Friday, 10. november 2023, at 19.00 to 22.00; Cirkulacija², Ajdovščina underpass, Ljubljana

WERCKMEISTER (CH-D-A-NL)

The foundation stone for the WERCKMEISTER quartet was laid by Markus Eichenberger and Carl Ludwig Hübsch, who met for the first time at the Human Noise Congress in Wiesbaden in 1994. Since then, they have collaborated in several projects, such as Eichenberger’s Domino Orchestra or Hübsch’s Ensemble X. In March 2016, together with Philip Zoubek – a versatile young pianist with a sharp musical ear – and the promising percussionist Etienne Nillesen on an electronic synthesizer –, they founded the Werckmeister quartet. The types of instruments in the quartet could hardly be more varied but when played in harmony the differences fade into a distinctly tonal, sensitive and sensual music. It opens the listener’s ears to an unusual variety of tuning systems and, familiar in improvised music, temperaments. The name Werckmeister refers to the German Baroque musician and music theorist Andreas Werckmeister, who published his book Musicalische Temperatur (Musical Temperament) in 1691, paving the way for a new system of instrument tuning. This unique and unusual quartet will be presented in Slovenia for the first time.

· Markus Eichenberger – clarinets
· Carl Ludwig Hübsch – tuba
· Philip Zoubek – synthesizer
· Etienne Nillesen – extended snare drum

MARKUS EICHENBERGER (1956) has been working since 1977 as a clarinettist and partly as a saxophonist in various groups and projects almost exclusively in the field of free improvised music. His musical work has been supported by the City and Canton of Zurich, the Aargau Administrative Board, Pro Helvetia and numerous foundations. He has received several awards: the WDR “Forum Junger Composers” Award (1992), the Cultural Award of the Kiwanis Foundation (1998), a composition commissioned by the Pro Helvetia Foundation for DOMINO (2000), the Cultural Award of the Association for Economy and Culture, Willisau (2004) and the Covid-19 Working Grant from the City of Zurich (2021). / https://eichenberger.li

CARL LUDWIG HÜBSCH (1966) started his musical career in his native Freiburg as a clarinettist in a local pleh band. After a punk-rocker period playing drums, he discovered jazz and free improvisation, which led him to study improvisation with M. A. Fataah. He completed his studies in singing, theory and drumming at the Freiburg Pedagogical University. He also studied electronic music with Prof. Klaus Weinhold. In Cologne he studied as a visiting student with composer Johannes Fritsch. When he moved to Cologne in 1990 he received a lifetime university scholarship. Hübsch’s playing focuses on improvised and contemporary composed music. He composes and performs music himself in concert halls, studios and theatres, and plays with ensembles and orchestras. The acclaimed tuba player has been awarded residencies in the USA, Austria and Switzerland, won the Jazzpott Award Essen (2003), SWR Newjazz Meeting (2012), and was a composer at the Welttheater Einsiedeln (2013). He has collaborated on more than 65 soundtracks. / https://www.huebsch.me

PHILIP ZOUBEK (1978), born in Tulln, Austria, lives and works as a pianist and composer in Cologne. Since 1996 he has studied jazz piano with Reinhard Mick in Vienna. In 2002 he moved to Cologne, where he studied jazz piano with Hans Lüdemann. In 2008 he was awarded the Horst and Gretl Will Scholarship of the City of Cologne. Zoubek has collaborated with Frank Gratkowski, Wilbert de Joode, Thomas Lehne, Clayton Thomas and Paul Lytton, to mention just a few notable names. He has performed at the Konzerthaus Wien, the Luxembourg Philharmonic, the Moersfestival, the Ullrichsberger Kaleidophon and the GetItLouder Festival in Shanghai and Beijing. Zoubek is a founding member of the Kölner Kollektiv for Improvisation and Musical Art. In 2020, he was awarded the prestigious WDR Jazz Prize for his composition. / https://philipzoubek.com

