Orchestra of Cultures
The Orchestra of Cultures , founded in 2010, is an ensemble of professional musicians in Stuttgart . It unites European musical instruments with those from other cultures and, according to the wish of its founder Adrian Werum, should reflect today's globalized society.
The orchestra's repertoire ranges from arrangements of classical works to arrangements of folk songs from all over the world and compositions by Werum to African and Brazilian music.
Instruments and line-up
The members of the orchestra come from all over the world: Germany, Senegal, Peru, Brazil, Italy, Poland, Hungary, Switzerland, Turkey, Georgia, Czech Republic, Spain, Sudan, Lithuania, Czech Republic, Australia, India, Argentina, Iran, Mexico, China and the USA. The orchestra plays in various ensembles , including in chamber music occupation. The orchestra has a number of musical instruments that are otherwise rarely or not at all occupied. In this way, instruments from all continents and the most diverse regions and cultures play together, which are otherwise not usually combined. This combination results in an unusual soundscape for the sound body compared to a typical classical orchestra or big band. Even familiar pieces of music can sound very strange in this line-up and with appropriate arrangements.
The large cast consists of
- 1 flute (also alto flute and piccolo ),
- 1 flute (also saxophones , Educci , Bansoori and other ethnic flutes),
- 1 oboe (also English horn ),
- 1 Ney (also Kaval ),
- 1 didgeridoo (also Vietnamese jaw harp),
- 3 horns ,
- 2 trumpets (also flugelhorn ),
- 2 trumpets ,
- 1 alphorn (also dulcimer ),
- 1 saz (also baglama ),
- 1 kora ,
- 1 sitar (also sarod and dilruba ),
- 3 percussionists ,
- 1 Erhu ,
- 8 violins ,
- 3 violas ,
- 3 cellos ,
- 1 bass ,
- 1 guitar ,
- 1 piano and musical director ,
- 1 overtone singing
and several vocal soloists from the Czech Republic, the USA, Cuba, Senegal, Italy, Austria and Turkey.
Awards, chart placements
- 2013 Manfred Rommel Prize
- 2016 No. 1 in the German Classic Charts with "The world is beautiful"
- 2018 4th place in the German Classic Charts with "A star goes up"
- 2019 place 4 of the European ethnocharts with "Sixt Symphony"
- 2020 place 2 of the German Classic Charts with "You sing my soul"
Appearances
- Appearances on radio and television (HR and SWR)
- Concerts in the Liederhalle Stuttgart
- Theater house Stuttgart
- Congress Palais Kassel
- Baden-Baden Festival Hall
- Concert hall of the UdK Berlin
- Davos Congress Center
- Congress Center Munich
- Stuttgart Exhibition Center
- Music Festival Stuttgart
- Sindelfingen city hall
- Marienkirche Berlin
- Pforzheim City Garden
- Karlsruhe Concert Hall
- Constantine Basilica Trier
- Theater Chur
The orchestra of cultures is institutionally sponsored by the city of Stuttgart.
Artistic Director
Adrian Werum is the founder and artistic director of the orchestra. With the Orchestra of Cultures, Adrian Werum is realizing his dream of an orchestra that lives from the uniqueness of its musicians and its music and reinvents itself again and again.
Born in Mainz, he studied composition with Kurt Schwertsik, jazz piano with Roland Batik, jazz arrangement with Christian Mühlbacher and conducting with Peter Richter de Rangenier at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. While still a student, he became a solo coach at the dance and singing studio of the Theater an der Wien at the age of 21.
Adrian Werum began his conducting career at the age of 24 at the Raimundtheater in Vienna with the musicals Grease and Disney's Beauty and the Beast , before four years later he became musical director of the world premiere of Roman Polanski's musical Tanz der Vampire . For this production he directed both the German premiere in Stuttgart and the Broadway production in New York.
On ZDF he was musical director and arranger of “Musical Showstar”, moderated by Thomas Gottschalk. He directed the orchestra for the MTV Unplugged of "Unheilig". His operetta "Hollywood Diva" has been playing in St. Petersburg with great success since 2014 and in 2016 won the "Golden Mask" as the best new musical in Russia. He has also been Composer in Residence at the Park Avenue Synagogue in New York since 2012.
With the albums “Geh 'Aus Mein Herz” and “Schön Ist Die Welt” and the tenor Jay Alexander, he was number 1 in the German classical music charts for several months in 2014 and 2016. The last CD “Ein Stern geht auf” reached number 4 in the German Classic Charts and the SIXT SYMPHONY composed by him reached number 4 in the European ethno charts.
He wrote the "Kreppel-Lied" for the Mainz Carnival.