Podcasts about munich philharmonic

Latvian cellist and conductor Margarita Balanas has played at venues around the world, from Carnegie Hall to the Sydney Opera House. She's performed as soloist with the Munich Philharmonic and the Barcelona Symphony Orchestra among many others, and conducted orchestras including the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich and the Baltic Sea Philharmonic, and is the founder and music director of the ANONIMI orchestra and charity.As children, Margarita and her siblings raised money by busking in order to afford the travel and entry fees to be able to play in competitions. Her incredible tenacity and motivation took her to London and the Purcell School, then the Royal Academy of Music, and lead her to becoming assistant conductor to Paavo Järvi. Margarita shares this incredible journey with us, as well as a number of pieces she has performed with her sister, violinist Kristine Balanas, as part of that journey.Follow Margarita on Instagram @margaritabalanas and on her website www.margaritabalanas.com

Join us on today's episode of the You Can Heal Your Life podcast, where you'll hear a chapter from Sacred Vibrations, the brand-new audiobook by internationally acclaimed singer, musician, and sound healer Jeralyn Glass. In this excerpt, Jeralyn shares a transformative experience during a high-pressure performance with the Munich Philharmonic. Discover how the power of music and sound vibration grounded and elevated her, reinforcing her belief in music as a tool for healing and transformation. Jeralyn also introduces the concept of "music medicine," highlighting its growing recognition for promoting mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Don't miss your chance to listen to the full audiobook FREE with a trial of Empower You Unlimited Audio. Start listening today by visiting hayhouse.com/empoweryou!

Today on the You Can Heal Your Life podcast, you'll hear an exclusive excerpt from the upcoming Raise Your Vibration Challenge. In this lesson, singer, musician, and leader in the field of sound healing Jeralyn Glass explores the transformative power of music and sound vibration. Through a recounting of her extraordinary performance at the Munich Philharmonic concert hall, Jeralyn explains that music, especially the frequencies produced by crystal singing bowls, has significant healing properties, that can support our mental, emotional, and physical health.   You can listen to the full lesson today by joining the FREE Raise Your Vibration Challenge virtual event. During this 4-day challenge hosted by Kyle Gray, you'll receive the tools to elevate your energy, increase your spiritual connection, raise the frequency of the planet, and live a life that's filled with more joy, love, and miracles. The challenge starts July 9th, but you can get started today with immediate access to 3 bonuses—including the full lesson from Jeralyn Glass, a beautiful meditation from Louise Hay, and a chapter from Kyle's audiobook. Visit hayhouse.com/vibe to join now.

This week on the podcast is part two of our interview with renowned lyric tenor, Matthew Polenzani. He performs regularly with the Metropolitan Opera and appears in opera houses around the world such as the Vienna State Opera, Paris Opera, and Teatro Real in Madrid. Matthew is continuously in demand for concert engagements with the world's most influential conductors, and with premiere ensembles such as the Berlin Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and the Munich Philharmonic.​Join us for this mini-master class in career development for any aspiring musician! https://matthewpolenzani.com/

Today we release part one of our interview with renowned lyric tenor, Matthew Polenzani. He performs regularly with the Metropolitan Opera and appears in opera houses around the world such as the Vienna State Opera, Paris Opera, and Teatro Real in Madrid.  Matthew is continuously in demand for concert engagements with the world's most influential conductors, and with premiere ensembles such as the Berlin Philharmonic, Boston Symphony, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, and the Munich Philharmonic.Join us for this mini-master class in career development for any aspiring musician!  https://matthewpolenzani.com/

Website: https://thefuriousbongos.com/ US/CA/EU Booking, Music Director, general info Conrad St. Clair thefuriousbongos [at] gmail.com / +1 608-220-1963 EU/UK Booking Chris Huntington / Head On Entertainment headonent [at] gmail.com / +1 410-903-8634 Management Tommy Wilson tommyhawkwilson [at] gmail.com / +1 718-473-256 We're only in it for the money. HAHAHAHA OK, OK...we're just a bunch of professional musicians with pretty diverse backgrounds who decided to take on a pretty big challenge and have some fun in the process.  Now, you might ask, “Oh yeah? Professional musicians, eh? What makes you think you can play Frank's music as well as [insert Zappa family/band member here]?” Well, maybe you haven't heard of us individually, but  "we're pretty good musicians"  and you probably have heard of the folks on our resumes:  BB King, Mick Fleetwood, Vinnie Colaiuta, Googoosh, Dweezil Zappa, LA Philharmonic, Arthur Barrow, Munich Philharmonic, Bryan Beller, Popa Chubby, Yo Yo Ma, Limelight: A Tribute To Rush, Pinetop Perkins, Chicago Lyric Opera, Madison Opera, blah blah blah....you get the idea. As for Frank's music, he was constantly changing things, both for his own creative choices and to adapt to the different musicians he had over the years. He also understood that his live performances were entertainment: it's supposed to be a rock show, not a piano recital. With all that in mind, we don't think playing Song X from Album Y note-for-note while staring at our shoes is the proper way to go about this. The result of that approach (combined with a lot of homework) is a show that pays respect to Zappa's legacy, but is also new and different and dangerous and FUN, with lots of eyebrows. Kinda like Frank.  --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/somethingcame-from-baltim/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/somethingcame-from-baltim/support

Hip-Bone Music is back and kicks off our 2023 season with an energizing sit down featuring one of today's true virtuoso trombonists, Mr. Peter Steiner. Peter touches on growing up in Bolzano, Italy, studying in Austria and eventually at the Juilliard School, performing with the Vienna Philharmonic, NY Philharmonic, Dallas Symphony, Munich Philharmonic, and becoming the premier trombone soloist in world today. Enjoy!

In this week's episode, we have the privilege of talking to Miguel Harth-Bedoya, conductor of the Baylor University Symphony Orchestra and Director of Orchestral Studies.  With many years of experience conducting orchestras all around the world, Miguel tells us about what the ultimate goal of a conductor should be, and his methods on preparing scores and working with ensembles.Connect with Miguel Harth-Bedoya!Website: https://www.miguelharth-bedoya.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/miguelharthbedoya/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MiguelHarthBedoyaTwitter: https://twitter.com/MHarthBedoyaYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxDtynJwmcgudZPu9hkFWDgBaylor University School of Music: https://www.baylor.edu/music/The Conducting Institute: https://conductinginstitute.org/Miguel Harth-Bedoya is the Director of Orchestral Studies at Baylor University. He is the former music director of the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra, Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra (New Zealand), and New York Youth Symphony. He graduated from the Curtis Institute of Music and the Juilliard School. Miguel has conducted worldwide, including the New York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Philadelphia Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony, and the Sydney Symphony, among others. He is also the Founder of The Conducting Institute in Ft. Worth, Texas.Want a free piece of music for your ensemble to perform? Join Christian's mailing list!https://www.christianfortnermusic.com/mailings

HIGHLIGHTS FROM EPISODE 4:Janet Fitch talks about seeing a three-hour concert with Leonard Cohen; Joni Mitchell; what she'd ask Patti Smith, Björk, Neil Young, and Leonard Cohen if she could; creating an “I will survive” music playlist; Amy Winehouse; Janis Joplin; X; Nico; Jackson Brown.Janet and I talk about some of the major themes of her novel ‘Paint it Black'; grief and the aftermath of suicide; the significance of the title of her novel; the freedom that punk rock gives fans and musicians alike; why ‘Paint it Black' is a punk rock novel as opposed to a more generalized rock novel; how each of the three main characters in ‘Paint it Black' has their own distinct soundtrack; classical music and early 20th century Americana music; L.A. punk, especially The Germs and The Cramps; the deaths of John Lennon and Darby Crash; the changing punk scene in L.A. in the early ‘80s; how the Ingmar Bergman film ‘Persona' influenced the creation of Janet's novel; Janet's experience as a student filmmaker in the ‘80s; the 1913 poem “Trans-Siberian Prose and Little Jeanne from France”; the movie adaptation of ‘Paint it Black'.Pleasant Gehman talks about the beginning of the L.A. punk scene and her involvement in it. She mentions various bands and iconic L.A. punk rock venues, becoming friends with Darby Crash and Pat Smear of The Germs before they were in The Germs and dating Pat Smear, smoking pot with Tony Curtis, rooming with Belinda Carlisle and smoking pot with Screamin' Jay Hawkins at Disgraceland, hanging out with Joan Jett.To hear more from Pleasant about her involvement with some of the hottest punk bands in L.A. in the early ‘80s, including The Cramps, The Weirdos, Blondie, The Damned, X, and Black Flag, and how the scene began to deteriorate, listen to the outtake from this episode in the Rock is Lit Vault.Nicole Panter shares her memories of being friends with and managing The Germs; Darby Crash's childhood; why Germs shows were a trainwreck; Darby's abuse of alcohol and drugs; the making of The Germs' album, including Joan Jett's involvement; ‘The Decline of Western Civilization' documentary, in which Nicole and The Germs are featured; why Nicole stopped managing the band; Darby's fascination with Adam Ant; how Nicole heard about Darby's death; Nicole's dislike of the biopic about Darby and The Germs, ‘What We Do Is Secret', and The Germs reunion tour with the actor who played Darby in the film, Shane West; the legacy of The Germs. CLIPS OF MUSIC PLAYED IN THE EPISODE IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE:"Paint it Black" by the Rolling Stones"Land" by Patti SmithBrahms Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major Op. 82, played by Yuja Wang with the Munich Philharmonic, conducted by Valery Gergiev, Dec 1, 2018“West End Blues” by Louis Armstrong“What We Do Is Secret” by The Germs“Human Fly” by The CrampsErich Wolfgang Korngold: ‘Kings Row', Main Title, music for the 1941 film“Our Way” by The Germs“Media Blitz” by The Germs“American Leather” by The GermsTwo short clips from the 1981 documentary 'The Decline of Western Civilization', directed by Penelope Spheeris,  featuring Darby Crash and The Germs appear in the episode. CONTACTS: Janet Fitch's websiteJanet Fitch Twitter, @JanetFitch323Janet Fitch Instagram, @janetfitch323Pleasant Gehman's websitePleasant Gehman Twitter, @PleasantGehman1Pleasant Gehman Instagram, @princessofhollywoodThe Devil's Music With Pleasant Gehman podcastBelle, Book, and Candle, Instagram, @belle_book_and_candleNicole Panter Instagram, @poseypChristy Alexander Hallberg's websiteChristy Alexander Hallberg Instagram, @christyhallbergChristy Alexander Hallberg Twitter, @ChristyHallbergChristy Alexander Hallberg YouTubeRock is Lit Vault

