We’d like to give you some insights into our several projects which took place during the year. Today we will start with “Chamber Music Connects the World” which is held every two years. This project gives exceptionally talented young musicians the chance to play in chamber music ensembles with some of the great instrumentalists of the international music scene.

It also broadens the traditional teacher-pupil relationship by working and playing pieces of music together. Playing in concerts together is the highlight of this formative experience for the participants. Through their personal involvement as “seniors” in this project, great musicians support us in our aim to educate and provide a sound promotional platform for a new generation of chamber musicians.

Ksenia Bashmet participated as a pianist this year and will give some very personal impressions of her experience.

The first thing that I want to say is that I love the place! This kind of small German town – it’s really beautiful! And since the town is so small, when you are going from A to B you definitely meet someone from Academy! I like this very much! It makes me feel part of the team!

Actually I didn’t expect anything special, I just knew that Kronberg is the place where young people are playing chamber music with well-known musicians, so it is true! I played with Gidon Kremer, which was wonderful, but also a little sad, because the piece that we played was short, and we didn’t have much to do … I mean, I would have liked to have longer rehearsals with him, but there was really nothing much to do! Also, I played with my father (which I had done before Kronberg, of course) who is the best teacher in the world and the most important thing for me was, that we stayed in the same place for 10 days and could see each other every day! (it is absolutely impossible in real life, believe me, because he is always somewhere playing concerts!) So to play the Shostakovich quintet with him was amazing!

Everything there is organized for the musicians! There is a timetable, food and drinks in rehearsal rooms, even a pencil is at its place every day! So you don’t have to think about anything but the music!

Also at the same time there the European Soccer cup was taking place and we were all watching games together, which was real fun! I met a lot of nice students there and some of them are very close friends of mine now! Volodya Babeshko, Nils Moenkemeyer, Khatya Buniatishvili – we are all friends now! It is important to have new close friends in my age (28)! With Volodya and with Nils we will have some concerts in Russia in the close future!

I’d love to come back to Kronberg again! Maybe not as a chamber musician, but as an accompanist to your cello and viola projects, because I am really in love with this place and with the atmosphere there!!!

I’d like to thank the whole team for the wonderful time I spent in Kronberg this year! You are doing a great job! I’m your fan now!

Ksenia Bashmet