Viola player and conductor Wolfram Christ to lead the 3rd Basque National Orchestra Music Laboratory

Wolfram Christ, former twenty-year soloist with the Berlin Philharmonic, will head the third edition of the Basque National Orchestra Music Laboratory. A total of 27 musicians, all students from Musikene (Higher School of Music of the Basque Country) will be taking part in the master class at the Basque Orchestra Miramón headquarters taught by the highly respected German musician. Six of them, third-year viola students at Musikene, will take an active part in the class, while the rest of the students listen and observe. This is a great opportunity for young musicians about to embark on their musical careers to satisfy their curiosity and hear about the experiences of one of the most internationally acclaimed viola soloists at work today. The third Music Laboratory is offered in partnership with Musikene, as a result of the good relationship between the two organizations.

Wolfram Christ is one of the few viola players to enjoy international acclaim as a soloist. He performs regularly in many countries, his repertory ranging from Baroque to avant-garde. As solo viola player for the Berlin Philharmonic for over 20 years, Christ performed in more than 60 concerts under the baton of such conductors as Herbert von Karajan, Claudio Abbado, Lorin Maazel, Bernhard Haitink and Seiji Ozawa. He is founding member of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra, performing as violist with the orchestra both in Lucerne and on international concert tours. Numerous award-winning CDs document his productive collaborations, including the Grand Prix du Disques for the recording of Debussy's Trios for Flute, Viola and Harp, as well as a Grammy for the recording of Hindemith's Kammermusik No. 5 for Viola and Chamber Orchestra.

In the area of teaching, Wolfram Christ has been professor of viola at the Freiburg Musikhochschule, Germany, since 1999. His projects focus on professionals and students working together to make and experience music. In 2005 he was appointed as artistic director for the Gustav Mahler Music Academies in Ferrara and Potenza, Italy, by Claudio Abbado.

The Music Laboratory is the result of an initiative launched by BNO Principal Conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada as a project aimed at supporting young musicians at the beginning of their careers. In its first edition, which took place in April 2010, several soloists from the Basque Youth Orchestra (EGO) had the opportunity to work under the direction of conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada. Following a number of work sessions, they debuted together with the orchestra in a concert held at the BNO headquarters at Miramón. The second edition took place in March of this year. A group of young conductors from around the world worked with Andrés Orozco-Estrada and then conducted the Orchestra as part of the Miramón Matinées concert series.