HIGHLIGHTS FROM EPISODE 4: Janet Fitch talks about seeing a three-hour concert with Leonard Cohen; Joni Mitchell; what she'd ask Patti Smith, Björk, Neil Young, and Leonard Cohen if she could; creating an “I will survive” music playlist; Amy Winehouse; Janis Joplin; X; Nico; Jackson Brown. Janet and I talk about some of the major themes of her novel ‘Paint it Black'; grief and the aftermath of suicide; the significance of the title of her novel; the freedom that punk rock gives fans and musicians alike; why ‘Paint it Black' is a punk rock novel as opposed to a more generalized rock novel; how each of the three main characters in ‘Paint it Black' has their own distinct soundtrack; classical music and early 20th century Americana music; L.A. punk, especially The Germs and The Cramps; the deaths of John Lennon and Darby Crash; the changing punk scene in L.A. in the early ‘80s; how the Ingmar Bergman film ‘Persona' influenced the creation of Janet's novel; Janet's experience as a student filmmaker in the ‘80s; the 1913 poem “Trans-Siberian Prose and Little Jeanne from France”; the movie adaptation of ‘Paint it Black'. Pleasant Gehman talks about the beginning of the L.A. punk scene and her involvement in it. She mentions various bands and iconic L.A. punk rock venues, becoming friends with Darby Crash and Pat Smear of The Germs before they were in The Germs and dating Pat Smear, smoking pot with Tony Curtis, rooming with Belinda Carlisle and smoking pot with Screamin' Jay Hawkins at Disgraceland, hanging out with Joan Jett. To hear more from Pleasant about her involvement with some of the hottest punk bands in L.A. in the early ‘80s, including The Cramps, The Weirdos, Blondie, The Damned, X, and Black Flag, and how the scene began to deteriorate, listen to the outtake from this episode in the Rock is Lit Vault. Nicole Panter shares her memories of being friends with and managing The Germs; Darby Crash's childhood; why Germs shows were a trainwreck; Darby's abuse of alcohol and drugs; the making of The Germs' album, including Joan Jett's involvement; ‘The Decline of Western Civilization' documentary, in which Nicole and The Germs are featured; why Nicole stopped managing the band; Darby's fascination with Adam Ant; how Nicole heard about Darby's death; Nicole's dislike of the biopic about Darby and The Germs, ‘What We Do Is Secret', and The Germs reunion tour with the actor who played Darby in the film, Shane West; the legacy of The Germs.   CLIPS OF MUSIC PLAYED IN THE EPISODE IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE: "Paint it Black" by the Rolling Stones "Land" by Patti Smith Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat major Op. 82, played by Yuja Wang with the Munich Philharmonic, conducted by Valery Gergiev, Dec 1, 2018 “West End Blues” by Louis Armstrong “What We Do Is Secret” by The Germs “Human Fly” by The Cramps Erich Wolfgang Korngold: ‘Kings Row', Main Title, music for the 1941 film “Our Way” by The Germs “Media Blitz” by The Germs “American Leather” by The Germs Two short clips from the 1981 documentary 'The Decline of Western Civilization', directed by Penelope Spheeris, featuring Darby Crash and The Germs appear in the episode.   CONTACTS:  Janet Fitch's website Janet Fitch Twitter, @JanetFitch323 Janet Fitch Instagram, @janetfitch323 Pleasant Gehman's website Pleasant Gehman Twitter, @PleasantGehman1 Pleasant Gehman Instagram, @princessofhollywood The Devil's Music With Pleasant Gehman podcast Belle, Book, and Candle, Instagram, @belle_book_and_candle Nicole Panter Instagram, @poseyp Christy Alexander Hallberg's website Christy Alexander Hallberg Instagram, @christyhallberg Christy Alexander Hallberg Twitter, @ChristyHallberg Christy Alexander Hallberg YouTube Rock is Lit Vault Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President Zelensky says missile and rocket attacks amount to state terrorism. Also, the Russian foreign minister suggests the invasion is about preventing Ukraine from developing nuclear weapons, Russia's one-time richest man gives us his take on Vladimir Putin's mindset, and the Munich Philharmonic sacks its star conductor over his ties to the Russian president.

Jess swaps favourite tracks with singer, songwriter and cellist Laufey, from silky jazz piano from Bill Evans and virtuosic fireworks in Sibelius Violin Concerto to Joe Cocker covering The Beatles. Playlist: Bill Evans - Like Someone in Love Shara Worden - From the Invisible to the Visible Ravel - Pavane pour un enfant defunte (Louis Lortie (piano)) Joe Cocker - With a Little Help from my Friends Sibelius - Violin Concerto, 3rd mvt (Hilary Hahn (violin), Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Esa‐Pekka Salonen (conductor)) Chet Baker - While My Lady Sleeps Shostakovich - Cello Concerto, 1st mvt (Sol Gabetta (cello), Munich Philharmonic, Lorin Maazel (conductor)) Tsegue Maryam Guebrou – Homesickness, pt 2

Penderecki in Memoriam Podcast is produced and hosted by Max Horowitz, Crossover Media. Created by Anna Perzanowska and Klaudia Ofwona Draber, and presented by Polish Cultural Institute New York. Penderecki in Memoriam Podcast unveils a multifaceted portrait of Krzysztof Penderecki, with commentary from musicians, colleagues, radio programmers, and writers who lend insight and memories of Poland's greatest modern composer. This podcast is part of Penderecki in Memoriam Worldwide project, honoring the life and legacy of the great composer. Thank you to project partners DUX, NAXOS, Ludwig van Beethoven Association, and Schott EAM for sharing Krzysztof Penderecki's music with the world. Julian Rachlin is one of the most renowned artistic personalities of our time. In his over thirty-year career, Mr. Rachlin's multifaceted interests have taken him across the globe as a conductor, soloist, recording artist, chamber musician, teacher, and artistic director. As a violinist, Rachlin has shared the stage with virtually every major orchestra and conductor. A frequent presence on the conductor's podium, his performances have thrilled audiences worldwide and his electrifying and sensitive interpretations have placed him at the forefront of classical music. Rachlin's elegant and dynamic style has cemented his reputation as one of the leading conductors of his generation. Known for his meticulous rehearsal methods and superb musicianship, he has conducted the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Konzerthausorchester Berlin, Russian National Orchestra, Moscow Philharmonic Orchestra, China Philharmonic Orchestra, Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, and the symphony orchestras of Vienna, City of Birmingham, RAI Torino as well as at the Grand Teton and Verbier festivals. Mr. Rachlin serves as Principal Guest Conductor of the Turku Philharmonic Orchestra, the Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra, and he is Principal Artistic Partner of the Royal Northern Sinfonia. A major presence in the performing arts since the age of thirteen, Mr. Rachlin has spent over three decades cementing his reputation as one of the world's premiere classical violinists. Recent highlights as soloist include appearances with the Munich Philharmonic and Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra under the baton of Zubin Metha, Mariinsky Orchestra with Valery Gergiev, Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra under Klaus Mäkelä, St.Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra with Yuri Termirkanov, Boston Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Filarmonica della Scala, Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Montreal Symphony Orchestra under Christoph Eschenbach and the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra with Manfred Honeck. Tracks: Penderecki - Sextet for Clarinet, Horn, Violin, Viola, Cello and Piano: https://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.557052. Penderecki - Ciaconne transcription (violin & viola) from A Polish Requiem. Penderecki - Double Concerto. Penderecki - Metamorphosen: https://www.naxos.com/catalogue/item.asp?item_code=8.555265.