ETIENNE NILLESEN is a percussionist and composer from the Netherlands, currently based in Cologne. The drum is a central part of Nillesen’s artistic practice. Using an instrumental and physical approach, he explores and breaks the boundaries of the natural acoustics of the snare drum with conventional and extended playing techniques. His work incorporates elements of conceptual and spontaneous composition, structured improvisation, performance and sound art. He has appeared as composer and performer on over thirty albums of new music, improvised music and jazz. His interest in different forms of exploratory music has allowed him to work regularly with some of the most renowned artists in music and with Ensemble Modern.He is currently a professor at ArtEZ University of the Arts in the Netherlands, where he teaches drums and improvised music. / https://etiennenillesen.com

before:

Young Researchers VI.: DOMEN KUŽNAR – +Disposition (SLO)

The Young Researchers series of residencies, concerts and performances is designed to guide the integration of a selected artist of a younger generation into professional infrastructural and research environments. In 2023, one of the artists in residence is violist Domen Kužnar, who will present his project entitled +Disposition. In 2023, the ensemble presents an opus of new works, created and developed in the context of multi-day residencies and performances. The artist-in-residence has asked questions such as: “What is structure in composition and what are its realisations in music? How do various specificities such as subject matter, message, creativity or meaning inform, compose, modify, build upon the structure itself and contribute to the development of composition and, consequently, music? How does this affect the understanding and perception of music?” Young Researchers is a programme of the Institution .abeceda. The upcoming concert will be the fourth of the season for the ensemble.

· Miha Sever – upright piano
· Anja Kralj – violin
· Manica Slapšak – viola
· Domen Kužnar – viola

DOMEN KUŽNAR (1998) is a violist and composer. He is currently studying viola at the Academy of Music at the University of Ljubljana with Prof. Maja Rome. As part of the Erasmus+ exchange, he studied at the Icelandic University of the Arts with Professors Þórunn Ósk Marínósdóttir and Svavi Bernharðsdóttir. During his studies he focuses on technical improvement and expressiveness on the instrument, and is particularly interested in the repertoire of contemporary and new music. He is a member of Transposition String Quartet+ and the ensemble .abeceda [ensemble for new music]. His mentors include Nabuko Imao, Emile Cantor, Peter Barszony, Garth Knox, Atar Arad, Vincent Royer, Helfried Fister and Dré A. Hočevar.

ANJA KRALJ started violin lessons at the age of5. After finishing junior music school, she enrolled at the Conservatory of Music and Ballet in Ljubljana, where she graduated under the tutelage of Prof. Žiga Branko. She is now studying at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana with Prof. Gorjan Košuta. She regularly participates in competitions at national and international level and performs as a soloist and member of the Perpetuum String Quartet in solo recitals. She is also interested in contemporary and folk music. She explores the former through joint music-making with saxophonist Vida Piko Vatovec, in Duo Bob, and the primordiality and simplicity of music with the Academic Folklore Group France Marolt.

MANICA SLAPŠAK (2000) began her musical career at the age of 12 playing the violin, and after three years she met the viola for the first time. After graduating from the Secondary Music School in viola at the art direction of the I. High School in Celje, she enrolled at the Academy of Music in Ljubljana, where she studies in the class of doc Maja Rome. She is a member of the Perpetuum String Quartet and the Krklec String Quartet. She regularly participates in various orchestras – Ensemble Dissonance, Amadeo Orchestra and SMO, and as a substitute also with the RTV Slovenian Symphony Orchestra and various occasional ensembles. During her studies she attended masterclasses with teachers such as Nobuko Imai, Emile Samama Cantor, Maja Rome, Halfried Fister and Volodja Balzalorsky.

MIHA SEVER (1998) is currently a second year student of Geography and Slovenian Studies. He is active in the fields of proofreading, editing, censorship, teaching, language technology, etc. He started his musical career o piano in Monika Höfler’s class at the Franca Šturm High School. After completing eight grade, he continued on keyboards in various high school and student rock/jazz bands. As a choir singer, he is active in the St. Stanislaus Student Choir and the vocal group Laulu.

Production: KUD Mreža / FriForma, Ljubljana; programme curated by Nataša Serec & László Juhász
Co-production: Institution ON Rizom, Ljubljana & Institution .abeceda, Ljubljana
Graphic design: Urša Rahne
FriForma concert series is supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia & MOL – Department of Culture
Special thanks to ProHelvetia Swiss Arts Council & Aargauer Kuratorium