Carl Loewe Quintet
Magdeburg
Songs and chamber music of the 19th and 20th centuries with works by Schubert, Schumann, Brahms, Loewe, Wagner, Mahler and Puccini. Newly arranged for four string instruments and vocal part.
With Johannes Wollrab (baritone), Ronald Vitzthum (double bass & arrangement), Aisel Kapun (violin), Dorothea Schröder (viola) and Marcel Körner (cello).
About us
Two Dresden musicians, Johannes Wollrab and Ronald Vitzthum, who have never met in their hometown of Dresden, meet for the first time quite unexpectedly at the Magdeburg Theatre in 2020. The singer and the double bass player are united by their enthusiasm for the German art song of the 19th century and their special interest in the compositions of Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann. Even during his studies, Ronald Vitzthum arranged individual songs by Schubert and Schumann in various versions for string instruments and voice. In Magdeburg, he is now creating new arrangements, including Schubert's "Im Frühling" or "Der Erlkönig" for four strings and baritone.
In the unusual instrumentation with violin, viola, cello and double bass, new sound and interpretation possibilities of the original piano accompaniment unfold and invite a new musical discovery of the multi-layered text-music connections of the compositions. In addition to songs by Schubert and Schumann, the programme includes works by Johannes Brahms, Carl Loewe, Richard Wagner and Gustav Mahler, complemented by chamber music by Brahms and Giacomo Puccini. The string ensemble around Ronald Vitzthum is completed by Aisel Kapun, Dorothea Schröder and Marcel Körner. For the five musicians, it is the unconditional wish to present the art song and selected chamber music pieces in new tonal variations and individual interpretations to a broad audience and to bring them closer in an entertaining way.