Synopsis On today's date in 1972, almost two decades after its premiere, Erich Wolfgang Korngold's Symphony in F-sharp received its first successful concert performance by the Munich Philharmonic led by Rudolf Kempe. A recording was made with the same performers, supervised and produced by the composer's son, George Korngold. Korngold had died in 1959, so was not able to enjoy the eventual success of this major work. He completed his Symphony in 1950, and its Austrian Radio premiere in 1954 had been a disaster. As the composer himself put it: “The performance, which was an execution in every sense of the term, took place under the most unfavorable conditions imaginable, with inadequate rehearsals and an exhausted and overworked orchestra.” Korngold had become an American citizen during the 1940s, and dedicated his Symphony to the memory of America's wartime President, Franklin D. Roosevelt. The postwar European premiere of his Symphony came at a time when shifting tastes in music made his late-Romantic style seem hopelessly old-fashioned to many of critics of that day. “More corn than gold” was one dismissive appraisal of his style. These days, Korngold's music – including his Symphony –make more frequent, better-played, and eagerly welcomed appearances on concert programs. Music Played in Today's Program Erich Wolfgang Korngold (1897 – 1957) — Symphony, Op. 40 (Philadelphia Orchestra; Franz Welser-Most, cond.) EMI 56169

Good News: Indigenous groups have kept many destructive fossil fuel projects from getting underway in North America! Link HERE. The Good Word: A powerful quote from Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Good To Know: A very cool fact about the official start date(s) of Autumn… Good News: A new report gives hope that we as a global […]

Good Morning, This is Louise. Episode 100 - Levitation featuring soundworks by Akio Suzuki and Lawrence Englishwith music by Melii, Glenn Branca, Glenn Branca, The New York Chamber Sinfonia & Glen Cortese, Tomppabeats, Jung Jaeil, Jon Brion, Mulatto, Mother Superia, Redman & KRS-One, Trina, Yaeji, Moondog, Zbigniew Preisner, Leila, Cliff Martinez, Sudan Archives, Dawn Richard, Susumu Yokota, Marianne Moore, Muslimgauze, The Alchemist, Mariah, Sergiu Celibidache & Munich Philharmonic, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, Phoelix, Lucky Daye, Theater 1, Elysia Crampton, Blossom & HOT16, Arlo Parks, Bill Evans Trio, and Remy Ma.also with sound and voices from the flight crew of a 2014 Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 200 Classic.programmed and produced by @small_ernst / touch touch publishingNamo Guan Shi Yin Pusa Thank you for listening

Abbie Conant is Professor of Trombone at the Musik Hochschule in Trossingen, Germany. She was principal trombone of the Royal Opera of Turin for a year, then principal trombone of the Munich Philharmonic for 13 years. Her fight against gender discrimination in Munich has been featured in Blink, the bestselling book by Malcolm Gladwell, and our conversation covers that period in detail. In addition, Abbie is active with her husband William in producing a new genre of works for musical theater featuring Abbie as trombonist and singer.

Today, I'm very excited to have the brilliant violinist, violist, and conductor Julian Rachlin on the show! At the end of this very busy week, playing with and conducting the Chicago Symphony, Julian graciously took the time to sit with me and discuss meticulous practicing, mindful music-making, and his deep love of the art form! He covers many topics, including studying with Boris Kuschnir and Mr. Kuschnir's thorough approach to mastering the instrument, his views on the lifelong path that is growing as an artist, his daily practice regimen, and how playing the viola and conducting have allowed him to explore music from different angles. Julian elaborates on: How he believes we are never done learning How the fact that his parents never made him practiced helped foster his deep love of music His daily practice regimen Why the responsibility to grow as an artist lies with the student How musicians are a community How playing the viola and conducting allow him to explore music from different angles Why we should brush our taste as often as we brush our teeth Finding the right balance between being completely open-minded and fully convinced (and when to be which)   MORE ABOUT JULIAN RACHLIN: Website: http://www.julianrachlin.com/ YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCm_Eyb3YAt3m7_ic4VTA84A Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julianrachlin/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julianrachlin/ Elisabeth Gilels: Daily Exercises for the Violinist Boris Kuschnir: http://www.boriskuschnir.com/   Violinist, violist and conductor Julian Rachlin is one of the most exciting and respected musicians of our time. In the first thirty years of his career, he has performed as soloist with the world's leading conductors and orchestras. Mr. Rachlin is Principal Guest Conductor of the Royal Northern Sinfonia, Turku Philharmonic Orchestra and Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra. He also leads the "Julian Rachlin & Friends Festival" in Palma de Mallorca. Highlights of Mr. Rachlin's 2018/19 season include performances with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic and Mariss Jansons, Montreal Symphony Orchestra and Christoph Eschenbach, Boston Symphony Orchestra and Juanjo Mena, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra and Manfred Honeck, as well as the KBS Symphony Orchestra and Myung-Whun Chung. Alongside soloist Sarah McElravy and the Royal Northern Sinfonia, he will perform the UK premiere of Penderecki's Double Concerto for Violin and Viola, which is dedicated to him. Additionally, Mr. Rachlin will conduct among others the Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Berlin Konzerthaus Orchestra, Naples Philharmonic, Moscow Philharmonic, St. Petersburg Symphony, Essen Philharmonic, Strasbourg Philharmonic, Slovenian Philharmonic, Zagreb Philharmonic and Trondheim Symphony Orchestra. Julian Rachlin's recent highlights include a residency at the Prague Spring Festival and his own cycle at the Vienna Musikverein. He also performed with the St. Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra and Yuri Temirkanov, Filarmonica della Scala and Riccardo Chailly, Munich Philharmonic and Zubin Mehta, Philharmonia Orchestra and Jakub Hrůša, Orchestra del Maggio Musicale and Vladimir Ashkenazy, as well as the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and Lahav Shani. As conductor, he toured Europe with the English Chamber Orchestra, and led the Royal Northern Sinfonia across South America and Japan. Additionally, he conducted the State Academic Symphony Orchestra of Russia, Hungarian National Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana, National Taiwan Symphony Orchestra, Prague Philharmonia, and made his USA conducting debut at the Grand Teton Music Festival. In recital and chamber music, Mr. Rachlin performs regularly with Itamar Golan, Denis Kozhukhin, Denis Matsuev, Mischa Maisky, Sarah McElravy, Vilde Frang and Janine Jansen. Born in Lithuania, Mr. Rachlin immigrated to Vienna in 1978. He studied violin with Boris Kuschnir at the Vienna Conservatory and with Pinchas Zukerman. After winning the "Young Musician of the Year" Award at the Eurovision Competition in 1988, he became the youngest soloist ever to play with the Vienna Philharmonic, debuting under Riccardo Muti. At the recommendation of Mariss Jansons, Mr. Rachlin studied conducting with Sophie Rachlin. Since September 1999, he is on the violin faculty at the Music and Arts University of Vienna. His recordings for Sony Classical, Warner Classics and Deutsche Grammophon have been met with great acclaim. Mr. Rachlin, a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, is committed to educational outreach and charity work. Julian Rachlin plays the 1704 "ex Liebig" Stradivari and a 1785 Lorenzo Storioni viola, on loan to him courtesy of the Dkfm. Angelika Prokopp Privatstiftung. His strings are kindly sponsored by Thomastik-Infeld.   If you enjoyed the show, please leave a review on iTunes!  I truly appreciate your support! Visit www.mindoverfinger.com for information about past and future podcasts, and for more resources on mindful practice. Join the Mind Over Finger Tribe here!  https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindoverfingertribe/     THANK YOU: Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme!  Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson. Also a HUGE thank you to my fantastic producer, Bella Kelly!   MIND OVER FINGER: www.mindoverfinger.com https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/ https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

