Paavo Named New Music Director of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra

Paavo with Director-General of Hessischer Rundfunk, Dr. Helmut Reitze, May 9, 2005 (photo credit: hr/Krieger)

Longtime Paavo Project readers may recall that on February 28 we reported that a German fan wrote to us about a rumor regarding PJ and Frankfurt. To refresh your memory:

With apologies to Robert Ashley and Music with Roots in the Aether -- this my music rumor with roots in the aether! LOL!

Anyway, when I discovered on Sunday that PJ was flying to Paris by way of Frankfurt, I kind is suspected that something unusual was up! Here is the text of the official press release in English:

Paavo Järvi New Music Director of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra
Inaugural concerts in October 2006

"Paavo Järvi will be the new Music Director of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra as from the 2006/2007 season. 'The choice of this first-class conductor will in future guarantee the outstanding position which the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra occupies in Germany', declared the Director-General of Hessischer Rundfunk (hr) Dr. Helmut Reitze. 

"An ideal candidate for the succession of Hugh Wolff – Paavo Järvi and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra can already look back on many years of excellent cooperation. With this Estonian musician, the orchestra has been able to engage a versatile conductor, who is both highly recognized on an international level and in an ideal position to improve the profile of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra with his extremely wide-ranging symphonic repertoire. 

"On 12 and 13 October 2006, Paavo Järvi will conduct his inaugural concerts with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. His contract as Music Director has been signed today and is concluded for an initial period of three years, with the option to be renewed for a further two years. Paavo Järvi will conduct at least 30 concerts per season, and will also lead the orchestra for guest performances and tours. In addition, two CD-projects have been planned per season.

"As guest conductor, Paavo Järvi will visit Frankfurt twice before his inaugural concerts. Audiences can hear him in concert with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra this December in a programme of Bach / Webern, Beethoven and Nielsen and in February 2006 he will conduct both Arvo Pärt’s and Anton Bruckner’s Symphonies no.3. 

"Paavo Järvi expressed his delight on this new engagement, saying, 'I am very pleased to take over one of the most exciting German orchestras in one of the most interesting German regions.' The designated Music Director wants to present a diversity of music ranging from the classical to contemporary. A wide romantic repertoire will be cultivated just as much as rarities. Being Estonian by birth, Paavo Järvi also wishes to make the audience acquainted with lesser known composers from north-eastern Europe, such as Nielsen, Stenhammar and, for example, Tubin. The experience gained by the orchestra in recent years with historical performances will be further pursued by Paavo Järvi, who wishes to continue the Haydn tradition. The performance and examination of contemporary music will be a firm component of his programs. For his first term of office, orchestral works by Jörg Widmann and Marc-André Dalbavie have already been commissioned, as have two works by Erkki-Sven Tüür. Opening up to new audiences as well as working with children and young people is a matter of great importance to the 42-year-old Järvi. 

"In addition to his new role in Frankfurt, Paavo Järvi continues his work as Music Director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Artistic Director of the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen and Artistic Advisor of the Estonian National Orchestra. His recent European tour with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra has successfully shown his leadership of one of America’s oldest and well established orchestras, whilst his work with the Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen continues to establish the ensemble as one of the finest chamber music groups in the world."

RELATED STORIES:

Jarvi is taking second position by Mary Ellyn Hutton, Cincinnati Post (May 9, 2005)

Järvi adds Frankfurt orchestra to his resumé by Janelle Gelfand, Cincinnati Enquirer (May 10, 2005). Excerpt:

"...It is pretty standard practice for conductors to have more than one appointment,' says Järvi, reached by cell phone as he boarded a plane from Frankfurt to Paris.

" 'My appointment in Frankfurt will have no noticeable effect on my work in Cincinnati,' he says. 'Because Frankfurt is a major art center in Europe, it is a visible appointment and can therefore help bring more attention to what's happening here in Cincinnati.'

"Next season, Järvi will conduct 14 weeks of the Cincinnati Symphony's 24-week season. This year, he moved his family - partner Tanya Berman and their daughter, Lea, 15 months, into a new condo in East Walnut Hills. During his free time, Järvi is a fan of the Blue Wisp Jazz Club downtown, where he can often be found after symphony concerts."

Official Press Statement in German

Official site: Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra