Project 1911 – 2011  

HOMAGE TO ABSTRACTION
Arnold Schönberg * Wassily Kandinsky

Multimedia project to the 100th anniversary
of the birth of abstract art

The background

The beginning of the 20th century was marked by the search for new ways of artistic expression. One of the most important events in this effort was the transition from figurative to nonfigurative or abstract painting and from tonal to atonal music where Wassily Kandinsky and Arnold Schönberg were the protagonists. Their paths crossed for the first time in Munich on 2nd January 1911 when Wassily Kandinsky came to Arnold Schönberg’s concert. Schoenberg's music that challenged classical tradition struck a chord with Kandinsky and the concert inspired his remarkable oil painting Impression III, Concert. Sensing an affinity between his own work and the composer’s ideas, Kandinsky wrote Schönberg shortly thereafter, initiating an extraordinary exchange between two artists and two fields - music and painting- exploring new horizons of abstractionism.
Through their letters, works and other tools we will depict the transition from tonal to atonal music (Schönberg: ops. 4, 10, 11) and witness the development from expressionist to abstract painting (Kandinsky: Impression III, Concert Watercolor with red spot/ Study for composition VII) that laid the foundations of 20th century modern art.
The project will travel through the three participating countries and will contribute to the deeper understanding of their common history. The project concerns events and figures well known in general that nevertheless provide a great number of inspirational stimuli to young generation of artists disregarding their artistic orientation.

The concept was developed and realized by the executive committee created by Ameropa, o. s., a Czech non-profit making organisation active in the field of music, cultural history and teaching, in cooperation with Arnold Schönberg Center, Vienna, Austria and Hochschule für Musik und Theater, Munich, Germany.

The project is realized in the three countries of the organizer and co-organizers: in Munich where the historic concert took place and the two protagonists met, in Vienna, where Arnold Schoenberg was born, and in Prague which is connected with another founder of abstract painting, František Kupka. The project will travel to other places in the Czech Republic, namely Brno, Prague and Ostrava.

• Zweites Streichquartett fis-Moll op. 10 mit eine Sopranstimme (1907-1908)
• Drei Klavierstücke, op. 11 (1909)
• Fünf Lieder (1899 - 1905)
• Erstes Streichquartett d-Moll op. 7, (1904–1905)

Anna Maria Pammer (Austria) - soprano
Siegfried Mauser (Germany) - piano
Zemlinsky Quartet (Czech Republic)
Jiří Vyorálek (Czech Republic) / James Newton (Germany) - Arnold Schönberg
Tomáš Sýkora (Czech Republic) / Rasmus Max Wirth (Germany) - Wassily Kandinsky

Set and direction - Martin Otava

CZECH »»»
GERMAN »»»

30.5.2011 - Rudolfinum, Dvořák Hall - Prague spring festival»»»

Arnold Schönberg:

• Zweites Streichquartett fis-Moll op. 10 mit eine Sopranstimme (1907-1908)
• Drei Klavierstücke, op. 11 (1909)

Gustav Mahler, arr. Arnold Schoenberg:

Anna Maria Pammer – soprano
Dagmar Pecková – mezzosoprano
Jaroslav Březina – tenor
Siegfried Mauser – piano
Zemlinsky Quartet

Chamber ensemble Ameropa :
David Ehrich - 1. housle, Ada Slivanská - 2. housle, Jiří Poslední - viola, Jitka Vlašánková - violoncello, Dalibor Tkadlčík - kontrabas, Václav Slivanský – flétna/pikola, Liběna Séquardtová – hoboj/anglický roh, Nikola Djurica – klarinet in B/klarinet in Es/basklarinet, Luboš Hucek - fagot, Jan Vobořil - lesní roh, Daniel Mikolášek a Pavel Polívka - bicí nástroje, Václav Mácha - klavír, Miroslav Sekera – harmonium / celesta

Vadim Mazo – dirigent

31.5.2011 - Museum Kampa - Prague spring festival»»»

Concert Schönberg / Mahler
Pocta atonalitě a abstrakci / Homage to Atonality and Abstraction
Mahler, Schőnberg, Kandinsky, Kupka

Gustav Mahler - Piano Quartet” in a minor
Arnold Schönber - Vier Lieder from op. 2
Anton Webern - Langsamer Satz” for string quartet
Arnold Schönberg - Vier Lieder - op. 6
Arnold Schönberg - Verklarte Nacht” for string sextet

David Ehrlich, Lubomír Havlák – violin
Jiří Poslední, Zbyněk Paďourek – viola
Jitka Vlašánková, Jakub Dvořák – cello
Anna Maria Pammer – soprano
Siegfried Mauser – piano

Exhibitions

Abstraction and Atonality:
Arnold Schönberg - Wassily Kandinsky

Traveling exhibition scheduled with concerts based on documents, facsimiles, DVD,
prepared by Arnold Schoenberg Center Vienna a Ameropa. As an accompanying program of chamber music concerts.

Concept and Curator
Christian Meyer, Anita Pelánová


Kandinsky – Schoenberg – Kupka
Muzeum Kampa, Praha 2011 (May - July).
The exhibition is realized in cooperation of galleries and other cultural institutions of three countries: CZ, Austria and Germany.
The exhibition will be set as an accompanying program for the Prague Spring Festival 2011.

Curators
Meda Mládková, Christian Meyer, Jiří Machalický

Teaching activities and seminars connected to the project

18th Ameropa chamber music festival and courses 2011

Ameropa performing and studies theme for the year of 2011 will be Homage to the art of Abstractionism
with subtitle „From Expressionism to Abstractionism“  - cooperation with the Arnold Schoenberg Center, Hochschule für Musik und Theater Munich and other cultural and educational organizations of those three countries and other European and not European countries.

Auspice
Václav Riedlbauch, former The Minister of Culture
Jiří Besser, The Minister of Culture
PhDr. Jan Kohout, former The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs CR
Miroslava Kopicová, former The Minister of education

Grants and Sponsors
Česko-německý fond budoucnosti
Goethe Institut
Rakouské kulturní fórum
Městské divadlo v Liberci

Project team
Organizer
Ameropa, o. s., Czech Republic

Co-organizers
Arnold Schönberg Center, Austria
Hochschule für Musik und Theater München, Germany

Partners
Charles University, Prague
Czech Centrums, Munich and Vienna
Kampa Museum, Prague
National Theatre, Brno
Prague Spring International Music Festival

Director and author of the project concept
Prof. Vadim Mazo, Illinois Wesleyan University, USA, founder and artistic director of Ameropa, o. s.

Members of the team
Manager
PHDr. Veronika Maxová

Producer
Mgr. Ada Slivanská, executive director of Ameropa, o. s.

Coordinator
PhDr. Věra Váchová

Concept Team
Dr. Christian Meyer, Director, Arnold Schoenberg Center, Vienna
Mgr. Jaroslav Slavický, Director, Dance Conservatory city of Prague
PhDr. Jaroslav Bláha, Ph.D, Charles University, Prague
PhDr. Anita Pelánová, Charles University, Prague
Sandra Průša, B.A., head of exhibitions dept., Kampa Museum, Prague

Executive Committee
Akad. arch. Daniel Dvořák, Director, National Theatre, Brno
Antonín Matzner, Dramaturge, Prague Spring Festival
Prof. Dr. Siegfried Mauser, Rector, Hochschule für Music und Theater, Munich
PhDr. Jiří Machalický, Curator, Kampa Museum Prague