Music to me is, and has always been existential. From when I was a little boy growing up with a concertmaster – in many of the world's most famous orchestras – as my dad, in Vienna, and constantly visiting his workplace, the famous Musikverein, to today where I am a music aficionado, an avid vinyl record collector as well as a (fairly amateur) music producer. Music is a passion, or 'addiction' as my wife would say, and a great source of joy for me.Having Till Janczukowicz on this show was a big personal pleasure. His classical music streaming app, IDAGIO, is constantly running a fine line between catering to the young and the old, the classical novice versus the expert, and it is a fascinating branding game.Till discusses how classical music, as a brand, was intimidating, and how he and his team are breaking that wall down, out their offices in Berlin, Germany. And how classical music's role and perception in society has changed over the years, and what role technology played in it.We discuss how to showcase music visually, with all of its nuances, is an extremely difficult task, one that IDAGIO mastered from day one.So many fascinating takeaways in this conversation, one that struck with me, and that should give you an idea on how deep we are diving into not only the brand discussion, but also the entrepreneurial journey as a whole: "The bigger you grow as a corporation, the more you have to bring things that are on a subconscious level to a conscious level."A delightful conversation that truly inspired me, and I believe it will do the same for you.To support this show, please head to Patreon.____Full Transcript:F Geyrhalter: Welcome to HITTING THE MARK.Today we welcome a guest who I have been looking forward to for a while now. The subject hits home in many ways. Not only is this founder based in Berlin, Germany, hence you will get a double-German accent episode today, but his is the world of classical music, which is the same world in which I grew up in, back in Vienna.Till Janczukowicz is the founder of IDAGIO, which is often described as being the Spotify for classical music.Till has more than 20 years of experience as an artist manager, producer, and concert promoter. In 2000, he established the European office for Columbia Artists Management, heading it up as managing partner for 11 years. He was responsible for organizing several of the Metropolitan Opera’s European tours, and his personal clients included conductors Christian Thielemann, Seiji Ozawa, André Previn, and Jukka-Pekka Saraste, as well as pianists Ivo Pogorelich and Arcadi Volodos. In 2008, he founded the Abu Dhabi Classics, a performing arts series merging culture, education and tourism for the government of the United Arab Emirates. That is where he arranged debuts for the New York, Berlin and Vienna Philharmonics; the Bayreuth Festival; and Daniel Barenboim, Simon Rattle, Zubin Mehta, Yo-Yo Ma, Ben Kingsley, Jeremy Irons, and countless other musical and artistic luminaries.I am thrilled to welcome you to the show, Till!T Janczukowicz: Great, pleasure to meet you and to be here.F Geyrhalter: Absolutely. So as I mentioned in my intro, this is truly a pleasure for me since my father was an amazing violinist who spent most of his life as a concert master and some of Vienna's best orchestras from the Vienna State Opera Orchestra, the Vienna Tonkünstler Orchestra, the Kammer Orchestra, all the way to the Vienna Philharmonics, and appeared on over 50 records and radio productions. So he was also a sound purist who loved his audio gadgets the same way that I do now. He would've cherished to hear this conversation today.So listeners who are not classical music fans may wonder why. Why was there a need for classical music in an app form when you can find plenty of classical options on Spotify, Apple music and Tidal? Let me quote an article from Vogue that explained it perfectly well, "It all comes down to Metadata." While Metadata for most popular music is quite simple, there's the artist, the song, or track, the album it's from. Classical Metadata might encompass everything from the composer, the orchestra, the conductor, the choir, which may have its own director, various soloists, the title of the piece, along with perhaps some sort of number or nomenclature to indicate it's placed within the larger symphony of work.Then artists opus number, or in the case of composers like Mozart Bach whose works are ordered by their own system, their Kochel or BWV number. So it's not simple. Yes, there is a big need for it.Till, your biography talks a lot about the amazing journey you have taken prior to starting IDAGIO in 2015, but tell us a bit about the founding story behind IDAGIO. How did it all start? Give us the romance, the hardship of your startup's early days.T Janczukowicz: So where to start? Let's start with the Romance, maybe-F Geyrhalter: That's a good place. Let's start positive.T Janczukowicz: The very early Romance, but what I would say is that I was lucky and only looking back, I understood that I was lucky. I was offered to piano when I was six years old and that captured me immediately. So once I started to play the piano for the first time without knowing anything, I knew and felt, "Well, that's my life. I'm going to spend my life with this music that fascinated me.I could even say, probably I've never worked. I never felt I was working in my life. At the very end, it comes down to a variety of attempts to promote what fascinated me, in a very, I wouldn't say egoistic way, but it was a very obvious thing for me. Classical music captured me. It opened stories for me. It created images and so on.So I started to be a pianist at the beginning. Thanks god I became friends with a real pianist, Krystian Zimerman, when I was 18 years old, who by the way... You are from Vienna, it's probably you were even still in Vienna these days. He recorded the Beethoven Piano Concerto with the Vienna Philharmonics Leonard Bernstein in the 80s. So Christian became a good friend. I saw what he did, I saw what I did and said, "Okay, he's a pianist." So next step for me was then he wanted to push me into management. It helped me a lot.But first of all, I started to be a teacher during my studies, made some money. But I'm coming from a family of teachers and so, "Okay, my dad was a teacher, my mom was a teacher, my grandfather was a teacher. So do you really want to sign a contract at your end of your 20s and that's going to determine what you're going to do until the end of your life?" The answer was no. So I didn't want to become a teacher. I wrote a little bit, but also as a writer I saw, well, you can speak about it in part, but you can't really change things.So then I went into management and now I'm coming to your question to the necessity of IDAGIO. As a manager, my perspective was always a B2B perspective. If you manage a great conductor, or a great soloist, your touring orchestra, it's about, first of all, building brands. Any young artists you see or any unknown ensemble or new music you see, as a manager, you have some possibility to make these people famous, to assist them to find out how they work and how you can help them.What I saw then having spent my life in management, putting on concerts in all parts of the world and we can cover that a little later because there were many fascinating learnings. But the main thing for me was that, if the future of music listening is streaming and the all-genre streaming services aren't designed for classic music because as you said, they are around pop music and they're pop driven where you only have three criteria: The song, the artist, and the album, my clients are going to be invisible in the digital ecosystem.So the moment there is no digital structure that could trick down a recording where you have a conductor, you have an orchestra, you have singers, you have a soloist, you have the composition, and so on. The moment that doesn't exist, I saw that as a luxury problem from the user's perspective because you can still curate and so on. Maybe yes, it's a problem for aficionados, but at the very end, I want to push a button, and I want music to play without a huge cognitive investment that I like, fine, but even there is a huge group of aficionados worldwide that suffering from bad metadata, and bad usability of classic music streaming platforms.But if you look at it from an artist perspective, this is a real threat because if you can't be tracked down in the digital space and people don't find you, you cease to exist and with you, the entire genre ceases to exist. That was a motivation from you, I said, "Well, you have to do something." The main question at the beginning for me was, "How can we use technology in order to maintain that music genre that was the passion since I first encountered that.There was not at the beginning, the idea of, "Well, I have to found the best streaming service for classical music." That was the result of a chain of it durations. For us it's rather the beginning than the end.F Geyrhalter: It was really more of an action cry, right? It needed to be done in order to... in the biggest terms possible, save classical music for generations, right? To me, that's where it gets really interesting to think about who the audiences. When you think of classical music, many think of an older audience, but you're obviously a digital tool that already eliminates, I would say, the too old for tech audience, right?T Janczukowicz: Yeah.F Geyrhalter: You also clearly understand that you have to capture the hearts and souls of the next generations as the IDAGIO or IDAGIO... You and I had a little chat prior to this, it could go either way. So I don't feel guilty. The IDAGIO Instagram account, for instance. It nicely shows that it's going for the next generation. It's 29,000 followers. You have features like a relax playlist, which are perfect gateway drugs to anyone regardless of musical preference, right?T Janczukowicz: Sure.F Geyrhalter: Who do you cater to and how do you capture them in your brand communications? Do you constantly run that fine line between young and old, and classical novice versus expert?T Janczukowicz: Well, there are various levels to answer that. When I left my peer group, the classical music world that had been spending my life in, and started to enter into tech, I was, of course, reading a lot and all these blogs and I traveled to San Francisco, went to Silicon Valley just to be there to talk to people, to understand what it's all about.The first thing I learned, or the first thing at least that I remember is that one of the most failures of startups is to solve problems that don't exist.F Geyrhalter: Right.T Janczukowicz: For me, it was obvious that this problem does exist, both from a customer or user perspective and also from an artist perspective. So that was the beginning. Based on that, we did build our own technology, make a data model and so on and so on. Based on that, we can now, answering your question, cater for all varieties of audiences.What was interesting for me to see that after having spent 20 to 25 years in that world, more or less looking at things and reacting to things through my instinct, the assumptions I got over the years, they were confirmed in real numbers. Because the classical world is not really about numbers, it's about opinions. It's about being right, everybody is right. Everybody knows everything, it’s very controversially, very ego driven also.Now, I entered in a world where its numbers, "Okay, what you say is nothing more than a thesis, let's prove it." So that was totally new to me and very fascinating. What we found out that there are five, 10, 15, 20, maybe 50 use cases of listening to classical music and you can, of course, go and start segmenting classical music listeners.But interesting, is also to me that you can probably break it down into use cases because there are use cases that you would probably apply to an aficionado that sometimes also apply to a millennial listening to classical music and vice versa. So, for example, you mentioned this mood search we have and why do we have it? I wanted a tool where everybody, who opens the app and comes in contact with classic music, they can execute an action, move something, just touch screen with a finger, remove the finger, but already make a choice. So it can go to relaxed or meditative or joyful and so on. Then it's simply a playlist opening up with joyful or relaxing or focusing music.However, this is a use case and also some aficionados' life, because also aficionados are sometimes, I don't know, ironing their shirts, or cleaning the home. So this is the first thing I wanted to highlight because it was very interesting to me.Secondly, there are, of course, the obvious different segments. You have, the fact that classical music around the globe as a genre that's aggregating the high achievers. Classical music has always been, the music genre of the emerging communities. If you look at South America, you give underprivileged kids instruments and playing Beethoven makes their lives meaningful from one day to the other. So this is still system up. Gustavo Dudamel is one of the most known represented-F Geyrhalter: Well, he's here in the Los Angeles Philharmonic's now. So yeah, he's close to home.T Janczukowicz: Exactly.F Geyrhalter: Yeah.T Janczukowicz: Yeah, exactly. This is something that at the same time you have 50 million piano students in China these days. [] for example, used to say that the future of classical music is in China, which I wouldn’t say the future of classic music, but also be in China. But we see that a lot of young people in the Nordics, in Europe, but also in the United States are more and more turning to the classical, but they see and look at classical music in a different way, because especially in Germany... You're from Austria, central Europe, classical music is a heavy, serious thing. You have to gain some knowledge before you really understand it, which I believe is total bullshit. If music is great, everybody understands it immediately.The new use case that's coming up that I am listening to classical music because it helps me focus, it helps me calm down. But another word that I see in classical music as belonging, because if you listen to classical music and if you listen to a great concert with friends and a social environment, it also makes you feel connectiveness. You are connected with other people, you're connect with the musicians on stage. You are connected with the people you are listening with.So there was a very nice quote, which is very famous, but I heard it first from Yo-Yo Ma who once said, "The great thing about classic music is that it makes you part of something bigger than yourself." This is a very, very needed and a great value proposition.F Geyrhalter: I think, playing devil's advocate, that could be said about pretty much every musical genre, right? Because it is a very communal tribal idea. But with classical, just the idea that a lot of it happens in ginormous orchestras. There's so much where one person talks to the other via their musical instrument and jazz is kind of one step up from pop where you've got a couple of people that need to perfectly sync in an orchestra, make this 10, 20, 30 fold. So there's something by just the structure of classical music where it's more communal from the get go, I believe.T Janczukowicz: Yeah, I mean, jazz, I would say goes very much in the same direction, because it has various levels, but if you're looking at what is constituting music, first of all you have a melody, number two, you have rhythm, and number three you have harmonies. Then you can have one melody, which is the case in pop music, but then you can have two melodies, two themes.Then it starts with something that probably 70% or 80% of classical music have in common, which makes it so fascinating. You have two themes, and very often in the Sonata form, the first theme is male and the second theme is female.F Geyrhalter: How chauvinistic?T Janczukowicz: It's very chauvinistic, but everybody apparently seems to like Beethoven sonatas or Mozart symphonies where exactly this is happening. Then you have an exposition where the first theme, the male theme is being presented and after the female's theme is presented.Then you have the second part where these themes start to interact and to talk to each other. Sometimes there is tension and then comes down and so on. So it's very, very close to storytelling without words. This is something, probably, I said that earlier, what captured me at the very beginning, and I think it's a fascinating role because you can close your eyes, but you see stories, you feel stories, but you don't need to know when Beethoven was born, you don't need to know what is an overture. You don't need to know what is an aria. Just close your eyes and listen to it. This music is so appealing to everybody.I think one of the mistakes that classic music or classical music has made over decades is, is building this huge wall around it. Because if you go back to Mozart or Bach, it was entertainment music. It's agenre that comes from the courts and the people were eating and drinking and laughing and walking out and coming back. Something that the middle-class that occupied classic music for themselves, started to forbid. This created an intimidating...Let's say when we speak about branding, a part of this brand that is intimidating and it's not necessary because it's so embracing, and it's such a great genre.F Geyrhalter: I so agree with you. I so agree with you. Coming from a household where we constantly went to the Vienna Musikverein to see my dad play and others, it was always a big deal. Even though it's my dad on stage, and it's just normal, we go to his workplace, right?T Janczukowicz: Yeah.F Geyrhalter: There's something, there's an aura around classical music that feels like it's a cloud that should be broken. It feels like... I love how you talk about it. Even though I did not really realize that, but as I started looking through your brand work, through your website, through your app, it actually really is what you're doing. You're breaking that stigma. You're breaking that wall down, and I think it's beautiful.While we talk about musical terms, let's talk about IDAGIO, the brand name, for a second. It sounds a lot and pretty obviously to me like ADAGIO, which only has one letter replaced. ADAGIO for our non-musical listeners signifies a music played in slow tempo. So what was the inspiration for the name? Walk us through that a little bit.T Janczukowicz: It's very end simple. We needed a name, first of all, and we wanted the name to be self-explanatory. So we wanted something that people around the globe would associate with classical music. So ADAGIO, as you said, it's an international word. Many albums are just having one title, which is ADAGIO. If you have music that calms you down.At the same time, we wanted something that people understand context of technology. This is, I. The funny thing is that we had a law firm working for us this time and they were also representing a very famous American brand that has created many new devices that are starting with an I-F Geyrhalter: Whatever that could be.T Janczukowicz: Whatever that may be, and they called us back after three days said, "We checked it. You can use the name. No problem at all." So IDAGIO was born. That was the funny incident.F Geyrhalter: That's hilarious. Yeah, and it's not always the case. I heard of other firms that try to use names that started with I, and couldn't do it based on that same conglomerate that tries to own that one letter. But obviously, those are words where the, I, has more of a meaning in front of it with IDAGIO. It is a word. The, I, itself is not as meaningful.So, great. Well, I'm glad I got that quiz right. I'm proud of myself. How did you and your team obviously derive the brand's visual aura, so to speak? I use the word