ULYSSES Journeys for Composers & Performers – IEMA@GAUDEAMUS

Visibility, networking and exchange, sustainability: that‘s what this collaborative project of IEMA and Gaudeamus Festival is about. For the first concert, emerging artists — members of IEMA-Ensemble, conductors and composers — work intensively on a diverse programme that includes two world premieres. The interactive process kicks off with try-outs in May 2025 in Frankfurt. Emerging composer Yuheng Chen as well as commissioned composer Gijs van der Heijden bring in initial ideas and sketches.

The context of Gaudeamus Festival in particular offers highly professional conditions and an international audience that allows the IEMA-Ensemble to perform in very different formats. For the second concert, the musicians curate a programme where the audience follows defined routes through the halls of Tivoli Vredenburg in order to explore open or hidden spots, listening to contemporary chamber music.

Broadening the horizon and professionalising extra-musical skills: that’s what the network activities of Gaudeamus Festival provide on September 13. Manager and business manager Anna Reshetniak is confirmed for a marketing workshop on September 13 for the IEMA-students. Reshetniak is manager for composer Maxim Shalygin and business manager for Classical NOW! festival. A skilled professional, she is passionate about the arts and children’s music education. Her areas of expertise include artist, ensemble, event, and project management, fundraising, content creation, marketing, as well as both private and group music tuition. 

The workshop is planned at Universiteitsmuseum between 12.00-13.00. Afterwards there is lunch and a get together with international programmers, Dutch-based programmers and artists from the festival.

Key dates

16.5.2025, try-outs in Frankfurt

12.9.2025, concert 1 (lunch break concert)

13.9.2025, workshops, meetings, networking

14.9.2025, concert 2

18.9.2025, rerun concert 1 in Frankfurt

Programme

Concert 1:

Yuheng Chen: new work (world premiere, 2025) 15′

Robin Haigh: Hell Hot (version for violin, piano) (2022/25) 6‘

Golnaz Shariatzadeh: MOM (2023) (dutch premiere) 12′

Gijs van der Heijden: new work (world premiere, 2025) 10′ (commissioned by IEMA and Gaudeamus Festival in the context of Ulysses Platform)

Concert 2:

3 short „route concerts“ in the open Foyers at Tivoli Vredenburg (Programme t.b.c.; Solo and Duo repertoire)

IEMA-Ensemble 2024/25:

Gabriele Mastrototaro, flute

Patricia Pinheiro, oboe

Tomás-Jesús Ocaña-González, clarinet

Jakob Yago Mut-Steinsiek, bassoon

Ling Zhang, percussion

Jiyoon Hyun, piano, keyboard

Sarah Beth Overcash, violin

Leonard Melcher, violin

Anna Jurriaanse, viola (guest, Ulysses journey)

Albert Kuchinski, cello

Begüm Aslan, double bass

Leh-Qiao Liao, conductor

Yannick Mayaud, conductor

Yuheng Chen, composer

Golnaz Shariatzadeh, composer

Gijs van der Heijden, composer

Robin Haigh, composer

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