Institute Anniversary
"Archive Treasures" – this is the title of the exhibition presented by the Hindemith Institute of Frankfurt presented in the Small Hall of the Academy of Music and the Performing Arts in Frankfurt from 14 to 16 November 2014 on the occasion of its 40th anniversary. Numerous valuable items from the extensive collection of the Institute were on view during this time. In her official speech to open the exhibition, Professor Dr. Susanne Popp, Director of the Max Reger Institute in Karlsruhe, emphasised the manifold challenges faced by composers' institutes today: they collect and archive documents, conduct research and publish their knowledge in order to attain wider understanding for "their" composer and his/her work.
The festivities were rounded off by concerts with students of the HfMDK under the direction of Gerhard Müller-Hornbach, and with the birthday concert on 16 November in the Cowherds' Tower with members of the Ensemble Modern.
On the occasion of the anniversary of the Institute, we received congratulations from interpreters who are committed to Hindemith's work in special ways.
“Ever since my first meeting with members of the Hindemith Institute in 2001 at a master class in Blonay, Switzerland, I have greatly profited from their musicological and historical knowledge. What developed even more strongly from the encounters of the past years, however, was the Institute members' passion for and knowledge of Hindemith - a musician and person of so many facets. The cultural background of the Institute members, their devotion and readiness to help and to provide information are invaluable for all musicians and all those who are interested in Hindemith. My heartfelt congratulations on your birthday and long live the Hindemith Institute Frankfurt!
Yours sincerely, Antoine Tamestit
"My love of Hindemith goes back to my earliest childhood, when I played 'Minimax', and the 'Trauermusik' and String Trio, Op. 34 shortly thereafter. For me as a musician, it has been a great stroke of fortune that his legacy is managed, researched and distributed in the Hindemith Institute. I have always been met with open ears and energetic help when turning to the Institute for planning Hindemith projects: in 2001 at a course at the Hindemith Music Centre in Blonay, in 2012 for CD productions and in 2013 for the Viola Day in Berlin, which was completely dominated by the Hindemith Memorial Year. As a member of the Hindemith Foundation Council since early 2013, I am delighted that I can gain a still more profound insight into the wide-ranging and fruitful work of the Institute.
Tabea Zimmermann
"Congratulations on the 40th Birthday of the Institute
We have been visiting the Hindemith Institute in Frankfurt for many years and each time, anew, we look forward to the warm, generous atmosphere with which we musicians are received there. We are able to have a glimpse into this treasure chest full of valuable documents and are pampered with information, stories and anecdotes. We thank you for all this and heartily congratulate the Institute on its 40th birthday!
Ruth Killius and Thomas Zehetmair, Zehetmair Quartet
"On the 40th Birthday of the Hindemith Institute
The most beautiful thing I saw at the Hindemith Institute was the composer's address book – with his wonderfully humorous scribblings next to each telephone number where he had to wait: Wilhelm Furtwängler, Edwin Fischer…. I wish I could have spoken to him. I would have so much liked to be a number in his book. Now I must be satisfied with the fact that he is in my books – way up at the top. And he really does talk to me. How fortunate this is.
Lucerne, 3 September 2014
Herbert Blomstedt
"Paul Hindemith is considered the last German classicist, but his music is still performed far too rarely, unjustifiably, especially in his homeland. The work of the Hindemith Institute for the distribution of his work is of inestimable value, and it is astonishing what has been achieved during the past 40 years. Together with my wish that this work will continue to open many doors to concert halls around the world for Paul Hindemith's music, I would like to warmly congratulate the Hindemith Institute on its 40th anniversary.
Frank Peter Zimmermann