aura specifically since the gradient based imagery surrounding your brand has a very meditative feel to it. Even talking about IDAGIO, the idea of slowing down. Then you have the nifty mood selection feature, which we talked about in your app. Overall, you really crafted a beautiful slick visual identity that mixes the atmospheric, like in many of the Instagram posts with the harsh and crisp in the actual logo or the line work that apps dimension to the gradient artwork.Now, for everyone listening, unless you're currently driving a car, head on over to @IDAGIOofficial on Instagram to see what we're actually talking about. Till, how was the look derived? I think it just really found its groove, no pun intended, back in May on Instagram where everything started to have this very distinct and beautiful look. Can you talk a little bit about how this came about?T Janczukowicz: I think there are three factors probably, and, of course, none of these factors was conscious during it was there. Only looking back, you're connected in a meaningful way. Probably the first thing is that my grandfather, who offered me the piano, he had a Braun stereo system at home. We all know that Braun was one of the decisive branding and visual influences for this very, very famous brand we have been speaking about. I remember it was that it was the first thing.The second thing, as an artist manager, I was always in the second row. So that means you work as a catalyst. You are doing a great job if you work invisible. So you mentioned the Abu Dhabi Classics I created. The star was the series. If you manage an artist, if you build the career of a conductor, the conductor is the star, not yourself. You are always in the background.I think this is a thinking that also my co-founder was aesthetically a very big fan of minimalistic architecture. We said, "We want a look and feel that really highlights the musicians and the music and that's not dominating them. I think that's the second aspect.The third aspect is that, we had, at a very, very early stage, I think, our designer was a part of the founding team. He started on day one. I think he was one of the third or fourth people we hired. Because we believe it's very important that you reflect the beautiful and fascinating and special role that you also described. We were just speaking, that you going to the Musikverein with family when your father was playing. It's a fascinating thing. We wanted to translate that into a user interface and into a look and feel that respects the music and the artists.F Geyrhalter: Which is really, really difficult to pull off. It's very easy to look at and then criticize or get your own emotions about it, which by the way, I would never criticize because I think it is brilliant. It is so easy to look at something after it has been established. But to showcase music visually with all of its nuances, is an extremely difficult task. So bravo to that. It's really, really well done and it was one of the reasons why I got sucked into your brand.So while we talk about that, we might as well talk one more second about the actual icon, about the logo. It's a play on the play button and there is a horizontal line to the right of it, right below it. Tell us a bit about the idea behind it. Obviously you are not the designer, but I'm sure that that you played a role in signing it off and adopting it. What is the key idea behind it?T Janczukowicz: Well, I don't want to take a credit of others. My role was to not say no to it. Let’s put it like this, which at a minium I disliked it or I liked it, but my thinking here is rather, and thinking big, I was designing all this myself five, six, seven years ago. I had the first ideas of IDAGIO and I was very proud of, I don't know, copying some letters from an Italian luxury brand and I showed it to our designer when we hired him and he laughed at me. He was right there laughing at me.So I understood. I don't really understand this. I can express what I wanted for the brand and I could express how I believe it may look like, but he really did it. Then I think it's at the very end minimalistic thinking. I think when it comes down to that. Not something that disturbs and then some people get some agencies from outside before and they we're proposing a logo with some music scores and all this, a key, so it's really...I think we are in a different world.F Geyrhalter: Yeah.T Janczukowicz: Yeah. The icon that we have. Maybe one other thing. It's a little bit high level, but I was thinking when you were talking about... Again, I'm seeing in front of me your dad sitting on the stage of the Musikverein and what was the classic music 20, 30, 40 years ago, and what has really changed? Because also we were talking about different customer segments.When I started to work as a manager, that was '96, that was still a period where a conductor was still a maestro. He was the icon, you couldn't reach him, you couldn't talk to him. The entire management approach was to create a myth, create something that's unavailable because the less it's available, the more people want it. This is something, and this is an understanding of value. It's to the old world, which is an old world value thinking.I think in the digital world, and this is a big shift, in the digital world value is being created by being visible, by being transparent, by showing with as many people as possible what you are, who you are, what you do. So this is a total paradigm shift. If you look, for example, at a Karajan, you could not reach out to him. A Schulte was the same running the Chicago symphony orchestra for many years.If you now these days at young comebacks like Yannick Nezet-Seguin, the music director of the Philadelphia orchestra, music director of the metropolitan opera Andris Nelsons, music director of the Boston symphony and the Gewandhaus orchestra in Leipzig Germany. It's a new generation of open minded and more communicating conductors.What was very interesting to me, I had a meeting with the Juilliard School of Music in New York some months ago. I didn't know that when you are making your degree there, if you leave school, you don't have to only play, you also have to moderate the performance. The way how you talk about the music you play, as an artist, is also being judged. I think it's a very interesting thing.But this is all owed to transparency that came through technology. All the scandals that we are seeing and witnessing these days, it's not that humanity has apparently become immoral, just our ways to measure things and to see things are much more granular than 10, 20, 30, 50 years ago.This is also an aesthetic shift in classical music and this is also creating a new type of classical musicians. I find that a very interesting thing to see how technology even has some impact on the way you perform classical music.F Geyrhalter: That is absolutely fascinating. I agree. I've never thought about it that way. But just like everything else, classical music is being touched by it and it's great to be on the forefront of that like you are. While we were talking a little bit about philosophy here, what does branding mean to you? The actual word, branding. How do you see it?I know we talked a lot about emotion, we talked a lot about how people feel something rather than just listen to something. But maybe even in the classical arena, like where you are, what do you think when you think of branding?T Janczukowicz: Well, I would spontaneously say branding is an aggregated public perception. If it goes well and first of all, you have a good intention and you succeed in running the brand, the way you want, then it's probably aggregated trust that says, "Well, yeah, I can turn into this complex thing without making a mistake, without failing."Because I've heard of the brand from, whomever, my brother, my peers these days, then through, through, through advertisement because I think trust is getting more and more local, and we less and less trust governments and we less trust corporations. So I rather trust my peers because I'm so over flooded with information and bombarded by visual things that want to get my attention.But I think branding for me done right it's something of, well, yes, I can go. It's a safe harbor, safe place for me. I can recommend it. I can package that when I talk to other people pass it on to others and recommend to others.F Geyrhalter: You talked about trust and failures. I'm not as familiar with the entrepreneurial scene in Berlin, but here in the US we love to talk about failures. There are entire business book sections dedicated to it. Even though in my eyes it's blown way out of proportion, there are great things to be learned from mistakes that startup founders have made or witnessed during the early days of the brand formation.What was an enormous fail that you went through with IDAGIO in the very early days? Was there something where you just look back and you're like, "Okay, that was a fail, we could have prevented this, someone can learn from this?"T Janczukowicz: Well, I have to say, I think we were lucky in leaving out many mistakes you can potentially make. But, of course, there were mistakes, but there is not this story where I would say, "Well, this is really, really, really, I'll never forget it." I think it's rather a pattern.What I've learned over the years is that, if you do something for the first time and being an entrepreneur and forming and building something new has to do a lot of with trial and error. Probably the biggest mistake that I'm trying to avoid more and more is that I wasn't listening early enough to my natural instincts. I don't know if it's right or wrong, but I'm more and more convinced that this is the right thing. It sounds like cliché, but this is a principle that you can break down into any daily decision. If you feel something, but...and this is a personal problem that I have because everybody is, of course, different. I'm coming from the world of the arts. I'm rather intuitive, some people say visionary, but at least I have ideas. Some of these ideas have worked out in my life so far.But I'm also analyzing it. But if I feel that something is right, I start to do it. The bigger you grow as a corporation, you more and more have to bring things that are on a subconscious level to a conscious level. Then it has to arrive on the conscious level and then you have to explain it to everybody. Then you have to also give ownership to the people with whom you work with your team, because you are nobody with a team.You can form the North star, you can say that the direction and give a vision and the mission, I think in our company everybody is on that mission and people coming to the office, to our premise here in Berlin they say, "Oh wow, this is a great chemistry here. It feels good to be here." So that's the thing.But we're not talking about the good things, we're talking about failures. Of course, at the very end, nobody wants to fail. But thanks God, I was brought to this life by really an American entrepreneur, who was the owner of Columbia Artists, Ronald Wilford, and he was a typical American self-made man. One of his quotes was, "I didn't learn anything and that's why I can do everything."I think this is a good thing and this, and the combination that when I met him after our job interview in '96 where we even didn't perceive it as a job interview, but afterwards we had the first meetings. They will tell, "We are in an industry of ideas." Usually, we all have a lot of ideas and if you fail with 10 ideas, it's bad, you're gone. If you make one of the 10 ideas work, it's really great. If you make two of your 10 ideas work, this is highly above average.I think this is a mentality that's very, very un-German and having inhaled this kind of thinking for 16 years, I got more comfortable with the idea of making failures because, a young artist is like stakes you buy a company, you see something and you believe all to be there in two, four, six, eight years. Sometimes you're right and sometimes you are wrong. Then you have principles to figure out and to understand why you may be right.But going back in a nutshell, re-listen to yourself and if you feel something, you're really convinced, do it, whatever others say.F Geyrhalter: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Yeah, absolutely.T Janczukowicz: But listen to them, then think, but then do what you feel.F Geyrhalter: And the same holds true for data, because I'm sure, at this point, your app has been downloaded over 1.5 million times, I think it's the latest in 190 countries?T Janczukowicz: Yeah.F Geyrhalter: So you must have so much great data about your users at this point, and I know you're using it and you have studies made about listenership and about what classical music means today. But on the other hand, you have to balance that out with not always listening to customer data and just solely basing decisions on your instinct as well. It's always a fine line that an entrepreneur walks.T Janczukowicz: Yeah.F Geyrhalter: On the flip side now, we talked a little bit about failures. Now, let's climb over that hill to success. When you look back, what was that big breakthrough moment where you felt like, "Okay, the startup is slowly moving into a brand." People start using the name, the app becomes part of daily life. When did you know that you had something that would become a major player in the music world? No pun intended. May it have been a funding round or the Salzburg Festival where you launched or early user feedback. What was it for IDAGIO where you knew that this will actually be a success?T Janczukowicz: Well, I think in order to do something like that, you need a certain, what we call... I don't know how you may be able to translate that in German. There's a nice word, Gottvertrauen. I don't know how you translate it. You put your trust in God. You have to do something. Everybody was, "Oh, you're going to fail, you're stupid." But to trust, you trust that it will work.So this is something that was always there. However, I, would say two things. One thing was quite early. It was that we were indeed launching, not the app, a minimal viable product, even not the beta at the Salzburg festival in 2015. We were launching there and we were sitting on stage in the premises of the festival upon invitation of the Vienna Philharmonic.Then some days later there was an article in Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. They wrote, it was 2015 and they wrote, "If they're not going to run out of money, they could change the way how people listen to classical music." This is something, I remember, we were by far not yet there, but having read that and then securing the next funding round, the combination of those two things that we say, "Okay, we are on the good way. Let's put it like that."F Geyrhalter: Right. That’s amazing. For our international listeners, which is not the majority of our listeners, I think we have 6% German listeners. The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung is the authority, not only in Germany but it reaches through all of the central Europe. So that is a huge deal. To go back to when you talk about Gottvertrauen, the idea of you trust in God, just to make it universally accessible. It's also for atheists. That idea that you just trust in the universe, right? You have this ideology where you trust in the universe.All right, Till, we're coming slowly to a close, but none of my guests can get away without answering this particular question. Mainly because I believe it is such a great exercise for any entrepreneur to give some thought to as they keep building their culture and brand. I gave you a heads up on that. If you could describe everything about your brand in one or two words that would turn into your brand's DNA, as I call it, what would it be like? Examples could be freedom for Harley Davidson or happiness for Coca-Cola. What would that brand DNA be?T Janczukowicz: I have to answer that with an anecdote and then I try to answer your question.F Geyrhalter: Perfect.T Janczukowicz: There was a young Romanian conductor, Sergio Celibidache, amazing, amazing conductor. Was for many years the music director, legendary music director of the Munich Philharmonic. He believed he would get the job of the music director of the Berlin Philharmonic, then Karajan got the job. I just have to say that because he said Karajan is like Coca Cola.F Geyrhalter: I think I know that story from my dad actually because it's so classic.T Janczukowicz: Yeah, exactly. So sorry to... But it's not exactly an answer to what you asked, but I had to raise that. If you would allow two words that are not very romantic, I would say, what people should think in three, five, 10 years when they hear IDAGIO, it's classical music. If you would ask me to really distill it down to one word, then I would rather turn to what the classic music does with people. Then we could say happiness because it brings happiness. It gives people a more happier life because it makes you healthy.There are all these studies, classical music connects when you're growing up the right and the left half of the brain in a more meaningful way. You learn empathy, the social skills and so on. You could say health, but probably if we could nail it. Ask to really nail it down to one word, I think it's belonging.I think it's belonging because, if you look at what happens, we come alone, we go along but we have this 60, 70, if you're lucky, 80 years. To overcome this, this illusion of loneliness and classical music has this power to really connect you with other people. You don't need to touch them. You don't need to look at them. You close your eyes, but you feel connected with other people. I think this is probably best described by the word belonging.F Geyrhalter: That's beautiful. I knew that belonging would come back up because you had talked about it in the beginning. It is such a perfectly emotional word to really capture the brand beyond, right, really the entire genre. Where can listeners find IDAGIO if they are intrigued enough after listening to us for the last 45 minutes to give it a try and perhaps even become converts to the magic of classical music?T Janczukowicz: Very easily, on the internet, idagio.com. In the app store, there's an Android version. Anybody, for example, who has a Sonos device. There's been Sonos implementation of IDAGIO. But I would say go to the internet and there you'll find all the app stores to find IDAGIO and the different partnerships we have also with hardware manufacturers. Yeah, that's probably the easiest way.F Geyrhalter: Excellent. Excellent. That's the beauty of owning your name online. So I know you launched the company at the Salzburg Festival or the Salzburger Festspiele in 2015.T Janczukowicz: Yeah.F Geyrhalter: That is exactly what I would be heading next week. So watch out for me Till. If you're in Salzburg, you might run into me at one of the many Festspiele locations.T Janczukowicz: Cool.F Geyrhalter: Thank you so much for staying late at your office in Berlin to have this conversation with me today and to share your stories and your thoughts on branding with me and my listeners. We really appreciate your time.T Janczukowicz: A great pleasure. Thank you so much.F Geyrhalter: And thanks to everyone for listening, and please hit that subscribe button and give the show a quick rating - it only takes 5 seconds and it helps the podcast’s visibility and growth.And if you really enjoy it, please head on over to PATREON.com/Hittingthemark to become a sustaining member supporting this show.There has never been a more important episode in which to give the theme music some credit. It was written and produced by Happiness Won. If you want to know who is behind Happiness Won, then also head on over to PATREON.com/Hittingthemark and you may find what you learn amusing.I will see you next time – when we, once again, will be hitting the mark. 

