METAMORPHOSIS. Hansjacob Staemmler, piano, Germany

MUSICA NATURAE

Metamorphosis - transformation, change 

Johann Sebastian Bach Goldberg Variations - Aria and 30 variations 

Hansjacob Staemmler, piano, Germany 

MUSICA NATURAE: GENESIS - METAMORPHOSIS - ECOSOPHIA - DIS(U)TOPIA - is a cycle of four  artistic concerts, consisting of a musical journey that aims to draw attention to the beautiful but fragile world around us. 

www.ziezirbos.lt

Hansjacob Staemmler, professor of piano and chamber music at the Frankfurt University of Music and Performing Arts, previously taught at the Berlin University of the Arts and at music academies in Freiburg and Karlsruhe. The pianist has been active for many years as a soloist, chamber musician, and song accompanist. His creative work focuses on a consistent and deep interest in chamber music for various ensembles. During his studies, he regularly performed as a chamber music partner with the Berlin Philharmonic Soloists ensemble. Since then, he has collaborated with renowned instrumentalists and vocalists, performing piano chamber music programs for various ensembles, from duets to sextets. As a soloist, he performs in recitals and concerts with orchestras. 

Contemporary music is an important part of Staemmler's repertoire. His collaboration with contemporary composers, whose works he often premieres, significantly enriches his artistic activity. The pianist's live performances have been recorded during radio broadcasts on Deutschlandradio Kultur, Bayerischer Rundfunk, and Südwestrundfunk, and released on nine CDs. 

Hansjacob Staemmler studied piano with Prof. Georg Sav at the Hanns Eisler Academy of Music in Berlin and honed his skills with Daniel Barenboim and Menahem Pressler. The oboist Burkhard Glaetzner, with whom he has performed numerous premieres and recorded works by important contemporary composers, has had a major influence on his artistic development. Hansjacob Staemmler is the artistic director of the "Klangwerk Lied" concert series in Freiburg.

_______________

Why is this genious 1-hour cycle of variations called the Goldberg Variations?

The name "Goldberg Variations" was actually only first used in the 19th century, when Johann Nikolaus Forkel's "Bach Biography" was published in 1802. It was Forkel who told the intriguing story that Count Hermann Karl von Keyserling (1697–1764), who suffered from insomnia, commissioned this long work from Bach so that it could be played by the court harpsichordist Johann Gottlieb Goldberg (1727–1756) before bedtime.