Anne-Sophie Mutter and Lambert Orkis have been playing concerts together since 1988 – Last month the two exceptional musicians started celebrating the 25th anniversary of their collaboration with concerts in Germany, France, Austria and Switzerland.

The two perfectly harmonized musicians have not only performed in the most prestigious concert halls in the world, they have also produced numerous CDs for the Deutsche Grammophon label. The recording with Beethoven's sonatas for piano and violin, for example, received a Grammy Award, and the recording of Mozart's sonatas for piano and violin was awarded a prize by the French magazine "Le Monde de la Musique".

The new double CD by Mutter and Orkis, "The Silver Album" features the world premiere recordings of Penderecki's "La Follia" and Previn's violin sonata No. 2; the recordings of Massenet's "Méditation from Thaïs" and Ravel's "Pièce en forme de Habanera" are also new. These 40 minutes of new music are joined by sonatas by Beethoven, Brahms, Fauré and Mozart, as well as a selection of legendary encores by the duo, including for example "Beau Soir" by Debussy or Kreisler's "Caprice viennois op. 2".

“Meeting Lambert was a stroke of luck for me. When we started to perform together, it quickly became clear how perfectly we breathe and phrase together.” It was in December 1988 that Anne-Sophie Mutter and Lambert Orkis gave their first joint recitals in America and immediately sensed that they shared a mutually sympathetic way of thinking about music which neither felt would ever change. For Anne-Sophie Mutter such an affinity is “either there or it isn’t. It’s hard to put it into words. But you notice at once whether you can really converse with another person. For us, this essential basis has remained constant throughout our twenty-five years together.”

The fact that these two artists approached their partnership from somewhat different angles proved not to be an obstacle but was in fact extremely productive. Lambert Orkis had long been familiar with contemporary music and also with performing on period instruments, and this familiarity had influenced his view of the music of the 18th and 19th centuries. The violinist is convinced that their work on Mozart and Beethoven sonatas has profited immensely from this. “In general we’re helped by the differences in our personalities as much as by the points that we have in common, including the desire to stand by each other unconditionally. We’re like high-wire artists trying to ensure that the other person has the best possible position for a triple somersault with a twist.”

If you would like to read more of this interview click HERE.

You can also watch an interview below.

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