Carolin Widmann

Carolin Widmann (German: [kaʁoˈliːn ˈviːtman]; born 1976) is a German classical violinist. She focuses on contemporary music.^[1] Widmann plays a violin made in 1782 by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini.

Carolin Widmann
Widmann in 2022
Born	1976 (age 48–49) Munich, Germany
Occupation	Classical violinist
Website	www.carolinwidmann.com

Career

Born in Munich, Widmann studied with Igor Ozim in Cologne, Michèle Auclair in Boston and David Takeno in London. As a soloist she has been conducted by Sir Roger Norrington, Sylvain Cambreling, Heinz Holliger, Riccardo Chailly, Sir Simon Rattle, Vladimir Jurowski, Daniel Harding and Esa-Pekka Salonen. She has collaborated with composers such as Pierre Boulez, Peter Eötvös, Erkki-Sven Tüür, Wolfgang Rihm, Salvatore Sciarrino, Enno Poppe and Rebecca Saunders, who have written several works especially for her.^[2] She has performed with orchestras such as Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre de Paris, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra, Sydney Symphony Orchestra or Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra.

Since October 2006 she has been Professor of Violin at the University of Music and Theatre Leipzig.^[3] From 2012 to 2015 she ran the Sommerliche Musiktage Hitzacker, Germany's oldest chamber music festival.

At the Salzburg Mozartwoche of 2009, Widmann performed chamber music by Boulez with her brother, clarinetist and composer Jörg Widmann, and pianist Hideki Nagano.^[4] She attracted attention with her collaboration in gefaltet, a "Choreographic concert" organised by Sasha Waltz and Mark Andre, with which the International Mozarteum Foundation opened their Mozartwoche of 2012.^[5] A 2012 recording of Schubert's works for violin and piano with Alexander Lonquich received critical acclaim.^[6] With her brother and pianist Dénes Várjon she played a concert at the Rheingau Musik Festival when he was artist in residence in 2014.^[7] Since 2017 she has been a member of the board of trustees of the Ernst von Siemens Musikstiftung [de].^[8]

Carolin Widmann premiered in 2018 Jörg Widmann's Violin Concerto No. 2 at Suntory Hall, Tokyo.^[9]

Awards

• 1998 Prix du President at the "Concours International Yehudi Menuhin," Boulogne-sur-Mer
• 1999 International Violin Competition: "Georg Kulenkampff", Cologne
• 2001 International Jeunesses Musicales Contest, Belgrade
• 2004 Belmont Prize of the Forberg-Schneider-Stiftung for excellence in contemporary music
• 2006 Annual Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik (for the debut album "Reflections")
• 2010 Diapason d'Or (for "Phantasy of Spring"), Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik (Chamber music category for "Phantasy of Spring")
• 2013 'Artist of the Year' at the International Classical Music Awards
• 2014 Schneider-Schott Music Prize of the City of Mainz^[10]
• 2017 Bayerischer Musikpreis [de]^[11]
• 2020 Duisburger Musikpreis^[12]

Scholarships

• 2009 Villa Massimo^[13]

Memberships

• 2021 Sächsische Akademie der Künste^[14]

Discography

• 2006 Carolin Widmann: "Reflections" (Debut album)
• 2008 Carolin Widmann / Dénes Várjon: Schumann – Violin Sonatas
• 2009 Carolin Widmann / Simon Lepper: Phantasy of Spring – Feldman, Zimmermann, Schoenberg
• 2009 Carolin Widmann / Jörg Widmann / Nordic Symphony Orchestra / Anu Tali: Erkki-Sven Tüür, Strata
• 2012 Alexander Lonquich / Carolin Widmann: Franz Schubert – Fantasie C-Dur / Rondo h-moll / Sonate A-Dur
• 2012 Carolin Widmann / SWR Sinfonieorchester Baden-Baden und Freiburg / Eivind Gullberg Jensen: Wolfgang Rihm, Coll'Arco
• 2013 Carolin Widmann / Frankfurt RSO-Pomarico: Morton Feldman – Violin and Orchestra (composed 1979)
• 2015 Carolin Widmann / London Philharmonic Orchestra, Direction Vladimir Jurowski: Julian Anderson: In lieblicher Bläue
• 2016 Carolin Widmann / Chamber Orchestra of Europe: Mendelssohn, Schumann: Violin concertos
• 2016 Martin Helmchen / Carolin Widmann / David McCarroll / Pauline Sachse / Marie-Elisabeth Hecker: Edward Elgar: Piano Quintet a minor op. 84^[15]
• 2017 Carolin Widmann / Orchestre National des Pays de la Loire / Direction Pascal Rophe: Pascal Dusapin: Violin concerto "Aufgang", Label BIS
• 2019 Carolin Widmann / Sergei Nakariakov / Giuliano Sommerhalder [de] / Vocalconsort Berlin / Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks: Peter Ruzicka: ... Inseln, Randlos... for violin, chamber choir and orchestra; Label Neos

References

1. NDR-Kulturjournal, 4 July 2011
2. Biography of her Homepage Archived 22 April 2015 at the Wayback Machine
3. "Carolin Widmann". Askonas Holt. Archived from the original on 7 June 2019. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
4. Salzburg Mozartwoche (1): Jörg and Carolin Widmann, Hidéki Nagano – works by Boulez, 31 January 2009 Archived 21 May 2015 at the Wayback Machine Mozartwoche 31 January 2009, retrieved 19 May 2015
5. Frauen in Flügeln in: Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, 29 January 2012, p.22
6. Wolfram Goertz: So klingt verletzliche Musik / Carolin Widmann und Alexander Lonquich überwältigen mit Franz Schubert. (in German) Die Zeit 18 February 2012, retrieved 19 May 2015
7. Composer & Artist in Residence: Jörg Widmann Archived 21 May 2015 at the Wayback Machine (in German) Rheingau Musik Festival 2014, retrieved 19 May 2015
8. Website of the Foundation, Kuratorium (in German) Archived 29 September 2020 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 6 October 2020.
9. "Violin Concerto No. 2". Schott Music. 31 August 2018. Archived from the original on 1 August 2023. Retrieved 1 August 2023.
10. Hauff, Andreas (2014). "Sonderkonzert "Auf Wiederhören" mit Verleihung des Schneider-Schott-Preises an Carolin Widmann". neue musikzeitung online (in German). Archived from the original on 21 April 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
11. "Bayerischer Musikpreis und Ehrenamtsmedaille für herausragende Verdienste um die Laienmusik in Bayern". Bayerisches Staatsministerium für Wissenschaft und Kunst (in German). Archived from the original on 30 June 2020. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
12. "Preisverleihung Musikpreis der Stadt Duisburg 2020 an Carolin Widmann · Duisburger Philharmoniker". Duisburger Philharmoniker · Spielzeit 2020/2021 (in German). Retrieved 29 June 2020.
13. "Carolin Widmann". Villa Massimo (in German). Retrieved 15 January 2024.
14. "Carolin Widmann". SAK (in German). Retrieved 31 July 2023.
15. "Elgars Spätwerke". Deutschlandfunk (in German). 22 April 2018. Archived from the original on 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.

Further reading

• "Eine Lange Nacht über Vorbilder in der Musik – Glühend verehrt, schmerzlich entzaubert". Deutschlandfunk Kultur (in German). 21 April 2018. Retrieved 23 July 2023.

External links

• Official website (in German and English)
• List of the Schumann Album on MusicWeb International
• Interview on Classical WETA 90.9 Archived 27 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine
• Strap-CD onswr.de