Summer Music Academy

Since its first season in 1993 the Summer Academy of Music has been the musical highlight of the cultural life of the region and the most important music event in the environs of the state capital Magdeburg. During the Academy the castle Hundisburg is home for a symphony orchestra consisting of international students who at first run through an intensive and partially public rehearsal and preparation schedule under the conductor Johannes Klumpp. The direction of the Academy represented by Rolf Dieter Arens offers at the same time a series of concerts introducing top-class guests, which are closely related to the monuments on site such as the brickyard or the Andrew’s church. The subsequent Academy concert at the castle marks the grand finale of the entire event.

This concept has stood the test of time since it allowed presenting a diverse programme each year ranging from chamber music over symphonies to jazz and from classical to modern music. However, in addition to the appealing programme it is also the summery and jovial atmosphere of Hundisburg and its historic venues which make the Academy an unforgettable event year by year for the audience and the contributors. The Academy hosts an out of town concert at the Nicolai church in Oschersleben since 2008.

The association KULTUR-Landschaft Haldensleben-Hundisburg e.V. is the host of the Academy. The town of Haldensleben takes responsibility for the basic financing and the federal state of Saxony-Anhalt, the administrative district Börde as well as numerous sponsors in the region support the event.

The artistic direction of the Academy is in the hands of professor Rolf Dieter Arens, an internationally highly appreciated pianist, ex-rector of the Liszt School of Music in Weimar, chairperson of the curatorship of the Liszt Foundation Weimar and president of the Foundation for culture in Leipzig.

The direction of the orchestra is held by budding conductor Johannes Klumpp who has already been awarded various times and acknowledged with several scholarships.

By means of an advertisement the Academy orchestra is annually staffed with students from all over the world.

Rolf Dieter Arens

Rolf Dieter Arens is a well-known pianist performing solo and at concerts. He is the ex-rector and ordinarius at the Liszt School of Music in Weimar. As the chairperson of the curatorship of the Liszt Foundation Weimar he follows jobs at concerts, courses and as a juryman inland and abroad.

Broadcastings, TV shootings and CD recordings are part of his activities as well. He is cofounder and artistic director of the Summer Academy of Music at the castle Hundisburg. Already being a part of the foundation council he was elected president of the Foundation for culture in Leipzig on 11th November 2010.

Johannes Klumpp

Johannes Klumpp studied conducting and viola in Weimar. Due to outstanding artistic achievements in connection with an, according to Franz Liszt, exemplary attitude he was awarded with the Franz Liszt Award in 2006. He has been the conductor of the orchestra performing at the Summer Academy of Music since 2007. He has also led the Academic Orchestra of the Freiburg University since 2007. Competing against 300 other contestants he was able to enter the final of the renowned International Conducting Competition in Besancon in 2007.

His activities regarding concerts have led him in front of various orchestras such as the Beethoven Orchester Bonn, the Stuttgarter Kammerorchester, the Württembergische Philharmonie Reutlingen and the Jenaer Philharmonie. In 2005 he became stipendiary of the conductors forum of the Deutscher Musikrat, where he entered the second support level in 2008. He achieved the first prize as well as a special award for accompanying conducting at the German university competition in memoriam of Herbert von Karajan.

Starting the season of 2009/2010 Johannes Klumpp was engaged as first Kapellmeister of the Musiktheater im Revier in Gelsenkirchen.