Opening Ceremonies for the Elbphilharmonie Hamburg

PR67112

HAMBURG, Jan. 12 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ -

Today, a ceremony and the inaugural concert marked the official opening of the

Elbphilharmonie Hamburg. The concert hall is the new musical heart of the

northern German metropolis. The spectacular venue uses its architecture and its

programme to combine artistic excellence with the utmost in openness and

accessibility. Designed by architects Herzog & de Meuron and perched between

the city and the harbour, the Elbphilharmonie unites the former Kaispeicher

warehouse with a new glass structure featuring wave-like peaks and valleys on

top. In addition to three concert halls, among other features, the building is

home to a hotel and a viewing platform which is open to the public and which

underscores the new landmark's character as a ”house for all”.

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A ceremony in the Grand Hall marked the beginning of the opening festivities.

For the occasion, addresses were held by German Federal President Joachim

Gauck, First Mayor of Hamburg Olaf Scholz, Jacques Herzog from Herzog & de

Meuron and General and Artistic Director Christoph Lieben-Seutter. Guests

included German Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel and numerous other

high-ranking representatives from the worlds of politics and culture.

In the Grand Hall, the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra under the direction of its

Chief Conductor Thomas Hengelbrock performed with the choir of the Bayerischer

Rundfunk, as well as renowned soloists such as Philippe Jaroussky

(countertenor), Hanna-Elisabeth Mueller (soprano), Wiebke Lehmkuhl

(mezzo-soprano), Pavol Breslik (tenor) and Bryn Terfel (bass-baritone).

One of the highlights was the first-ever performance of a work commissioned

specially for the occasion by the German contemporary composer Wolfgang Rihm

titled ”Reminiszenz. Triptychon und Spruch in memoriam Hans Henny Jahnn fuer

Tenor und Grosses Orchester”. As a follow-up, the orchestra played a series of

related works from several different centuries which gave the audience a first,

powerful glimpse of the outstanding acoustics of the Grand Hall, which are the

result of the efforts of Japanese star acoustics expert Yasuhisa Toyota. The

evening concerts came to a head with Beethoven's ”Symphony No. 9 in D minor”,

whose final choral movement ”Freude schoener Goetterfunken” was the perfect

expression of the festive atmosphere of the new concert hall's opening event.

During the concert, the facade of the Elbphilharmonie became a canvas for a

one-of-a-kind light display. The music played in the Grand Hall was transformed

into colours and shapes in real time and projected onto the building's facade.

Thousands of onlookers beheld the Elbphilharmonie - Hamburg's new landmark - in

all its glory before the impressive backdrop of the city and the harbour. You

can find more information at http://www.elbphilharmonie.com.

- Cross reference:

Pictures are available at AP Images (http://www.apimages.com)

Video is available at AP Video Hub (http://www.apvideohub.com) -

Press contacts:

Hamburg Marketing

Natalie Ruoss

Tel: +49-40-41-11-10-641

natalie.ruoss@marketing.hamburg.de

UK press contact

Bolton & Quinn

Dennis Chang

Tel: +44(0)20-7221-5000

dennis@boltonquinn.com

USA press contact

Polskin Arts

Julia Esposito

Tel: +1-212-715-1643

julia.esposito@finnpartners.com

SOURCE: Elbphilharmonie Hamburg