Impressions

The First Concert

How did the very first Chorin Music Summer concert come about?
Actually, it was no more than an in-house cultural initiative by the Institute of Forestry in Eberswalde to arrange a musical event for its own members of staff - just as in the case of film and lecture presentations. The former Director of the Institute, Prof. Dr. Albert Richter, gave the organisers the task of enriching the cultural life of the Institute.

It was very fortunate that since 1861 the Institute of Forestry had acted as the legal trustees of the monastery ruins at Chorin. Consequently, it was possible to prepare cultural events in our own „house“ as it were, and also in the way we wanted. The accoustics in the church were unexpectedly good, some would say near perfect. The monastery itself is a masterpiece of early Gothic architecture, and much of it, including the soaring brick facade, most of the walls and a surprising amount of ornamental detail, is intact. .The region around Chorin is a nature preserve, and walking in the nearby woods and around the lake adjacent to the monastery conveys something of the peace that the Cistercians were seeking when they chose this spot. The romantically ruined monastery proved to be the ideal setting for classical music concerts. The nave of the church resembles the serious character of a concert hall, while the monastery yard gives the feeling of a relaxed, popular open-air concert.One journalist characterized this with the words:“ There is something special, something unique about these concerts at this venue, a combination of ostensibly august and serious music with cheerful relaxation that is unlikely or extremely unlikely to be experienced anywhere else..... Inspite of the often desperate overcrowding, everybody experiences the music in their own way . That the concert goers enjoy the music is clear for all to see , and they do so in the best of company.“ And a further quote,“Many people who have never been to a concert before have developed a taste for it after seeing one here. From the grass seating area you can quietly withdraw unnoticed before the end of a concert;not that anybody does because it is just so nice here.“

The Proximity of Berlin

Chorin's proximity to Berlin could also be used to attract soloists and ensembles, who could guarantee high-class music. The particular dedication and contribution made by the Erben Quartetts and the Berlin Symphony Orchestra to the development of the music summer festivals can be seen in their willingness to share the organizer's risks and to be active as pioneers.

Event Organisers

Who were and are the organisers ? They were and still are exclusively volunteers who were from the former Institute of Forestry in Eberswalde . They were all employees of the Forestry Institute and included, for example, academics, researchers and laboratory assistants. They could proudly show three main achievements for their years of hard work: consistent adherence to high quality musical interpretation, attractive program and a constantly improving technical and organisational background.All this today can be judged as a considerable success.

In the first phase of concerts from 1964-1969 there was only one concert a year by the Erben Quartet and the Berlin Symphony Orchestra, each concert drew an audience of more than 600 concert-goers. From 1970-1973 there were up to a maximum of four concerts per season with an average of 1,300 visitors. The Berlin Symphony Orchestra stayed as the house orchestra, the Frankfurt(Oder) Philharmonic Orchestra became a house orchestra. Subsequently, such was the reputation of the Chorin Music Summer that many ensembles, conductors and soloists from home and abroad looked to perform in Chorin. To name once again the performers:

  • Staatskapelle Berlin (Orchestra of the Berlin State Opera)
  • Saxon State Orchestra Dresden with the Choir of the Semperor (Dresden Opera House)
  • Kreuzchor Dresden
  • Thomanerchor Leipzig
  • Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra
  • Brandeburg Chamber Orchestra Berlin
  • Jena Philharmonic
  • Weimar Youth Orchestra
  • Kammerharmonie Dresden
  • Berlin Sinfonietta Chamber Orchestra
  • Chamber Orchestra „C.Ph.E.Bach“ of the Berlin State Opera
  • Konzerthausorchester Berlin
  • Wernigerode/Harz Radio Youth Choir
  • Moscow Bolschoi Theatre Violin Ensemble
  • Charles University Prague Choir
  • Latvian Choir
  • Finnish Boys' Choir „Cantore minores“
  • Madrigal Choir Klagenfurt
  • Lodz Philharmonic Orchestra
  • Kattowice Philharmonic Choir
  • Rajko Ensemble from Hungary

The number of visitors increased to an average of 2,100 people per concert, and the tickets both for inside the church and on the lawn of the monastery were invariably sold out. From 1974 to 1989 there were up to 13 concerts per summer season, and this led in 1989 to a grand total of 162 concerts with a total of over 300,000 visitors. Not one single concert date was completely cancelled due to bad weather, and we did have a few bad days!

The Political Changes

(The political changes, in German „Die Wende“, marked the complete process of the change from socialism and planned economy to democracy and capitalism in East Germany around the years 1989 and 1990: Translator's Note)
These political changes represented a special challenge for those behind organising the summer concerts in Chorin. In the former East Germany trade unions had participated heavily in organising cultural activities for their workers, the Choriner Music Summer was a product of this political situation. At the Institute of Forestry in Eberswalde, the union led initiative to offer cultural events to its workers resulted in the setting up and consequent running of the music concerts. With the political changes the Institute was closed. New academic institutions developed to offer training and research in forestry, but they were not in a position to organise the Music Summer.
The author of this article got involved with the soon to be founded University of Applied Science in Eberswalde and succeeded through informal contacts within the University to continue the Music Summer activities on an unpaid / voluntary basis. The previous volunteers were prepared to give their time. But naturally the ways in which cultural events were organised were radically different in the new united Germany, new structures needed to be developed if the concerts were to continue in the changed political situation; this related particularly to the changed technical handling and financial management of such an event.

