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Violinist Arabella Steinbacher: angels and demons

21 March 2025

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Pauline Harding hears from the German violinist about her cathartic journey into the darkest depths and brightest heights of Lentz’s Violin Concerto, its pairing with Beethoven on her latest recording and the impact of motherhood on music making

At the Grand Auditorium of the Luxembourg Philharmonie on 15 September 2023, conductor Gustavo Gimeno walks on stage, shakes the concertmaster’s hand and takes a bow. He does not, however, lift his baton when he reaches his podium. Instead, as he adjusts his jacket, the hall plunges into darkness. Suddenly and terrifyingly, a thunderous drum strike breaks the silence that follows. From somewhere far away, a solo violin answers with an array of sounds resonant and deep, fluttering and high, bare and open…

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