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Artist: Daniel Hope, Alexey Botvinov
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Daniel Hope, Alexey Botvinov:

Music For A New Century w/New Century Chamber Orch

Celebrating its 30th anniversary this season, New Century Chamber Orchestra has been resident in San Francisco’s Bay Area since its founding in 1992. One of just a handful of conductorless chamber orchestras in the world, the ensemble makes collaborative musical decisions, leading to an enhanced level of engagement from all involved. As well as giving masterful performances of the core chamber repertoire, New Century is known for reviving long-lost gems, experimenting with works from genres such as rock or jazz, and championing new music by commissioning, programming and premiering works by living composers. 

Its commitment to contemporary music has grown even stronger under the leadership of Daniel Hope. The multifaceted artist and musical activist worked with New Century as Artistic Partner in the 2017-18 season, before being appointed Music Director, a role he took up at the start of the 2018-19 season. A shared passion for excellence, innovation and exploration has subsequently informed the performances and other projects both he and New Century have undertaken. 

The latest of these is Music for a New Century, a stunning new recording for Deutsche Grammophon made as part of the ensemble’s 30th-anniversary celebrations. Recorded at Stanford University’s Bing Concert Hall, the album features four recent compositions, all commissioned or co commissioned by New Century. 
 

Daniel Hope, Alexey Botvinov:

Silvestrov

Valentin Silvestrov’s exquisite music has attracted global attention in recent months. The sights and sounds of war were part of the Ukrainian composer’s childhood in Nazi-occupied Kyiv. They returned to haunt him eighty years later as Russian missiles announced the shocking start of a new invasion, one directed against an independent Ukraine by its hostile neighbour. Earlier this year violinist Daniel Hope and pianist Alexey Botvinov, himself an enforced exile from Odessa, greeted the composer in Berlin, his place of refuge. The duo’s high-profile performance and fundraising EP of his music prepared the ground for their latest album for Deutsche Grammophon – set for release today – an all-Silvestrov programme complete with the world premiere recording of Pastorales 2020 and a selection of ineffably beautiful companion pieces. They share their reflections on the composer and why his music matters now more than ever.

You planned to record this album of Silvestrov’s music long before Russia invaded Ukraine. Can you sketch its origins and describe the circumstances in which it was made?

Daniel Hope: I’ve visited and performed in Odessa for the past eight years thanks to Alexey Botvinov and his Odessa Classics Festival. I fell in love with the place and felt an instant connection to it. My teachers and violinistic heroes are all connected to Odessa, like so many great musicians. Alexey and I thought it would be wonderful to commission a piece by a Ukrainian composer to perform at the 2020 Festival. Without hesitation, he said, “What about Silvestrov?” It never even occurred to me to ask him, as he’s so famous and so busy. I didn’t believe we’d be able to get him to do it. But Alexey did ask him and he came straight back and said, “Yes, I want to do something.” It was incredible.

Daniel Hope, Alexey Botvinov:

Music For Ukraine

United in their support for Ukraine, violinist Daniel Hope and Ukrainian pianist Alexey Botvinov recently joined forces to perform A Concert for Peace from Dresden's Frauenkirche and Berlin’s Gedächtniskirche.  This EP recorded at Teldex Studios features a programme of composers Valentin Silvestrov, Myroslav Skoryk and Jan Freidlin. Everyone involved provided their services free of charge, and both the artists and Deutsche Grammophon will be donating the proceeds to charities working to help the people of Ukraine. Listen here: https://dgt.link/musicforukraine
 
"My thoughts and prayers are with all the people and our friends in Ukraine. Odessa, a magical place, and its Odessa Classics Festival have become an integral part of my life. In these days I was due to be in Kyiv with Ukrainian pianist Alexey Botvinov to work with the composer Valentin Silvestrov. Instead, we have decided to record his music in Berlin, together with other Ukrainian composers as a message of musical solidarity. Teldex Studios, Steinway and Kobalt Media provided their services free of charge for this EP. Deutsche Grammophon, Alexey Botvinov and I will donate the proceeds from this digital release to the charity “Aktion Deutschland Hilft”, which is doing essential work to help Ukraine." - Daniel Hope

Daniel Hope, Alexey Botvinov:

Schnittke - Works for Violin and Piano

Daniel Hope was fifteen when he first encountered the music of Alfred Schnittke in 1989. The experience launched a love affair with the Russian composer's work that has continued to deepen ever since. The violinist's latest album for Deutsche Grammophon pays homage to this maverick genius, whose elegant explorations of past styles and free-thinking experiments in "polystylism" were both original and iconoclastic, at times bringing him into conflict with the Soviet authorities. 

Schnittke – Works for Violin and Piano, set for international release on 5 February 2021, was recorded with Ukrainian pianist Alexey Botvinov, an acclaimed interpreter of the composer's works. The programme embraces everything from the immediately accessible Polka and Tango to the multi-layered Violin Sonata No.1, the work that first ignited Hope's passion for Schnittke's music.