Sponsoring

The concept of „sponsoring“ had to be developed and put into practice, and so it was. The Ministry of Science, Research and Culture in the Federal State of Brandenburg made annual funding available for the continuation of the traditional series of music concerts in Chorin. In recent years we have managed to attract funding from the following private sponsors.

  • Allianz AG
  • Dresdner Bank
  • Ostdeutsche Sparkassenstiftung
  • Sparkasse Barnim
  • Feuersozietät / Öffentliche Leben
  • Stadtwerke Eberswalde GmbH
  • EWE Stiftung Oldenburg

and many others who made smaller but nonetheless valuable contributions, and helped us particularly in the period of time after the Wall came down in 1989 when the technical costs and fees involved in organizing and promoting the concerts sharply increased.
We were able to keep the ticket prices relatively low and affordable for people who were interested in enjoying the wonderful music but had a rather limited income; we did not want this to be a barrier preventing them from coming to the concerts.The fact that everybody works on a voluntary basis has kept the personnel costs to a minimum.We succeeded in the years following 1989 to avoid a financial shortfall , and we see this as an important success story. Two thirds of all costs can be covered by our income, this represents a very important foundation for the continuation of the Music Summers!

We certainly have attached a lot of importance to trying to keep the special, rather simple character of the Chorin music festival and to avoid it becoming too commercialised. We haven't gone down the road of investing in lavish, expensive technology and comfort.This approach continues to be well received by the public. People stream to Chorin from all directions. Not surprisingly many come from what was West Berlin, but many also come from the old federal states ( this refers to the former West Germany) and foreign countries lying to the West, from where it was certainly not quite so easy to get to Chorin before 1989. The concerts in Chorin have become a perfect example of the success of German reunification and to clumsily translate a German expression; Now grows together what belongs together.

This also applies to the orchestras, ensembles,choirs , soloists and also conductors who come from all over Germany, and from the international music scene. Let's just take a look at the orchestras and artists who have performed in Chorin since 1990:

  • Berlin Symphony Orchestra and Brandenburg State Orchestra (Frankfurt Oder), as well as the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra; remain as house orchestra
  • Berlin Symphoniker, as new house orchestra
  • Dresden Kapellsoloisten – already almost a house orchestra
  • Regensburger Domspatzen
  • Bratislava Chamber Soloists
  • German Opera House Orchestra, Berlin
  • Gustav-Mahler Youth Orchestra, Vienna
  • Prague Symphony Orchestra
  • Polish Chamber Philharmonic
  • St Hedwigs Cathedral Choir, Berlin
  • Berlin Philharmonic Choir
  • New Chamber Orchestra, Berlin
  • Sächsisch- Anhaltische Hofmusik
  • Israel camerata
  • Cracovia Sinfonietta
  • Bach Orchestra Gewandhaus Leipzig
  • Schloß Reinsberg Chamber Opera
  • St Petersburg Chamber Orchestra and Choir
  • Chicago Chamber Orchestra
  • European Community Youth Orchestra
  • Schleswig- Holstein Music Festival Orchestra
  • Camerata musica
  • RIAS Chamber Choir

To mention all the prominent musical directors, conductors and soloists is beyond the scope of this „Impressions“.
The Chorin Music Summer was able to continue, uninterrupted into the reunified Germany and today, after 42 years, can celebrate a total of 650,000 visitors.

Supporting Organisation

A distinctive feature involved in the historical development of the festival needs to be mentioned. From 1861 the Forestry Commission Office in Chorin with its Head Officer, along with the Officer responsible for the ruins in the grounds of the monastery, were responsible for the administration of Chorin Monastery. The Forestry Commission was a partner in the Chorin Music Summer from 1964.

This collaboration was always without any problems and was important for the technical success of the entire Music Summer. There are simply too many people who have been involved to name them all here. However, since the Forestry Commission belonged to a statutory public body it was not really suitable for the application of funding.

For this reason the role of trustees was transferred to the local authority of Britz-Chorin in 1997. Since then the local authority has provided very generous funding and as a result there has been a marked improvement in the infrastructure of the monastery for visitors.You can see this in the building work that has been carried out on the former farmyard.Here the old out-buildings have been renovated to provide a new entrance area, an administration office, a museum and toilet facilities. A good infrastructure is in place to welcome the many guests who come, and to make the whole running of the music summer smoother. The event's organisers are confident the partnership with the local authority of Britz-Chorin will develop and be of benefit to both parties. The local authority has a clear interest in developing the tourism sector in the region and encouraging the local economy. The Music Summer plays and will continue to play an important role.

On that note we hope that all of us together, from the paying public, to the musicians and organisers, can continue this truly marvellous musical event in this wonderfully unique setting.

Prof. Dr. Gunther Wollf
Honorary Chairman of Chorin Music Summer Society

Directions to Chorin Monastery

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