Virtuoso Ray Chen hardly needs an introduction, but let's start with his Gold Medal at the Queen Elisabeth competition in 2009, at the age of 20! His career since then, by all appearances, has been an effortless climb. But as you're about to hear, that isn't the whole story. As I've gotten to know Ray (during his solo appearances with the LA Phil, including that one time he stole my bow for a Paganini encore!) I've been impressed with how open he is in person and on social media. Let's start here: if you don't follow Ray on Instagram and YouTube, you're missing out big time! Here are those links: Ray's Instagram Ray on YouTube For example, one of Ray's videos deals with the topic of insecurity. It's so rare for a world-class soloist to open up about this topic, and you certainly won't hear any insecurity in his playing! But as we discuss in this episode, it's a feeling every violinist deals with at some point, and it's a necessary step along the way to mature artistry. Ray Chen's biography Ray Chen is a violinist who redefines what it is to be a classical musician in the 21st Century. With a media presence that enhances and inspires the classical audience, reaching out to millions through his unprecedented online following, Ray Chen's remarkable musicianship transmits to a global audience that is reflected in his engagements with the foremost orchestras and concert halls around the world.Initially coming to attention via the Yehudi Menuhin (2008) and Queen Elizabeth (2009) Competitions, of which he was First Prize winner, he has built a profile in Europe, Asia, and the USA as well as his native Australia both live and on disc. Signed in 2017 to Decca Classics, the summer of 2017 has seen the recording of the first album of this partnership with the London Philharmonic as a succession to his previous three critically acclaimed albums on SONY, the first of which (“Virtuoso”) received an ECHO Klassik Award. Profiled as “one to watch” by the Strad and Gramophone magazines, his profile has grown to encompass his featuring in the Forbes list of 30 most influential Asians under 30, appearing in major online TV series “Mozart in the Jungle”, a multi-year partnership with Giorgio Armani (who designed the cover of his Mozart album with Christoph Eschenbach) and performing at major media events such as France's Bastille Day (live to 800,000 people), the Nobel Prize Concert in Stockholm (telecast across Europe), and the BBC Proms. “It's hard to say something new with these celebrated works; however, Ray Chen performs them with the kind of authority that puts him in the same category as Maxim Vengerov.” — CORRIERE DELLA SERA He has appeared with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhausorchester, Munich Philharmonic, Filarmonica della Scala, Orchestra Nazionale della Santa Cecilia, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and upcoming debuts include the SWR Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Berlin Radio Symphony, and Bavarian Radio Chamber Orchestra. He works with conductors such as Riccardo Chailly, Vladimir Jurowski, Sakari Oramo, Manfred Honeck, Daniele Gatti, Kirill Petrenko, Krystof Urbanski, Juraj Valcuha and many others. From 2012-2015 he was resident at the Dortmund Konzerthaus and in 17/18 will be an “Artist Focus” with the Berlin Radio Symphony. His presence on social media makes Ray Chen a pioneer in an artist's interaction with their audience, utilising the new opportunities of modern technology. His appearances and interactions with music and musicians are instantly disseminated to a new public in a contemporary and relatable way. He is the first musician to be invited to write a lifestyle blog for the largest Italian publishing house, RCS Rizzoli (Corriere della Sera, Gazzetta dello Sport, Max). He has been featured in Vogue magazine and is currently releasing his own design of violin case for the industry manufacturer GEWA.

