piano in F Major in Lyon as well as Houston, Los Angeles, Boston, New York, Naples, Tokyo, and at the Bad Kissinger Sommer Festival, where he is Artist-in-Residence.

Thibaudet’s recording catalogue has received two Grammy nominations, the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik, the Diapason d’Or, the Choc du Monde de la Musique, the Edison Prize, and Gramophone awards. He was the soloist on the Oscar-winning and critically acclaimed film Atonement, as well as Pride and Prejudice, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close, and Wakefield. His concert wardrobe is designed by Dame Vivienne Westwood. In 2010 the Hollywood Bowl honored Thibaudet for his musical achievements by inducting him into its Hall of Fame. Previously a Chevalier of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres, Thibaudet was awarded the title Officier by the French Ministry of Culture in 2012.