Schubert Bath and Chopin Walk
“…captured the mood of Franz Schubert, where recognizable fragments were stripped of all their inherent dynamics. A struggle between dazzling beauty and acute danger and risk that unsettled the Schubertian expression in a fantastic way.” – Dagens Nyheter
Schubert Bath
In a true Schubert bonanza, we immerse ourselves in Schubert’s chamber music. The ensemble adds and subtracts through their own improvisations, offering entirely new entry points into the works.
Chopin Walk
In a similar way, we journey through Frédéric Chopin’s catalogue, enjoying how the music is reflected through improvisations and musical commentary.
Listen:
Watch the concert film from Atalante for a glimpse of the experience!
Performers
Ensemble Makadam consists of:
Sara Sjödahl – piano, accordion
Anna Lindal – violin
Elsbeth Bergh – viola
Kristina Lindgård – cello
Ensemble Makadam
Ensemble Makadam brings together some of Sweden’s leading musicians on their respective instruments. For many years, they have worked from a foundation in the classical tradition, while approaching it compositionally and improvisationally, playfully creating new works through a shared process.
By combining classical repertoire with planned and spontaneous improvisations—freely and unpredictably—new forms emerge. The result is dynamic and opens up fresh perspectives on music as an art form and mode of expression.
This working method permeates most of their productions. It may involve blossoming into improvisation in the middle of movements, cutting and rearranging material from existing works, preparing instruments to discover new sounds, and working with layered textures. The ensemble also collaborates with composers who operate in the space between notated music and improvisation.
The concert lasts approximately one hour plus intermission.
Franz Peter Schubert, born 31 January 1797 in Himmelpfortgrund, today part of Vienna’s Alsergrund district, and died 19 November 1828 in Vienna, was an Austrian composer. Franz Schubert
Frédéric François Chopin (Polish: Fryderyk Franciszek Chopin, sometimes Szopen; French pronunciation: [fʁedeʁik fʁɑ̃swa ʃɔpɛ̃]; Polish pronunciation: [frɨˈdɛrɨk fraɲˈt͡ɕiʂɛk ˈʂɔpɛn], older Swedish pronunciation: [ʂɔˈpɛŋ]), born 1 March 1810 in Żelazowa Wola in Poland, died 17 October 1849 in Paris, France, was a Polish composer, piano virtuoso, and piano teacher. Frédéric Chopin
Improvisation in music can take many different forms. The National Encyclopedia describes musical improvisation as “the term for the unforeseen, unplanned, and spontaneous elements in a musical performance,” and Encyclopædia Britannica loosely translated as “unprepared composing or free performance of a musical passage, usually in a way that conforms to certain stylistic norms but is independent of a specific musical text.”