Late-Night Symphony with Alexander Iskin at Uebel & Gefährlich | 23.04.2023

On 23.04.23, a special event will take place at the Uebel & Gefährlich in Hamburg. Together with the renowned Ensemble Mini, Modest Mussorgsky’s “Pictures at an Exhibition” will be performed live. It will be a fascinating interplay of music and painting, with the visual representation of the music emerging in real time. The acting visual artist is Alexander Iskin.

Fig. above Alexander Iskin, Photo: Christoph Neumann

The new interdisciplinary late-night concert series for Berlin and Hamburg, Late-Night Sinfonie, fuses club and classical music in a unique and innovative format to inspire a whole new audience for late romantic symphonic music. In collaboration with NDR Kultur, RBB Kultur and a host of internationally renowned partners, venues and artists, the “supersonic soloists” of Ensemble Mini and its renowned conductor Joolz Gale not only present a completely different perspective on orchestral music with their alternative sound world (they perform major orchestral works in new arrangements for mini-orchestra), but also revolutionise the performance of symphonic concerts.

Live painting by Alexander Iskin for “Pictures at an Exhibition” – the fastest exhibition of all time

With the vision of revolutionising the way symphony concerts are performed, Ensemble Mini collaborates for the concert series with various artists from other genres and disciplines such as art, dance, world music and electronic music. In the final programme of the concert series at the legendary Uebel & Gefährlich, Ensemble Mini will be accompanied by the artist Alexander Iskin in a painterly way. Iskin, who proclaimed a new art movement called Interrealism in 2016, stands for pluralism and multidimensionality in art and has been honoured for his works with awards such as the Goslar Kaiserring Scholarship and the New York Pollock-Krasner Fellowship. During the concert, Iskin will paint pictures live to the music of Mussorgsky on an easel specially designed for this concert series called “Stradivari”. The audience can watch Iskin paint on a video screen while listening to Ensemble Mini. Mussorgsky interpreted paintings by Victor Hartmann in his famous work “Pictures at an Exhibition”. For the artist, this concert is an emotional undertaking, as on the one hand he becomes part of the Ensemble Mini and on the other hand, due to family connections to Russia and Ukraine, he is particularly touched in view of the war in Ukraine. The resulting (still wet) artworks can be viewed after the concert.

Prokofiev premiere

Joolz Gale, one of the world’s leading arrangers and OPUS Classic Prize winner, premieres his version for 17 instruments of Prokofiev’s 7th Symphony not only in the 75th anniversary of the composer’s death, but also of the symphony itself. In fact, the symphony was one of his last statements, a simpler and more childlike reflection of Stalin, the dictator who died on the same day as Prokofiev. Hailing from Donetsk, Ukraine, the composer’s 7th Symphony is particularly poignant in this time of war.

Concert, gallery and club in one

Art, classical and electro come together in a unique collaboration with Uebel & Gefährlich, where DJ Nico Stojan rounds off the evening with his iconic electro sounds to accompany Iskin’s art exhibition. The concert format adapts to the instincts of the new generation of concert listeners by offering a completely artistic experience rather than just a classical concert. The event kicks off with Murphy providing mellow Sunday tunes to open the bar.

LATE-NIGHT SYMPHONY V
Live painting followed by an art exhibition and club night

Programme:
Mussorgsky – Pictures at an Exhibition, arr. Gale (30′)
Prokofiev – Symphony No. 7, arr. Gale (30′) Premiere

with Ensemble Mini & Joolz Gale (conductor)
and Alexander Iskin (artist)

DJ-Set Pre-Show: Murphy
DJ-Set After-Show: Nico Stojan

WHERE?

Uebel & Gefährlich
Feldstraße 66
20359 Hamburg

WHEN?

Sunday, 23 April 2023

19:00: Admission with Murphy
20:30: Concert with Alexander Iskin & Joolz Gale
21:30: Pop-up exhibition with Nico Stojan