Saxon Philharmonic Wind Orchestra

It is a magical moment when the air flows through 30 woodwind and brass instruments and a rich, brilliant sound unfolds. This can be experienced with the Saxon Wind Philharmonic Orchestra with its special symphonic wind instrumentation, which is unique among German concert and theatre orchestras. Since its foundation in 1950, when it was known as the Leipzig Radio Wind Orchestra, a unique sound philosophy has developed. Chameleon-like, the wind players are not only able to imitate the string section, but also surprise the listener with new, fascinating timbres. From the pianissimo of the brilliant woodwinds to the fortissimo of the radiant brass, supported by the rhythmic power of the percussion instruments, the Saxon Wind Philharmonic has a dynamic range that sets no limits to the repertoire: from classical music, jazz, film scores to original compositions, the orchestra delights with fresh programmes and builds a bridge between popular and serious music. This diversity is supported by the various chamber music ensembles, from wind quintet to serenade line-up. Since 2021, Austrian-born Peter Sommerer has been the principal conductor and artistic director of the Sächsische Bläserphilharmonie, setting new accents in the orchestra's musical activities with his refreshing style. Symphonic Concerts The Saxon Wind Philharmonic Orchestra is characterised by a multifaceted spectrum of sound, which is also made possible by the special arrangements for wind ensemble. Both contemporary original compositions and transcriptions of masterpieces of music history are interpreted in a manner appropriate to the work. The various chamber music formations expand the artistic possibilities and enrich the high flexibility of the orchestra. At home in the region - internationally celebrated With the new building of the German Wind Academy in Bad Lausick in 2011 as a rehearsal and concert hall, the Saxon Philharmonic Wind Orchestra found a permanent home. The concert series there as well as in Trebsen, Bad Düben and Oschatz are audience magnets and an enrichment of cultural life in the region. From the 2021/22 season, there will also be a new concert series in Schkeuditz. In addition to the concerts that have been established for many years in the cultural region of Leipzig, the ensemble's appeal extends far beyond the borders of the districts of Leipzig and North Saxony. Due to the orchestra's special status as a wind ensemble and its growing artistic qualities, concert tours throughout Europe, to China, Venezuela or Australia have repeatedly made the orchestra a cultural ambassador for the region.

Peter Sommerer is principal Conductor and Artistic Director of the Saxon Wind Philharmonic and Artistic Director of the German Wind Academy. The Austrian conductor Peter Sommerer was General Music Director of the Landestheater Schleswig-Holstein until summer 2019 and is in demand internationally as a guest conductor. At the beginning of the 2019/20 season, for example, he gave his celebrated debut in Mexico with the Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad de Guanajuato. His debut in South Korea with the Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra marked the beginning of his regular activities in Asia. He has also been invited to perform with the National Radio Symphony Orchestra Bucharest, the Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra and other orchestras in Europe. As a mediator between art and politics, Peter Sommerer, Corona conditioned, will now perform the 1st Symphony by Gustav Mahler in the summer of 2021, with the support of the EU and numerous European embassies, for the first time in the history of Iran with the Austrian Iranian Symphony Orchestra, expanded with musicians from the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra Amsterdam, the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra, the Polish Radio National Orchestra and other renowned European orchestras. For the record label "hänssler" Peter Sommerer conducted the Schleswig-Holstein Symphony Orchestra for a CD production with Scandinavian music, which will be released in summer 2019. His versatility is also underlined by opera productions such as Ligeti's "Le Grand Macabre", Puccini's "Manon Lescaut", Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor", Hindemith's "Cardillac", Verdi's "La Traviata", Alban Berg's "Lulu", Massenet's "Don Quichotte" or Bizet's "Carmen". Innovative and varied concert programmes, from classical-symphonic to "cross-over", have opened up new audience segments and are an expression of its extensive repertoire. The recently performed 1st Symphony (1920) by Eduard Erdmann, for example, has evoked a great national response. His moderations, for example at performances of contemporary works, enjoy great popularity and give the audience a better access to supposedly "difficult" music. Whereby the press attested to him for his New Year's Concert: "Peter Sommerer is not only a spirited conductor of his orchestra, but also a gifted emcee." (shz. 01/2018) He has conducted, among others, the Royal Chapel of Copenhagen, at the Zurich Opera House, the Hamburg Symphony Orchestra, the Bucheon Philharmonic Orchestra, the Philharmonic Orchestra Graz, the Austro-Iranian Symphony Orchestra Tehran, the Brandenburg Symphony Orchestra, the Nuremberg Symphony Orchestra, the Lübeck, Magdeburg and Jena Philharmonic Orchestras, the South Danish Philharmonic Orchestra and also regularly Philharmonic Orchestras in the USA and Canada. His concern to promote young musicians finds expression in his assumption of the artistic direction, as successor to Sebastian Weigle, of the "Junge Philharmonie Brandenburg" at the beginning of the 2018/19 season. Peter Sommerer also teaches orchestral conducting as an artistic assistant at the Leipzig Academy of Music. His time as permanent assistant to Michael Boder from 2002 to 2005 was formative, leading him to such houses as the Vienna State Opera, Saxon State Opera Dresden, German State Opera Berlin and the National Theatre in Munich. He was also musical assistant at the 2004 Salzburg Festival. During this time Peter Sommerer acquired an extensive repertoire of operas by Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss. After several guest conductorships, Peter Sommerer took over the position of chief conductor and artistic director of the Saxon Wind Philharmonic and artistic director of the German Wind Academy in January 2021. 

