Helge Burggrabe

The work Lux in Tenebris (Light in the Darkness) was commissioned on the occasion of the 1200th anniversary of the Diocese of Hildesheim. The libretto for the two-hour work is a joint work by Helge Burggrabe, Reinhard Göllner [de] and Angela Krumpen. All four choirs at the Hildesheim Cathedral were involved in the performance: the cathedral choir, chamber choir, girls' choir and Schola. The premiere took place with four performances on 14-17 May 2015. Participants in the premiere were Martina Gedeck (recitation), ElbtonalPercussion [de], Geraldine Zeller (soprano), Anne Bierwirth (alto), Manuel König (tenor), KMD Helmut Langenbruch (organ), string quartet, wind trio of the Hildesheim Cathedral Music conducted by Cathedral Music Director Thomas Viezens and Cathedral Cantor Dr. Stefan Mahr; light and video art: Michael Suhr and media.plus X.

A new spiritual work by Burggrabe was premiered in May 2008. The libretto for Jehoshua - Oratorio of the Incarnation was written by the theologian Kurt Dantzer and consists of biblical texts and Psalms. The focus is on the life and work of Jesus Christ, the artistic starting point being the vowels I-E-O-U-A contained in his Hebrew name Jehoshua. The core pieces of the chapters are stories from the Gospels: Jesus heals a blind man, Jesus meets tax collectors, three women and teaches people with the parable of the Good Samaritan.

The creation and premiere of the oratorio were documented in a film by NDR, which was first broadcast on Arte in March 2007.

Burggrabe achieved his own musical language with the Marian oratorio Stella Maris, 8 September 2006. Inspired by the colouring of the windows in Chartres, it is also called the Blue Oratorio In it, Burggrabe, who is also responsible for the libretto, combines texts handed down from Fulbert of Chartres with modern poetry and, on the musical side, medieval compositions with a very contemporary musical aesthetic (influenced among others by György Ligeti).

The German premiere also took place in September 2006 in the St. Johannis Harvestehude Hamburg church. After two performances in autumn 2007 in the Maria, Königin des Friedens at Neviges, the largest performance to date took place in early May 2008 in the packed Cologne Cathedral. The new cathedral window by Gerhard Richter played an important role in the production there. The speaking role of Maria was taken over by the actress Iris Berben in the German-language concerts.

Since 2004, Burggrabe's preoccupation with Chartres Cathedral and with philosophical and spiritual themes has been increasingly reflected in his music. For the project Resonatus, mainly performed in Romanesque churches, Burggrabe combined elements of Gregorian chant and his own compositions for flute, voice and monochord. Burggrabe wrote the libretto with the Benedictine monk Anselm Grün, with whom he later also published the joint book and CD project Zeiten der Stille.

Burggrabe's compositions can be roughly divided into two areas. In the joint works with Christof Fankhauser, his music is primarily characterised by a novel combination of classical music and jazz, often interspersed with improvisational elements that also reveal influences from folk music, klezmer and pop music. Examples of this are the concertante composition Rose - Hommage an einen Mythos (2003) and the children's music theatre project Kinderplanet/Planet Bunterkunt (1999 and 2006 respectively) as well as a joint tour with the crossover cellist Jost H. Hecker from the Modern String Quartet (2008).

Since 1993, Burggrabe has performed throughout Europe with his own concert series, especially in Germany, France, Switzerland and Austria. Burggrabe works in various ensembles, including "Duo3" with the pianist Christof Fankhauser and the duo "Resonatus" with the singer Victoria Walker.

Since the mid-1990s, several projects have dealt with the symbol and cultural history of the labyrinth as well as with the Chartres Cathedral, where Burggrabe's Marian oratorio Stella Maris was premiered in 2006. As a stage designer and landscape artist, Burggrabe built several labyrinths, including two permanent ones in northern Germany.

Helge Burggrabe (born 17 June 1973) in Magstadt is a German composer, recorder player, stage designer and seminar leader.