Virtuoso Ray Chen hardly needs an introduction, but let's start with his Gold Medal at the Queen Elisabeth competition in 2009, at the age of 20! His career since then, by all appearances, has been an effortless climb. But as you're about to hear, that isn't the whole story. As I've gotten to know Ray (during his solo appearances with the LA Phil, including that one time he stole my bow for a Paganini encore!) I've been impressed with how open he is in person and on social media. Let's start here: if you don't follow Ray on Instagram and YouTube, you're missing out big time! Here are those links: Ray's Instagram Ray on YouTube For example, one of Ray's videos deals with the topic of insecurity. It's so rare for a world-class soloist to open up about this topic, and you certainly won't hear any insecurity in his playing! But as we discuss in this episode, it's a feeling every violinist deals with at some point, and it's a necessary step along the way to mature artistry. Ray Chen's biography Ray Chen is a violinist who redefines what it is to be a classical musician in the 21st Century. With a media presence that enhances and inspires the classical audience, reaching out to millions through his unprecedented online following, Ray Chen's remarkable musicianship transmits to a global audience that is reflected in his engagements with the foremost orchestras and concert halls around the world.Initially coming to attention via the Yehudi Menuhin (2008) and Queen Elizabeth (2009) Competitions, of which he was First Prize winner, he has built a profile in Europe, Asia, and the USA as well as his native Australia both live and on disc. Signed in 2017 to Decca Classics, the summer of 2017 has seen the recording of the first album of this partnership with the London Philharmonic as a succession to his previous three critically acclaimed albums on SONY, the first of which (“Virtuoso”) received an ECHO Klassik Award. Profiled as “one to watch” by the Strad and Gramophone magazines, his profile has grown to encompass his featuring in the Forbes list of 30 most influential Asians under 30, appearing in major online TV series “Mozart in the Jungle”, a multi-year partnership with Giorgio Armani (who designed the cover of his Mozart album with Christoph Eschenbach) and performing at major media events such as France’s Bastille Day (live to 800,000 people), the Nobel Prize Concert in Stockholm (telecast across Europe), and the BBC Proms. “It’s hard to say something new with these celebrated works; however, Ray Chen performs them with the kind of authority that puts him in the same category as Maxim Vengerov.” — CORRIERE DELLA SERA He has appeared with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra, Leipzig Gewandhausorchester, Munich Philharmonic, Filarmonica della Scala, Orchestra Nazionale della Santa Cecilia, Los Angeles Philharmonic, and upcoming debuts include the SWR Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Pittsburgh Symphony, Berlin Radio Symphony, and Bavarian Radio Chamber Orchestra. He works with conductors such as Riccardo Chailly, Vladimir Jurowski, Sakari Oramo, Manfred Honeck, Daniele Gatti, Kirill Petrenko, Krystof Urbanski, Juraj Valcuha and many others. From 2012-2015 he was resident at the Dortmund Konzerthaus and in 17/18 will be an “Artist Focus” with the Berlin Radio Symphony. His presence on social media makes Ray Chen a pioneer in an artist’s interaction with their audience, utilising the new opportunities of modern technology. His appearances and interactions with music and musicians are instantly disseminated to a new public in a contemporary and relatable way. He is the first musician to be invited to write a lifestyle blog for the largest Italian publishing house, RCS Rizzoli (Corriere della Sera, Gazzetta dello Sport, Max). He has been featured in Vogue magazine and is currently releasing his own design of violin case for the industry manufacturer GEWA.

The Symphony No. 8 in E-flat major by Gustav Mahler is one of the largest-scale choral works in the classical concert repertoire. Because it requires huge instrumental and vocal forces it is frequently called the "Symphony of a Thousand", although the work is normally presented with far fewer than a thousand performers and the composer did not sanction that name. The work was composed in a single inspired burst, at Maiernigg in southern Austria in the summer of 1906. The last of Mahler's works that was premiered in his lifetime, the symphony was a critical and popular success when he conducted the Munich Philharmonic in its first performance, in Munich, on 12 September 1910. Performed by: CMD German Opera Company of Berlin CMD Grand Opera Company of Venice CMD Chorus and Philharmonic of Paris in Orlean CMD Boy's Choir of Vienna Conducted by Kenneth Hedgecock Purchase now at: http://www.classicalsavings.com/store/p498/Mahler%3A_Symphony_No._8_%22Symphony_of_a_Thousand%22.html

Some of our episodes talk about a conductor’s journey as a musician, or their philosophical understanding of the nature of choral music. Some episodes are pure toolkits: here’s what you need to solve your problems. This episode has the rare distinction of being both. Dr. Kronauer and Ryan cover the “hows” of directing teenage male voices, as well as the “whys” behind them. You’re going to want to listen to this one twice. Listen: Highlight to Tweet: “Living rigidly is not the game. The game is finding elasticity.” - Steven Kronauer Show Notes: Try thinking less in terms of “blend,” and more in terms of “agreement.” For the teenage male singer, it’s important to reassure them that change is a part of life. Whatever they are working with (or through) will be fine. When dealing with limited range, you need to offer patience and guidance. Provide a model. Avoiding “compensation,” or reaching for a pitch. (“that giraffe thing” - Ryan Guth) Posture and alignment are always important, but especially so for teenage boys. Accept and love this period of life where you’re going through change! Falsetto is huge. HUGE. Sing into a straw in a cup of water, so that the sound is focused at the front of the bubbles. It helps practice constant airflow. Hum with the tongue between the lips, concentrating on the vibration of the vocal folds while letting go of tensions. “You learn to sing by singing.” Place your singers according to what will be healthy for them. Bio: DR. STEVEN KRONAUER, a highly experienced voice teacher, tenor, and conductor, is the conductor of Los Angeles Children’s Chorus’ Young Men’s Ensemble, comprised of young men with changing voices. After completing two Master’s degrees at the University of Michigan, one in Voice Performance and the other in Choral Conducting, Dr. Kronauer began his professional career in the chorus of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, Germany, as its youngest member ever.  During his ten-year engagement, he had the privilege of meeting and studying with many noted singers of the highest echelon, including world famous Verdi tenor Dennis O’Neill and Wagnerian baritone Donald MacIntyre.  Dr. Kronauer was employed as a soloist with the Bavarian State Opera for television broadcasts, CD recordings, and live radio performances, appearing with Renee Fleming, Kurt Moll, and many others, in secondary tenor roles.  Dr. Kronauer performed the role of Smy in a world premiere of the German opera Peter Pan, by Willfried Hiller, directed by the world famous stage director August Everding.  This performance was recorded at the Prinz-Regenten Theatre in Munich, Germany, and distributed by Deutche Gramaphone. Dr. Kronauer has studied oratorio with the finest of the field, including Ernst Haefliger and Peter Schreier, in Germany (while being a guest observer as a conductor at the Deutche Stats Oper in Berlin, Germany). He also studied with tenor John McCollum in the United States. Since then, he established a career in Europe singing oratorio under such noted conductors as Karl Anton Richenbacher and Peter Schneider.  Additionally, Dr. Kronauer has sung as a soloist at the Cologne Philharmonic, and with the Munich Philharmonic in Germany. He has sung more than 100 performances of Carmina Burana, internationally.  Dr. Kronauer’s interest in opera conducting was enhanced upon becoming acquainted with Zubin Mehta and Wolfgang Sawalisch at the Munich Opera.  Dr. Kronauer is a soloist with many organizations since his return from Europe, including a frequent guest with the Angeles Chorale and the National Children’s Chorus, here in Los Angeles. Dr. Kronauer completed his doctorate degree at the University of California, Los Angeles in choral conducting and operatic conducting under the direction of Donald Neuen and William Vendice, respectively.  He has worked with Donald Neuen as an assistant conductor with the UCLA Chorale and with Maestro Vendice as the assistant conductor of the UCLA Opera. Previously, The University of Michigan offered Dr. Kronauer the opportunity of completing two Masters Degrees in Vocal Performance (under Lorna Haywood and John McCollum) and Choral Conducting (under Theodore Morrison).  There, he was the Assistant Conductor for Jerry Blackstone and the University of Michigan Men’s Glee Club.   He has also led a choral workshop at the University of Munich.  Dr. Kronauer’s expertise focused on performance practice of American and British chorale music.  While in Munich he formed The Munich Opera Chamber Chorus, which sang some of the great chamber music of the Germanic tradition, including the complete Liebeslieder waltzes. Dr. Kronauer has taught on the voice faculty of the Interlochen Arts Camp and at the University of California, Irvine.  He also had the honor of presenting a lecture to the National Association of Teacher’s of Singing on the “Dos and Don’ts of Starting a Singing Career in Germany.” Dr. Kronauer taught for three years as a member of the voice faculty, and the music director of the opera program at California State University, Los Angeles, conducting fully staged performances of Hansel and Gretel by Humperdinck and L’incornatione di Poppea, by Monteverdi.  Dr. Kronauer was the Acting Chair of the voice department of the University of California, Santa Barbara for two years and the director of opera activities producing. Currently Dr. Kronauer has a busy private voice studio and is on the faculty of California State University, Long Beach at the Bob Cole Conservatory of Music teaching voice and German diction. Resources/links Mentioned: LA Children’s Chorus Vocal Wisdom Choir Nation group on Facebook Patreon - Support the podcast! Sponsored by: Sight Reading Factory (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for 10 free student accounts!) My Music Folders (Use promo code “NINJA” at checkout for “last column” or best pricing - usually reserved for bulk purchases only!)

Richard Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier is an opera about the passage of time — what it means to grow older, what we lose and what we gain as the years pass, and how we know when it's time to let go of the people that we love. Mezzo-soprano Elīna Garanča knows all about letting go, because after singing the role of Octavian for 17 years, she is giving her final performance as the passionate count this week. But Garanča has no regrets. She's learned to appreciate her life by accepting, and even enjoying, the passage of time.  Elīna Garanča as Octavian and Erin Morley as Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier:  This episode features excerpts from the following albums: Strauss: Der Rosenkavalier (Decca, 2009)— Renée Fleming, soprano; Sophie Koch, mezzo-soprano; Diana Damrau, soprano; Munich Philharmonic conducted by Christian Thielemann Strauss: Der Rosenkavalier (Deutsche Grammophon, 2010)— Diana Damrau, soprano; Elīna Garanča, mezzo-soprano; Staatskapelle Dresden conducted by Fabio Luisi

In the sixth episode of Cedille's Classical Chicago Podcast, violinist Jennifer Koh sits down with Steve Robinson to discuss her latest release, Tchaikovsky: Complete Works for Violin and Orchestra. She describes the inspiration behind the album, growing up as the child of Korean immigrants, and reveals why her violin teacher lied to her when she was a young student. Jennifer Koh, Musical America’s 2016 Instrumentalist of the Year, headlines an album of Tchaikovsky’s complete works for violin and orchestra. It’s the “remarkable . . . thoughtful and vibrant” (Strings Magazine) American violinist’s first recording of music by Tchaikovsky, who has figured prominently in her rise to the top ranks of violinists worldwide. Tchaikovsky’s Concerto in D Major is one of the most celebrated and daunting works in the violin repertoire. The subdued Sérénade mélancolique illustrates the composer’s ear for orchestral color. The delicate Valse-Scherzo melds old-fashioned elegance with spirited playfulness. Souvenir d’un lieu cher’s poignant, nostalgic mood gives way to a delightful finale. Koh shared the top prize in the 1994 Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow, where she played the Tchaikovsky (and Brahms) concerto and won three special prizes, including for the best performance of Tchaikovsky’s work. The star violinist has a long history with her album collaborators, Denmark’s Odense Symphony Orchestra and its chief conductor, Alexander Vedernikov. In recent years, audiences have heard Koh perform the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto with the Munich Philharmonic under Lorin Maazel, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra under Carlos Miguel Prieto, Japan’s NHK Symphony under Vedernikov, and the Odense Symphony Orchestra under Christoph Poppen.

Trombonist, Actress, Poet; Abbie Conant joined us in the studio to share stories of success, challenges, and perseverance. Currently, she finds artistic fulfillment in teaching and performing new theatrical works for Trombone with her husband William Osborne. We discussed her journey to Europe and experience with sexism in Italy as well as the Munich Philharmonic.