Music for two guitars with Aniello Desiderio (Italy) & Zoran Dukic (Croatia)

Koblenz Guitar Festival & Academy for the first time at the Sayner Hütte

The Koblenz Guitar Festival & Academy will not change strings this year, but it will change sides – specifically, the sides of the Rhine: The concerts of the 33rd edition of the renowned music festival will take place for the first time this year at the Sayner Hütte, which, according to festival director Georg Schmitz, offers concert venues predestined for this music: “The Krupp Hall is particularly well-suited acoustically for solo recitals, while the Casting Hall is perfect for orchestral concerts.” Until now, they have taken place in the Rhein-Mosel-Halle; the previously held master classes at the Koblenz Castle are now moving to the State Music Academy at Schloss Engers.
As an “absolute fan of the Sayner Hütte,” Schmitz, who teaches as a professor at the University of Music in Mainz, had long had his eye on the Bendorf industrial monument with its fascinating architecture and found a receptive audience in managing director Dr. Björn Rodday. He emphasizes: “The Sayner Hütte combines history and present and provides an ideal setting for the Koblenz Guitar Festival as a vibrant resonance space for artistic questions. Within the historical industrial backdrop, the music can open new perspectives, promote dialogue between tradition and innovation, and intensify the cultural experience.” The nearby State Music Academy in Engers also offers excellent opportunities for teaching, as well as catering and accommodation for participants and instructors, Schmitz is pleased to note: “You are now very close to the pulse.”
And that pulse is likely to be racing for guitar music lovers between June 1 and 9, as everything that has rank and name in the international scene will gather at the Sayner Hütte. Audiences can experience artists from Germany and numerous European countries, as well as from overseas. They will perform solo and in various chamber music ensembles. The festival will also welcome, among others, the orchestra and choir of the University of Music Mainz, the Oxalis Quartet, the Joscho Stephan Trio, the Koblenz Guitar Festival Chamber Orchestra, and the French flutist Patrick Gallois.
The program includes exciting seminars, workshops, and master classes in addition to the concert offerings, as well as the annual competition at Schloss Engers, conversation concerts, and the presentation of the festival award for lifetime achievement to guitarist David Russell. During the festival, instrument builders will showcase their portfolio of string instruments and invite guests to try them out. Additional attractions include sound art installations by students from the Sound Art-Composition department of the University of Music Mainz across the entire monument area of the Sayner Hütte, as well as daily concerts in the chapel of the Heinrich-Haus in Engers. The relocation of the series and the new venues have generated great enthusiasm worldwide: “There are already registrations from Japan and Australia.”
The public can already purchase tickets for all events at www.koblenzguitarfestival.de and find detailed information about the individual concert programs. All performing artists are also presented there.