Andreas Martin Hofmeir, one of the best and most versatile instrumentalists of today, is a border crosser between genres: he is a professor at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg, was a founding member of the Bavarian cult band LaBrassBanda and is successful both as a cabaret artist and as a classical tuba player. Hofmeir plays worldwide as a soloist and chamber musician, gives master classes and workshops at home and abroad, is a showmaster and author. The cultural programme of BASF honoured his versatile artistic work with the Artist Portrait 2018. Born in Munich, Hofmeir found his way to the tuba at the age of twelve via piano, percussion and tenor horn. He studied in Berlin (Dietrich Unkrodt), Stockholm (Michael Lind) and Hanover (Jens Björn-Larsen). Hofmeir won the international tuba competition "Città di Porcia" in Pordenone (Italy), the prize of the German Music Competition in Berlin and the ECHO Klassik as "Instrumentalist of the Year 2013", the latter in each case as the first tuba player in the history of the competitions. Hofmeir was a scholarship holder of the orchestral academies of the Berlin and Munich Philharmonic Orchestras and played with the Vienna Philharmonic, the Gewandhaus Orchestra and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, among others. As a soloist, Hofmeir has performed with the Munich and Bremen Philharmonic Orchestras, the Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Berlin and the NDR Radiophilharmonie, among others. As a pioneer of his instrument, Hofmeir repeatedly enters new chamber music territory: with the harpist Andreas Mildner he forms the duo tuba & harp, with the Austrian violin virtuoso Benjamin Schmid the Schmid Hofmeir HochTief GmbH, and with Barbara Schmelz the duo Tuba & Orgel. With his chamber music formations, each of which is unique in the world, Hofmeir has played at festivals such as the Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival, the Ludwigsburg Schlossfestspiele, the Brandenburg Summer Concerts and the Euroclassic Festival, and has filled the halls of the Berlin and Cologne Philharmonics. In addition, Hofmeir has also been on stage as a cabaret artist for more than twenty years, including as an actor and lyricist for the music cabaret Star Fours and the word cabaret ensemble Die Qualkommission, with which he has won numerous prizes. Together with Roman Deininger he wrote and directed the cabaret evening "Der Ball ist wund" at the Landestheater Linz. He is currently touring with his musical-cabaret reading "Kein Aufwand!". The programme was published as a book and audio book in 2016. Andreas Martin Hofmeir hosts his own cabaret show "Wer dablost's?", in which artists of various genres perform and try their luck on the malodorous tuba antique Rosalinde. Top-class artists such as Olaf Schubert, Konstantin Wecker and Michael Altinger are his guests. With the Bavarian cult band LaBrassBanda, in which he was a helicon player until 2013, Hofmeir was "Winner of Hearts" at the Eurovision Song Contest and stormed the Top 10 in the German charts with "Europa" (Sony). The tuba player is also breaking new ground as a jazz musician. He founded the ensemble European Tuba Power with four of the best tuba players in Europe and plays as lead instrumentalist with his own jazz band. One of his specialities is crossover programmes in which he combines classical music, jazz and cabaret. After acclaimed performances of the cabaret theatre concert "Lackschuh oder Barfuß" with the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Hofmeir conceived the crossover evening "All About That Bass", in which he not only performs as a soloist but also as a presenter, actor, cabaret artist and jazz musician, and which has been performed at the Konzerthaus Berlin and the Gasteig in Munich, among other venues. Hofmeir's musical activities are documented on numerous CDs: On the Genuin label, he released "world premiere recordings" of the tuba concertos by Duda, Näther and Roikjer (ECHO Klassik 2013), the two CDs "Why not?" and "Besser ohne Worte" with the duo tuba & harp, and the tuba concertos by Martin Ellerby and Ralph Vaughan Williams with the Sächsische Bläserphilharmonie under Thomas Clamor. Sony Classical released his solo CD "On the way" with the Munich Philharmonic under Andrew Manze, and ACT released "Stradihumpa", the first CD of HochTief GmbH. In addition to his artistic activities, Hofmeir is also involved in socio-political matters as an ambassador for the Stiftung Bildung (Education Foundation) and the Singende Krankenhäuser (Singing Hospitals) association. In 2019 he was appointed as a member of the Münchner Turmschreiber. Andreas Martin Hofmeir plays B&S brand tubas.